Driven by Sports Betting, France Maintains Stable Growth for 2019 After Strong Q4

Published March 3, 2020 by Lee R

The French regulation structure is stable, consistent and getting more deeply entrenched.

A boost in sports betting contributed to growth in France for 2019.

Growth Figures

The overall growth figure was 18.1% year-on-year to €1.42bn in 2019; the sports betting vertical contribution was up 27.3%.

ARJEL Domination

L’Autorité nationale de régulation des jeux en ligne (ARJEL) reports that sports betting dominated French iGaming take for the year at €880m despite no major football tournaments.

Sports Bets

Sports bets turned in record €5.06bn total for a 30% jump year-on-year; the majority of stakes came on fixed-odds bets (€14m).

Accounts

Active sports betting accounts rose 6.7%.

Horse-Racing

Horse racing revenue grew 5.9% to €271m, with player stakes rising 5.4% to €1.11bn for the highest amount staked since 2012. The main driver of this growth was increased player activity, with active accounts up 1.9% to 599,000.

Online Poker

Online poker revenue grew 5.4% to €272m: €88m came from cash games, and €184m from poker tournaments. The 1.2m active poker players in the country in 2019 hiked rates 5.5%.

Taxes

The total of €701m in 2019 gambling taxes was paid primarily from sportsbook licensees. Sports betting contributed €470m, followed by horse racing's €145m; and poker's €86m.

Q4 saw revenue grow 9.1% to €378m.

Verticals

The biggest earning vertical for Q4 was sports betting at €215m, on stakes of €1.06bn.

Football Leads

Football remained the most popular sport for punters at €846.4m in stakes, with €125.2m placed on the UEFA Champions League and €124.8m on Ligue 1. Pre-match betting was the most popular form.

Live Betting Impact

Live betting proved was popular in the second most popular betting sport, the NBA, where punters staked €271.9m. Of €171.8m placed, in-play accounted for 40% of basketball bets.

Other Sports

Bettors staked €187.1m on tennis, with the Paris Masters most popular; €57.1m was bet on rugby union, including €27.3m on the Rugby World Cup. Ice hockey (€53.7m) and volleyball (€23.7m) followed.

Outlook

As a leading economy, stable growth from France benefits iGaming adaptation across the globe.