Online Gambling Trends 2026–2031

igital gaming is no longer a secondary activity alongside the land-based sector. It has become the primary channel for sports audiences, casino fans, and lottery players who want instant access, fast payments, and products that feel native on mobile.

The Gaminator team constantly monitors the ongoing and potentially new impactful trends to showcase the relevant changes to the gambling sector that push the industry even further. Our experts focus on the years ahead and cover the structural forces that will define 2026–2031.

Market Outlook 2026–2031

The headline figures point to a fast-growing sector with a clear development path. In 2026, the online gambling value is estimated at $101 billion, with an uptrend towards $168 billion by 2031 (an implied 11% CAGR).

Those numbers indicate scale, but the underlying drivers are equally important to understand. Smartphone reach, widespread 5G rollout, and a growing number of aligned legal frameworks across major destinations keep pushing players from cash-based venues and grey sites into regulated digital channels. North America leads global 5G adoption at 72% as of 2026 plans, and China is close behind.

Another shift is the product feel. Live streams, AI-powered odds tooling, and cloud-first stacks now allow experiences that can match, and in some cases exceed, what traditional venues offer. Real-time data also enables hundreds of micro-markets per event, which lifts betting frequency and can raise the average ticket size.

Growth Factors between 2026 and 2031

Four forces stand out in the meantime. Each one pushes scale but also changes how operators build, price, and protect their products.

Digital Technology from Features to Foundation

Modern platforms no longer win with a bigger lobby. Advantage comes from the invisible layer that includes data, automation, and infrastructure choices that let a brand react in minutes, not quarters.

Mobile-first design has turned into the default expectation. Many teams now prioritise PWAs and native apps to deliver near console-level visuals on small screens. 5G plus edge computing reduces latency, which supports real-time betting flows and smoother live dealer sessions.

Cloud adoption adds a different edge. With the right set-up, a business can expand across jurisdictions faster and still meet local data residency rules. That detail is not optional anymore, because regulators place growing emphasis on data sovereignty and consumer protections.

How the technology shift changes operator perception:

1. Real-time personalisation becomes operational, not promotional. AI and machine learning help platforms read behaviour patterns and adapt offers, limits, and content without manual intervention.
2. Latency starts affecting revenue. Faster feeds and quicker bet placement make micro-betting viable at scale, which directly impacts turnover per event.
3. Infrastructure becomes a compliance tool. Cloud choices, audit logs, and controlled data routes help brands satisfy local requirements without rebuilding infrastructure each time.

Regulatory Liberalisation for Audience Expansion

Legal frameworks are now one of the biggest growth levers. Governments increasingly see regulated online gambling as a way to collect tax, reduce untracked activity, and enforce consumer safeguards.

The United States remains a clear example, because it continues to move state by state. The National Council of Legislators from Gaming States has been shaping model legislation that points towards tax bands of roughly 15% to 25% on adjusted gross revenue, which creates more predictability for market entrants.

Emerging regions also show how rules can reshape the landscape. Brazil’s Law 14.790/2023 signals a more mature approach, with requirements such as local headquarters, strong responsible gambling procedures, and an estimated $4.5 billion in annual tax intake. The UAE’s launch of the General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority is another turning point, because it opens a path towards licensing in a region with strong tourism economics and affluent demand.

In Europe, potential expansion also matters. France’s push to legalise online casinos by 2025 hints at a broader market beyond sports betting, with projected revenue from newly regulated activity estimated between $875 million and $1.75 billion.

Live Betting and Streaming

In-play wagering is no longer an add-on. It is becoming the main engagement engine, especially for younger users who expect interaction while watching.

The key mechanism is micro-betting. Instead of one wager before kick-off, players can place dozens across one match and wager on the next pitch, possession, or corner. That design creates many more decision points inside a single event.

Streaming partnerships add further value. Access to official data feeds and league-linked streams supports more accurate pricing, and it creates barriers for new entrants who cannot secure the same integrations. Edge computing and modern content delivery networks help keep the stream and the betting interface aligned, which protects operator margin and reduces disputes.

Payment Improvements to Expand Coverage

Settlement speed, method availability, and compliance posture often decide who converts and who churns. Digital wallets, instant configuration rails, and crypto options can reduce processing times from days to seconds. Blockchain-based transactions also make cross-border deposits possible without traditional banking intermediaries, which helps in destinations where banks restrict gambling-related transfers.

Open banking is another major lever, particularly in Europe and the UK. Account-to-account transfers reduce reliance on card networks, lower fees, and provide immediate confirmation. Buy-now-pay-later and digital credit tools can widen access, but they also require careful guardrails, because responsible gambling obligations apply to payment design too.

What Can Slow Development

A high-growth forecast does not guarantee frictionless expansion. Several restraints show up consistently in 2026–2031 planning, and they impact launch strategy and long-term margins.

Higher Taxes and Licence Costs

Cost pressure works as a filter. It pushes smaller brands out, and it forces larger groups to chase economies of scale through consolidation or selective expansion.

Brazil clearly illustrates the entry barrier. Operators face a 12% tax on gross gaming revenue and licence fees up to $6 million from January 2025 under Law 14.790/2023. Some destinations also layer taxes so heavily that the combined burden can reach around 40% of gross gaming revenue, which can shrink marketing budgets, reduce bonus generosity, or force odds and margins to tighten.

More Cybersecurity and Fraud Risks

Safety is now part of competitive positioning. A weak defence can cause operational loss and trigger regulatory action, including licence risk.

Attack patterns evolve continuously. Account takeover, payment fraud, bot-driven bonus abuse, and identity theft are increasingly sophisticated. Strong prevention requires more than one tool, so many teams invest in multi-factor authentication, behavioural biometrics, and real-time monitoring. That spending can be heavy for smaller businesses that cannot spread the cost across multiple brands.

GDPR remains a major benchmark in how regulators define data protection and incident reporting. That reality adds operational weight for anyone who runs across multiple territories.

Payment Processing Limits

Even with improved methods, restrictions remain, especially in emerging destinations where banks confine gambling transactions. Where cards and bank transfers do not work reliably, an operator must build alternative rails, and that increases complexity.

Crypto can help with access, but it also adds compliance work. Traceability exists on-chain, yet the business still needs clear controls, risk scoring, and reporting processes.

Political Sensitivity

Public perception can have a greater impact on market access than many product teams anticipate. Conservative markets and religious jurisdictions can restrict advertising, limit product types, or delay legalisation for years.

That pressure acts as a long-term constraint. It reduces the number of accessible jurisdictions and raises reputational risk for brands that expand too aggressively.

Segment Shifts and Growth Concentration

The market is expanding, but not evenly. Several formats show clear leadership signals, which matter for product mix and investment focus.

By Game Type: Sports Betting is Leading

In 2025, bookmaking held 52% of the global share. It is also projected to grow at an 11.75% CAGR through 2031, which is the fastest among game segments.

This leadership has a simple explanation. Mainstream sports have a huge reach, and betting often faces fewer legal barriers than full casino products in certain territories. Football remains the top driver, while horse racing and tennis also provide year-round depth.

A helpful proof point comes from Great Britain. The Gambling Commission data shows on-course horse race betting turnover exceeding $320 million from April 2022 to March 2023 (a rise from $206 million in the previous year).

Casino verticals still grow, especially through live dealer formats and mobile-first slot design. Lottery benefits from government alignment and broad familiarity. Bingo stays niche, yet stable in areas like the UK and parts of Europe due to cultural habits.

By Platform: Mobile Becomes Default

In 2025, smartphone and tablet-based activity accounted for 53.65% of revenue share. This channel is projected to grow at a 13.65% CAGR between 2026 and 2031, which signals that most future expansion comes through handheld use cases.

Desktop still matters, particularly for complex workflows and multi-screen bettors. New surfaces also appear, such as smart TV apps and voice-driven interfaces, but mobile remains the primary platform.

Mobile-first design also unlocks device-native tools. Biometrics, location services, and push notifications allow tighter security and stronger engagement loops than many web-first stacks can offer. PWAs play a role as well, because they reduce friction from app store approvals and still feel close to native.

By Age Group: 18–24 is the Growth Engine

In 2025, users aged 25–34 made up 34.10% of the global base. Meanwhile, the 18–24 segment is projected to grow at a 12% CAGR through 2031.

That change does not only mean younger users. It points to product expectations like social mechanics, interactive formats, and smoother mobile experiences. Regulators also respond differently to younger cohorts, with tighter age checks, spending caps, enforced breaks, and other controls aimed at harm prevention.

By Betting Type: In-Play Rewrites Engagement

Live wagering captured 53.40% of the niche activity in 2025, and it is forecast to grow at a 14.85% CAGR through 2031.

The reason is behavioural. In-play turns viewing into participation, which increases session length and repeat actions per event. The technical burden is also high because the operator must manage thousands of concurrent wagers and prevent arbitrage to keep odds accurate.

This is also where streaming and data partnerships matter most. Without reliable feeds and robust risk tooling, a platform struggles to scale live markets safely.

Geography of the Next Big Moves

Regional dynamics show a split pattern. Mature territories produce the bulk of revenue, while newer frameworks deliver the fastest acceleration.

Europe

In 2025, the Old World held 57% of global revenue, which equals about $52 billion. Growth slows as mature jurisdictions tighten advertising codes and introduce bonus limits.

Several countries also focus on channelisation and shift grey activity into regulated environments. Germany’s lighter approach and the Netherlands’ merit-based licensing are examples of strategies that pull activity into legal lanes while protecting tax intake.

Nordic destinations also push harm-prevention methods. AI-assisted risk scoring and enforced loss limits become more common.

North America

This region is forecast to grow at a 15.40% CAGR through 2031, which is the fastest regional pace. The US gross handle is reported to have risen from $93 billion in 2024 to $110 billion in 2025, helped by more states approving mobile sports wagering.

Ontario is another key signal. Its liberalised model delivered first-year receipts above $1.1 billion. Consolidation also accelerates, highlighted by cross-border deal activity and large-scale acquisitions like DraftKings buying Jackpocket.

Asia-Pacific

The region has strong mobile engagement and rising e-wallet acceptance. The challenge lies in regulatory fragmentation.

PAGCOR’s withdrawal from offshore licensing reduced hub capacity. India remains state-driven, with a patchwork of rules that changes the expansion maths by province. Once harmonisation improves, the upside could be meaningful, but the pathway is uneven.

Latin America

Brazil’s launch is a major anchor event. The requirement for local presence, combined with a 12% GGR tax and high licensing fees, makes entry expensive, but the user base is substantial.

Argentina and Colombia show how clearer frameworks can support stable returns, whether regulation happens at the provincial or federal level.

Middle East and Africa

The UAE is the headline story due to the first casino licence shift and a tourism-led investment narrative. Wynn’s $5.1 billion project in Ras Al Khaimah, unveiled in October 2024, is a strong signal for entertainment-based diversification.

Elsewhere, South Africa shows steady performance under its National Gambling Board, while Nigeria and Kenya continue to grow mobile sports betting, often supported through airtime-credit mechanics.

Competitive Landscape with Scale and Compliance

The sector remains moderately fragmented, with large tech-savvy groups and agile regional brands sharing the field. The top five names hold roughly 45% of the total share, which leaves space for newcomers, but only if those entrants bring a clear edge.

Recent deal activity shows how global groups build leverage:

1. Flutter expanded in South America with the acquisition of 56% of NSX Group for $350 million, which linked FanDuel technology with Brazil’s Betnacional brand.
2. Entain invests over $100 million per year into AI-based risk controls, which support tougher AML oversight.
3. DraftKings’ Jackpocket merger integrates digital lottery into a unified wallet to improve cross-sell potential.
4. Kindred uses churn prediction to achieve a 13% retention advantage over cohort benchmarks, which highlights how data science drives outcomes.

Compliance readiness is also a growth tool. Teams with ISO-27001 protocols and multi-jurisdiction audit logs tend to secure approvals faster than newcomers that must build reporting from scratch.

Operators and Suppliers Plan of Action

Estimates for 2026–2031 need a different mindset. The opportunity remains large, yet success depends on execution quality rather than market positioning alone.

Potentially beneficial moves that align with the structural shifts above:

1. Build around real-time architecture. Treat live markets, risk controls, and event streaming as core components.
2. Design payments as a product layer. Prioritise method diversity, instant settlement, and a compliance model that scales across regions.
3. Treat licensing costs as a strategic filter. Pick destinations where tax, fees, and reporting rules match your capital plan and do not chase a long country list.
4. Invest in security as a retention tool. Strong authentication, monitoring, and fraud prevention reduce churn and protect the licence position.
5. Balance mature revenue with emerging growth. Use Europe for scale and stability, then target faster acceleration in North America and selected regulated Latin American markets.

The Main Things about Online Gambling Trends for 2026–2031

The next cycle of iGaming will be defined by how technology, regulation, and cost structures reshape what a viable product looks like in practice.

Key aspects about the trends of future online gambling:

• Market value is projected to rise from $101 billion in 2026 to $169 billion by 2031, supported by an 11% CAGR.
• Sports betting remains the largest game segment, with 52% share in 2025 and a 12% CAGR forecast through 2031.
• Live betting keeps changing engagement, with 53% share in 2025 and a 15% CAGR forecast through 2031.
• Mobile dominates usage, holding 54% revenue share in 2025 and the fastest channel CAGR at 14% for 2026–2031.
• Europe remains the biggest revenue pool, while North America leads the growth pace with a 15% CAGR projection through 2031.

If you want to map the right expansion order, match product focus to regional realities, and plan for audit-ready scaling, the Gaminator team can help you shape a launch strategy that fits 2026–2031 conditions.