The sports betting industry in Germany is experiencing a boom. Turnover is rising and providers are generating new record sums from year to year. Betting shops cannot be overlooked in city centers, online app stores serve up a huge range of products – and even national goalkeeper Oliver Kahn was an advertiser for one of these companies for years. Sports betting has become mainstream, so to speak. However, most of the providers themselves are not based in Germany, but in tax havens such as Malta, Gibraltar or the Isle of Man. A look at the industry’s turnover shows the potential of gambling. While betting providers generated less than two billion euros nine years ago, this figure had almost quintupled to more than nine billion euros by 2019. It is a fast developing industry after all. To follow the latest developments Discover Vave casino Latest News.
Estimations
Experts estimate that between 75 and 90 percent of the money is distributed back to the players as winnings. Nevertheless, more and more is being earned. This is why tax revenues are also rising – even if they only make up a fraction of turnover.
Betting on soccer is particularly profitable. Players place more than half of all bets on football. Champions League, Bundesliga, 2nd division, DFB Cup, yellow cards or goalscorers: When the ball is rolling, the rouble is also rolling in the betting shops and on cell phones. Tennis follows in second place, albeit at a considerable distance. Equestrian sport is rather insignificant at two percent, as are boxing and Formula 1: motor sport accounts for just one percent of bets.
Research
Gambling research has found that gambling halls are more likely to be found in socio-economically disadvantaged locations than in expensive residential areas. In addition, unemployed people and men are disproportionately likely to be found there. In many places, sports betting is also integrated into a certain milieu: The proportion of players with an immigrant background is higher. At the same time, fewer people with higher educational qualifications take part in betting – even though people from all levels of education generally bet. Experts explain the imbalance by the fact that, on the one hand, money can be earned quickly and easily with sports betting and, on the other hand, presumably those who do not have a job bet more often.
The Outlook
The Federal Center for Health Education has determined that more than 400,000 people in Germany have a clearly critical gambling behavior. Half of them are considered pathological gamblers. There, and overall, it is mainly men who tend to bet on sports. However, three percent of women in Germany have also placed a sports bet. Looking at gambling as a whole, the gender difference is smaller than for sports betting alone. Furthermore, the probability of having taken part in gambling increases with age, with more than one in three 16 to 17-year-olds having gambled at least once.
Comparison
In an international comparison, however, the desire to bet on sports in Germany is rather weak. The Chinese bet the most. Although gambling is officially banned in the People’s Republic, there are alternatives such as the Internet or the Macau Special Administrative Region, where casinos are permitted.
Despite the lower prevalence of sports betting, it is a lucrative business here too, as the rising turnover figures show. According to the German Sports Betting Association, there are between 5,000 and 6,000 betting shops in Germany and the industry employs more than 25,000 people. However, this also means that the attractive locations for betting shops are spread out and, according to experts, the market is considered to be exhausted.
Other EU countries
It is important to know that private providers of sports betting beyond the state brand Oddset were illegal for a long time under German law. Licenses have since been issued. The fact that there are still numerous betting offices of other providers is due to the fact that their operators are based in Malta, for example – where less strict rules apply to them – and invoke the freedom to provide services within the EU from there. Regulatory authorities have therefore often failed in their attempts to close betting shops by decree. Researchers speak of a complex web of building law, criminal law and freedom to provide services, which the providers used to their advantage. Betting shops reopened days later with a different name and under a new operator.
A new Interstate Gambling Treaty, which is expected to come into force at the beginning of July this year, is intended to shed light on this gray area. The federal states have agreed to tolerate private providers. Observers warn that the unscrupulous are now gaining. “Anyone who abides by the law is an idiot,” says one observer who does not wish to be named.
Behind the new state treaty is the state’s attempt to regain control of the sports betting market – also to prevent gambling addiction. For this reason, a maximum of 1,000 euros in bets is planned that a player may spend per month. However, a complex digital infrastructure is required to track the stakes, so it is likely to be years before this rule can be enforced. The state also wants to prevent drug money from being laundered in betting shops.
The agreement also stipulates minimum distances that must be maintained between betting shops and children’s and youth facilities. These vary from state to state, but are generally based on 500 meters. However, existing betting shops do not have to adhere to these distances. Observers are annoyed that betting shops opposite schools, for example, are being legalized after the fact.