Latest Report by The UK Gambling Commission Shows Decline In Online Gaming For June

Last updated on February 13th, 2024

The UK Gambling Commission reports a decline in almost every online gaming sector during June. As per the report, there is an overall drop of 7% in GGY(gross gambling yield). Moreover, slots are one of the most affected and report a decline in GGY of 14%, or down to $251m (£181m). In addition, total bets notice a 10% GGY decrease.

From here, it is easy to see why the plus one-hour online slots sessions notice a 9% drop. Particularly, the average duration for one session is down to 19.3 minutes, with only 8% of the sessions lasting more than an hour.

According to the Commission, this situation is not a surprise. Especially if you consider that land operators opened their shops just a few months ago. In an official statement the Commission stated the following:

The operator data reflects the period between March 2020 and June 2021, inclusive, and covers both online and, where relevant. Some offline gambling operator data, noting that land-based premises have only recently been able to open since closing in December. It is not advisable to make year-on-year comparisons between months in 2020 and months in 2021. Due to differing operating circumstances of 2020 and 2021.

UK Gambling Commission Official Statement

Yet, at least one positive is the fact that there is a 4% increase in active players for June. Although most can agree that those are temporary players due to the EURO 2020 Championship.

One of the ways the UK Commission battles this online gaming decline for June, is via incentives in order to stimulate various gambling operators. In part of the statement it is clear that the pandemic plays a crucial part in the decline in GGY:

We recognize that the country is now entering a different phase as we continue to ease out of lock-down. We continue to expect extra vigilance from operators as consumers are impact in different ways by the circumstances. 

UK Gambling Commission Official Statement

Yet it is only fair to mention that the drop in gaming decline as reported by the United Kingdom Gambling Commission is just another one of the many industries that are suffering as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. In fact, if we take a detailed look into the effects of the pandemic over the entire world, there are only a handful of industries that were not affected by COVID-19, and even fewer that have actually made a profit and reported an increase in revenue. For now, all we can do is sit back and wait for better days.