UK online gamblers welcomed the return of major sports in June, resulting in sports betting revenue more than doubling from the previous month.
Figures released Monday by the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) show gross gambling yield (GGY) from real event sports betting hit nearly £217.5m in June, up 115% from the £101.3m reported in May. The figures represent data collected from the UK’s “biggest” operators, who represent around 80% of the UK’s total online gambling market.
The rise in so-called ‘real’ sports wagers took a bite out of all other gaming verticals, with online slots GGY falling 9.6% from May to £166.5m in June, while other casino products slipped 12% to £68.5m. Virtual sports betting was off 15.2% to £9.6m and eSports slid nearly one-quarter to less than £3.5m.
Online poker suffered the biggest month-to-month revenue decline, tumbling 36.3% to just under £11.7m, as active online poker players fell by more than one-quarter from May to June.
June’s active online slots players rose by less than 1% from May. However, those who spun the digital reels placed 5.2% fewer bets in June than May, apparently deciding to devote more of their online wagering budget to real sports events.
The number of online slots sessions that exceeded one hour was down by 5% from May to June, while poker’s decline drove the average online gambling session length down by one minute to 21 minutes. This marked the first overall session length decline since March 2020, when the UKGC began issuing its COVID-19 impact surveys.
The UKGC has been pressuring its licensees to more vigorously monitor customer activity for signs of problem gambling behavior and the regulator noted that customer interactions were up 12% from May to June. However, only 6% of these interactions involved direct contact from staff, as operators are increasingly relying on automated systems to alert customers that their activity may be straying into harmful territory.
ON-COURSE BOOKMAKERS RISE FROM THE DEAD
In other UK market news, on-course racing bookmakers are prepping their re-emergence from a long Covid hibernation. The Racing Post reported that a two-week pilot program will get underway Tuesday at three tracks – Beverley, Fontwell and Kempton – to determine how well bookies can operate while observing pandemic safeguards.
Given that UK tracks still aren’t welcoming punters back onto their grounds, horse owners will be the only individuals eligible to place wagers on their nags. But the trial is viewed as a necessary step to determine what will be necessary for a broader rollout of on-course betting should pandemic restrictions continue to ease.
Owners have been urged to wager on a cashless basis, although the filthy lucre will grudgingly be accepted “in accordance with High Street bank hygiene protocols.” Assuming no new Covid clusters emerge following the initial two-week trial, other tracks will eventually be permitted to join in the retail betting experiment.
