iGaming has never been more popular than it is now, thanks to its convenience and diverse range of games. But which countries have the biggest industries? Which places have the most advanced technologies dedicated to iGaming? Which nations have the largest profits and revenues from iGaming?
First, since iGaming is such a broad category, let’s consider what it includes. iGaming can include betting at online casinos, poker, sports, or esports. iGaming can involve real money transfers or formats such as online sweeps coins casinos that use their own proprietary currency as a substitute for playing with cash or chips means you don’t need to play with cash. Taking all these factors into play, here are the top 10 countries with the most developed iGaming industries.
10. Brazil
There aren’t a lot of countries that crack over $1 billion of annual revenue from iGaming, but Brazil manages to be one of them. With just over 100 million users invested in the world of iGaming, this country has a very dedicated user base that has helped lead the way for iGaming and online gambling developments in Latin and South America.
9. Italy
Italy and neighboring regions have been pioneers in the world of iGaming and gambling legislation. For nearly 20 years, Italy has been ahead of the curve when it comes to legalizing various forms of online gambling. This foresight has allowed the country to generate some impressively high revenue, despite having a population that is considerably smaller than other countries on this list.
8. Canada
Canada has been making headlines in the world of iGaming for years now, with its open attitude toward sports and online game betting, and this has been paying off for them quite well. Canada’s overall revenue and engagement with iGaming are only expected to rise over the next few years.
7. France
France exists in a weird state when it comes to iGaming. While online casinos are illegal, residents may still partake in sports and horse race betting, both of which have proven to be very popular. As a result, iGaming as a whole is a multi-billion-dollar industry in France, even without online casinos.
6. The United Kingdom
Similarly to Canada, the United Kingdom has been making legal strides lately towards being more accepting of various iGaming formats. This has seen the emergence of a $5.5 billion industry with a growing user base.
5. Germany
Germany has always been one of the world’s leading iGaming industries and the trends show no signs of this changing any time soon. Mobile iGaming is especially popular here and has been one of the main driving forces behind the Germans’ love of online gaming. With an annual $6 billion industry, they are both titans and innovators in the global arena.
4. South Korea
Out of all the countries that have most easily accepted iGaming into their culture, South Korea may be the best example. Advertisements, billboards, esports collaborations, and other innovative marketing techniques have made the concept of iGaming not only widespread in South Korea but normalized and mainstream. Nearly half of the population engages in iGaming, especially mobile iGaming.
3. Japan
Known for being extremely tech-savvy and cutting-edge (especially when it comes to being at the forefront of gaming), it’s probably not a surprise to see Japan so high up on this list, as covered before. Making nearly $20 billion each year from iGaming, the industry is undeniably in peak form in this nation.
2. China
While its huge population has a lot to do with it, China makes nearly $45 billion from iGaming, with roughly 650 million unique users. This gives them an edge that other countries don’t have, but China also has to contend with censorship laws that can, at times, get in the way. Despite this, the country still manages to be a world leader when it comes to iGaming.
1. The United States
Despite a much smaller population than China, the United States manages to just come out on top, with an annual iGaming revenue of roughly $46 million. Much of this has to do with more states independently either legalizing online casinos or providing more lenient laws on iGaming in general. This has had a huge impact on the demand for iGaming services, including mobile ones. Combine this with the COVID-19 lockdowns, and America saw a huge uptick in iGaming use that the rest of the world is struggling to keep up with.
