French gaming regulator L’Autorité Nationale des Jeux (ANJ) reported that gross betting revenue (GGR) generated by its licensees in 2022 reached a record €12.9 billion. Almost two-thirds of the betting revenue was generated by the two big monopolies, lottery operator Française des Jeux (FDJ) and horse racing betting operator Pari-Mutuel Urbain (PMU). They generated revenue of €8.2 billion in 2022 – 64% of all GGR – as the retail sector recovered from the impact of Covid-19 restrictions in previous years.
In a statement, the ANJ said the following: “These activities show a remarkable level of global growth compared to last year, benefiting from an environment that has normalized – with the reopening of almost all points of sale since June”.
Lottery revenues increased by 10.2% year-on-year to €5.6 billion, and land-based casino revenues increased by 130% to €2.5 billion, just above the 2019 total of €2.4 billion. Revenue from online gaming increased by 0.8% to €2.18 billion, with 64% coming from sports betting, 20% from online poker and 16% from horse racing.
Sports betting reached €1.38 billion from a record stakes of €8.3 billion, while online poker generated €442 million. Online casino games are not regulated in France, but last week Philippe Latombe, from the Democratic Movement Party, presented a bill to regulate the sector.
Bill 1248, which will be analyzed by the National Assembly, proposes a five-year period during which regulated online casinos in France would be offered only by existing national operators.
Article 2 establishes the end of this period as January 1, 2030, after which the market would be opened to international operators. The rationale for this is to protect existing operators and allow for a stable market launch before full opening to competition.
