Online Casinos Push Portugal Market Forward in Q2

Thanks to a big bump from online casino verticals, Portugal's market continues to boom through Q2.

The Growth

Thursday's figures from Serviço Regulação e Inspeção de Jogos do Turismo de Portugal (SRIJ) regulatory body yielded a cumulative revenue gain of €48.3m in the three months ending June 30. The gain represented a 29.5% year-on-year vault and more importantly surpassed by €1m the previous record set in Q1 2019.

Licensees

The 11 licensed entities operating online gambling sites in Q2 2019 represented three more than the same period last year, holding a total of 18 product licenses across sports betting (8) and casino (10), five more than the year before.

Sports Betting Revenue

Online sports betting revenue was up 12.4% year-on-year to €23m, with wagering take reaching €112.1m, for a 22.3% year-on-year improvement that was down nearly one-fifth sequentially from Q1 2019.

Betting Layout

Portugal's betting turnover was as usual driven by football, with Portugal’s Primeira Liga accounting for 71.4% of betting turnover, with tennis (16.4%) and basketball (7.5%) a distant third.

Online Casino's Rise

Big driver online casino (including poker) revenue shot up over one-half to €25.3m to overtake sports betting for the first time. The spending total was astonishing, with the €700m representing an massive 214% year-on-year and 91% sequentially.

Slots Contribute

Slots led the charge for online casino verticals, whose 67% share represented a 12 point jump year-on-year, while roulette placed second at 13.5% share and blackjack third with 8%.

Usership

The market’s overall gains belied Portugal's decline in new account registrations, for a 1.6% year-on-year drop and a 23% sequential drop.

Leading Play

Of the active gamblers in Portugal, 49.1% of active gamblers placed only online sports bets in Q2, 35.5% played online casino products, and 15.4% played both.

Government Revenues

The government’s take for Q2 ended up totaling €21m to jump almost a quarter year-on-year.

Controversial Legislative Inertia

The concern in Portugal is the lingering punitive tax on sports betting turnover currently in place, with a new online gambling flat tax still on the shelf, to the continued chagrin of licensees.

Outlook

The Portugal market continues to grow, but a controversy could be brewing on the horizon if the government does not make some effort to see eye-to-eye with all licensees.