Exactly on 1 July 2024, the German gambling regulator Gemeinsamen Glücksspielbehörde der Länder (GGL) presented us with its annual report for 2023, and in it, information about the illegal market was also revealed.

According to the German regulator, the legal gross gambling revenue (GGR) last year amounted to €13.7 billion, of which €3 billion was online. Over the same period, illegal gambling revenue amounted to between €400 million and €600 million.

How much did poker generate?

In terms of legal online gambling, sports betting accounted for the most, up to €1.8 billion. Online poker and online slots together accounted for €400 million. Within the legal market, online gambling accounted for 8% of the GGR and sports betting had a share of 13%.

The report further states that 1,864 websites were inspected last year and of these, 133 were blocked. Of these, 87 were illegal gambling providers and 46 were linked to advertising on the illegal market. 63 operators have shut down their black market services following an order from GGL. However, most of the illegal gambling providers are based in non-EU countries and so continue to operate after the ban from GGL. In addition, the German regulator has also faced 117 lawsuits initiated by various online gambling providers and has also handed out two fines of €50,000.

Last November, a study by Gunther Schnabel of the University of Leipzig found that around 48.8% of players gamble via unlicensed offshore sites. The study estimated that up to three-quarters of online revenue was generated offshore, which deprives Germany of hundreds of millions of euros in taxes each year.

What is GGR?

Gross gaming revenue (GGR) is commonly used by gambling and betting companies. It represents the difference between the amount a player has wagered and the amount they have won.

Source - igamingbusiness, corporatefinanceinstitute, GGL, pexels, publicgaming.com