South Africa’s gambling industry has just hit an all-time high, breaking records and possibly even breaking a few piggy banks along the way. In the 2023-24 financial year, gross gambling revenue (GGR) soared to a staggering ZAR59.3bn (£2.58bn/€3.07bn/$3.37bn). That’s a massive 25.7% leap from the previous year’s ZAR47.12bn. You can almost hear the sound of cash registers ringing across the country.
Sports Betting Takes the Crown – Again
No surprises here—sports betting continues to reign supreme in the South African gambling scene, leaving other forms of gambling in its shadow. Racking up ZAR35.91bn, sports betting alone accounted for a jaw-dropping 60.5% of total GGR. And get this—revenue from sports betting surged by 51.2% compared to last year. It’s not just a win; it’s a blowout.
But the real star of the show? South Africa’s online sports betting. Despite only being legal in five provinces—Northern Cape, Western Cape, Mpumalanga, Limpopo, and North West—this sector brought in ZAR28.97bn, or nearly half of all gambling revenue. Who needs retail betting when you’ve got the convenience of placing wagers from your couch?
Still, for the traditionalists, retail sports betting held its own, contributing ZAR6.94bn to the pot. That’s 19% of all sports betting revenue and 11.7% of the total gambling market. The numbers don’t lie: South Africans love their sports and love betting on them even more.
Other Gambling Types Stay in First Gear
While sports betting is out here breaking records, other forms of gambling seem to be hitting cruise control. Casinos, the second-largest contributor to GGR, brought in ZAR17.36bn—barely moving the needle from last year’s total, with a meagre 0.1% increase. It’s the gambling industry’s equivalent of showing up but not really trying.
Limited payout machines (LPMs), those quirky little devices that offer capped bets and prizes, didn’t have the best year either. Revenue from LPMs fell 1.9%, bringing in just ZAR4.15bn. Meanwhile, bingo saw a tiny bump, rising by 2.4% year-on-year to ZAR1.89bn. It’s not exactly a windfall, but bingo fans can at least celebrate a small win.
Players Are Spending Like Never Before: ZAR1.14 Trillion Wagered
If you think the revenue numbers are impressive, wait until you hear how much was wagered. South Africans collectively threw down ZAR1.14 trillion on gambling in the 2023-24 financial year—a mind-blowing 40.2% jump from last year’s total of ZAR815.11bn. It’s like the country’s gambling industry was put on steroids.
Unsurprisingly, sports betting took the lion’s share of that, with a staggering ZAR761.26bn wagered—66.6% of all bets. That’s more than double the size of some countries’ entire economies. The National Gambling Board didn’t feel the need to break down this number between online and retail bets—perhaps because its sheer size was enough to leave them speechless.
Meanwhile, casinos were responsible for ZAR297.42bn in wagers, or 26% of the total. LPMs and bingo accounted for ZAR53.74bn and ZAR30.27bn, respectively—small potatoes compared to the sports betting juggernaut.
Western Cape Leads the Pack
When it comes to which province raked in the most cash, Western Cape takes the crown. With ZAR18.79bn in revenue coming from ZAR353.19bn in player bets, it’s clear that this region is a gambler’s paradise—especially since it’s one of the few provinces where online sports betting is legal. No wonder it’s at the top.
Gauteng, the most populous province, comes in second with ZAR13.10bn in revenue from ZAR173.7bn in wagers. Meanwhile, Mpumalanga took the bronze medal in terms of revenue despite pulling in the highest number of wagers—ZAR359.34bn. Not bad for a province that many might overlook on the gambling map.
A Golden Year for the Taxman
Of course, where there’s money, there’s tax. South Africa’s government collected ZAR4.84bn in gambling taxes over the 12-month period, with half of that (ZAR2.41bn) coming from sports betting alone. Online betting taxes contributed a cool ZAR889m to the pot, making it clear that the digital revolution in gambling is also a boon for the country’s tax revenue.
