Gambling Revenues Hit New High as Online Betting Takes Off

The global gambling business pulled in $273 billion this year, which broke previous records as more people bet online and new casinos opened worldwide. Industry watchers say the money could jump to $360 billion by 2030. That growth comes from people who gamble on their phones, new states that allow sports betting, and countries that loosen old gambling bans. Americans who live in states where online casinos cannot operate legally have found workarounds. Are sweepstakes casinos legal is searched thousands of times monthly as these sites spread to 48 states. These are not regular gambling sites. They use fake money called Gold Coins for fun games and Sweeps Coins that players can cash out for real money. Since people do not have to buy anything to play, the sites claim they run contests, not gambling operations. That lets them dodge the laws that block real online casinos in most states. Players get free coins daily and can buy coin packages if they want more chances to win. Regular casinos benefit from people who have more money to spend on entertainment. Workers in many countries saw their wages go up after the pandemic ended. More young adults prefer to gamble on phones instead of traveling to physical casinos. Casino companies also upgrade their slot machines and table games with better graphics and sound. Asia makes the most money from gambling worldwide. Macau brought in $22.8 billion last year, which beat Nevada by almost $8 billion. Singapore runs two big casino resorts that made $3.6 billion together. Japan will open its first casino in Osaka soon. Officials there expect it to make $3.6 billion per year by 2030. Online gambling grows much faster than traditional casinos. Digital sites should collect between $153 billion and $169 billion by the end of the decade. Sports betting accounts for more than half of all online gambling revenue. People also like live dealer games that stream real casino action to their phones. Big companies keep buying smaller competitors to expand their business. Apollo Funds paid $6.3 billion to buy parts of International Game Technology this year. Casino operators also move into new countries across Latin America and Africa, where more people get internet access. American casinos had their best start to any year on record. Commercial gaming revenue reached $25.11 billion through April, which topped last year by 6.2 percent. Both land-based casinos and online sites helped drive the increase. Government rules vary widely between states and countries. Some places put stricter limits on gambling ads and player protection. Others get rid of old bans on gambling to collect more tax money. These changes create opportunities for casino companies, but they add costs to follow new rules, too. Industry experts predict gambling will keep growing through 2030. Mobile phones make betting more convenient, while new payment methods speed up deposits and withdrawals. More governments also see gambling as a way to boost tax revenue without raising other taxes. This is sponsored content.