The Danish gambling market has experienced a significant surge in August 2024, with total spending of almost DKK 571 million ($84 million). This was up 4.3 percent compared to the same month last year, according to recent data from the Spillemyndigheden, Danish Gambling Authority.
The growth is driven by the online casino spending, which saw a significant boost despite declines in other gambling sectors.
Online casino leads in Denmark
In August 2024, online casino revenue increased by 20.8 percent year-on-year, reaching DKK 299 million. This growth shows the increasing shift of Danish gamblers towards online platforms. The rise in revenue was not only higher than August 2023 but also surpassed July’s figures by 5.3 percent. Online casino spending has been steadily increasing in Denmark, and August’s revenue is closing in on the all-time monthly record for online gambling, set in March 2024 with DKK 309 million.
The increase in online casino spending also coincides with changes introduced by the Danish Gambling Authority. Poker now appears as a separate category under online casinos, providing more detailed insights into the market. This new classification system, retroactively applied since 2012, further breaks down the online casino sector into six game types: gaming machines, roulette, blackjack, poker, bingo, and other.
Betting and land-based gambling face decline
While online casinos bloomed, other gambling sectors in Denmark saw a decline. Sports betting revenue dropped 14 percent year-on-year to DKK 147 million in August, also registering a 1.3 percent dip compared to July 2024.
The land-based gambling sector, including physical slot machines and casinos, also experienced challenges. Slot machine revenue fell by 0.2 percent to DKK 96 million, while land-based casino revenue saw a more significant drop of 12 percent, reaching DKK 29 million. These figures continue the recent trend of declining revenues for physical gambling venues in Denmark, suggesting a broader shift towards online gambling options.
In addition to gambling revenues, the released data on the national self-exclusion scheme, ROFUS. By the end of August 2024, over 51,893 individuals had signed up for self-exclusion, marking a 12.4 percent increase from the same period in 2023. Of those enrolled, 77.3 percent are male, and 66.6 percent have opted for permanent exclusion.
This comes alongside data from StopSpillet, Denmark’s gambling support service. It revealed that young people aged 18-25 are the most frequent users of the service. Since its launch in 2019, StopSpillet has received over 3,200 enquiries, with 37 percent coming from the 18-25 age group.
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