Portugal reports 33% rise in GGR for Q1 2024
Regulator SRIJ sees double-digit growth in both igaming and sports betting verticals as well as a spike in new player registrations
Portugal’s regulator, SRIJ, has reported 33% year-on-year (YoY) growth in gross gaming revenue (GGR), with the figure standing at €260.9m (£221.6m) for Q1 2024, for the market’s licensed operators.
GGR increased €64.5m from the previous year and €33.6m from the last quarter, a 14.8% jump.
Sports betting revenue stood at €100.6m for Q1, a 17% YoY rise and 38% increase from Q4 2023. There was a 30% YoY jump in the number of sports bets placed for the first three months of 2024, with an 8% increase from the final quarter of 2023.
Casino revenue stood at €160.3m, rising 44.8% YoY and up 3.7% from the previous quarter. The volume of bets placed also rose 46% YoY and 2.4% from Q4.
Football was the most bet-on sport at 72.4%, with the Portuguese Primeira Liga being the most popular of all sporting competitions with 14.3% of all bets placed.
Spain’s La Liga, England’s Premier League and Italy’s Serie A took the next three spots as most popular competitions to bet on at 8.2%, 7.6% and 6.7% respectively.
Tennis (14.1%) and basketball (9.6%) were other popular sports that players bet on during the first quarter of the year.
Online slots were the most popular casino game for players, coming in at 82.2%, with French roulette second at 6.6% and blackjack third at 5%.
During the period, 236,200 players self-excluded which was a 42% YoY rise from the same quarter last year.
There was a 16% YoY jump in total players in Q1, with the figure standing at 4.3 million. Of those players, 304,100 were new registrations – a 28% YoY rise.
During Q1, the SRIJ handed out 50 notifications for closure to illegal operators while blocking 143 websites.
EGR recently analysed the Portuguese market following its record quarterly high revenue for Q3 2023.