Trends in UK’s bingo market and the big players in the industry

YouGov Global Gambling Profiles data shows that the appetite for bingo has rebounded very strongly since what can best be interpreted as a pandemic-induced slump. Since the dataset first began tracking the datapoint in April 2021, the shares of British gamblers who say they have played either bingo or keno online has risen from 7% to 12%, as of October 2023.

Interestingly, this growth hasn’t come at the expense of offline bingo participation. In fact, engagement with offline bingo has shown a slightly higher rate of rebound, going from 5% in April 2021 to 10% in October 2023. Gamblers are defined as those who have participated in any gambling activity in the past month other than participating in the UK National Lottery.

Not only has the share of those playing online games risen dramatically, but the amount these online bingo/keno players are staking each month has also rocketed. In October 2021, only a third of online bingo/keno players staked over £15 a month on these games (33%). This share has risen to 41% two years later.

The online bingo/keno players are also likelier than the overall UK gambling population to stake higher amounts across all forms of gambling each month. A quarter of them (26%) say they stake over £100 each month compared to just 16% of all UK gamblers who stake that much.

Not only is there disparity in the amounts they stake, but the types of gambling bingo/keno players engage in are very distinct from the average UK gambler. Four out of nine (44%) say they have played casino slots games online for real money in the past month, making it the most popular activity among them after bingo/keno. Other UK gamblers are only about a third as likely to have taken part in this activity (15%). Online bingo/keno gamblers are also three times as likely to have played casino table and other card games online (26% versus 9%). They are markedly less likely, however, to have placed a bet at an online sports bookmaker (38% versus 46%).

Compared to the population of all UK gamblers, females are far better represented within the group of online bingo/keno players. Three-fifths of them are women (60%) compared to women making up just 38% of all UK gamblers.

Another demographic highlight is that they are markedly likelier to belong to the 35-54 age group (48% versus 41%). They are also much likelier to belong to lower-income households (33% versus 26%) and conversely contain a slightly smaller share of high-income members (17% versus 20%).

Spoilt for choice

Tombola (23%), Gala (16%), Mecca (15%), Sky Bingo (14%) and Foxy Bingo (11%) are the five most used websites/apps that these players visited to play bingo/keno games online. This data can be cross-tabbed with statistics on the factors that consumers say help them choose betting companies. The resultant data should be a source of valuable insight for betting brands in order to understand the type of consumers they are most striking a cord with.

For example, tombola is particularly popular among those who say that they choose apps which have their favourite games to play, with a third of this audience using tombola to play bingo/keno. Gala is more popular among the audience who say they choose betting apps that are fun compared to other bingo/keno players on the whole (21% versus 16%). Mecca scores particularly well among bingo/keno gamblers who mention they choose apps that care about customer wellbeing (22%).

Having worked for YouGov for over a decade, Oliver Rowe has advised companies including Tesco and Barclays on their reputation management. He now brings that experience to a sector which includes the betting and gaming industry in his role as global sector head for leisure and entertainment.