Gross online gaming revenue in Portugal reached €266.3 million (£220.9 million/US$273.8 million) during Q3. This surpasses the third quarter of 2023 by 23.7% and the previous quarterly record, set in the second quarter of 2024, by 1.7%.
Online casino revenue in Portugal reaches record €175.1 million
Data from the regulator Gaming Regulation and Inspection Service (SRIJ) shows that this increase was driven by the online casino segment. Here, gross revenue increased by 31.2% year-on-year to an all-time high of €175.1 million. This also exceeded Q2 revenue by 10.5%.
Spending on online casino games reached €4.87 billion in the third quarter, another new record and a 33.7% increase compared to 2023, as well as 11.6% more than the second quarter.
As has been the case for some time now, slots remain by far the preferred online casino game in Portugal. Slots attracted 80.4% of all bets during Q3, ahead of French roulette at 6.1%, French Bank craps at 5.5% and blackjack at 4.5%.
Sports betting revenue falls compared to the previous quarter
Although the online casino market continues to show steady growth, SRIJ has observed a decline in the sports betting segment.
In the 3rd quarter, online sports betting revenue totaled €91.2 million. This beats the previous year by 11.4%, but is 11.7% below the €103.3 million reported in Q2 2024.
Spending on sports betting rose 23.8% year-on-year to €483.4 million. Interestingly, this is also 4.6% higher than in Q2, but it was not enough to increase revenue compared to the previous quarter.
Football attracted 72.7% of all online sports bets in Portugal during the 3rd quarter. Tennis came in second with 21.2%, while the remaining 6.1% was split between other sports.
More than 4.5 million Portuguese people play online
Looking now at player behavior in the 3rd quarter, around 4.5 million people bet online during the period. In other words, this is an increase of 16.9% compared to the same period in 2023 and also 3.4% ahead of the 2nd quarter.
Around 269,800 new registrations were reported in Q3, while 117,400 players canceled their online gaming accounts. The 25-34 age group continues to be the most active online, with 34.3% of all registered players. However, the group with the highest percentage of new registrations in the 3rd quarter (30.9%) was players aged 18 to 24.
Around 47,600 players chose to self-exclude during the quarter, while 28,600 users reached the end of their exclusion period. As such, the total number of consumers excluded by the end of Q3 was 276,200, an increase of 40.5% year over year.
Additionally, regulator SRIJ noted that it has issued 47 website closure notices for violating local regulations.
Signs of improvement for gambling in physical establishments
Turning now to the land sector, gross revenue in the 3rd quarter reached €75.9 million. This is just 0.3% behind the previous year and 19.1% above Q2 2024.
Land-based slot machines again attracted the most revenue at €56.1 million, although this was 2% lower year-on-year. The remaining €19.9 million came from casino games and bingo, an increase of 4.9%.
American roulette was the main source of revenue in the latter category, with €7.1 million, an increase of 22.8%. Finally, SRIJ also saw increases in blackjack and poker.
