Online gambling rates have declined in Sweden since the Covid-19 outbreak, according to new data from Spelinspektionen, the country’s gaming authority.
Overall betting and gaming turnover in March and April was down 5.9 percent and 5.4 percent year-on-year respectively, according to iGamingBusiness.com. In January, by contrast, online gaming turnover was up 21 percent, and in February, a 9 percent increase was recorded.
The authority pointed out that the comparisons may be affected by the fact that Sweden’s market only opened at the start of 2019.
Casino play increased, but the decline in sports betting pulled that overall numbers down 6 percent for the year to date.
“Virtually all betting activities except horse racing ceased in the middle of March, when most major sporting events were canceled as a result of the coronavirus pandemic,” Spelinspektionen said. “An example of this is the turnover of two major gaming companies with a focus on betting decreased significantly by 40 percent and 51 percent in March 2020, compared to March 2019.
“Several of the larger companies that are more focused on online casino games fared significantly better. As a whole, the category of online gaming and betting sales decreased by 6 percent in March 2020 compared to March 2019.”
However, the authority added that 55 percent of online licensees reported growth in turnover for March, while 58 percent did so in April.
On June 1, new rules around iGaming, endorsed by Sweden’s Minister for Health and Social Affairs Ardalan Shekarabi, will come into effect; the rules, which have drawn fire from operators and the European Gaming and Betting Association, include a SEK5,000 (US$495) weekly deposit limit and a SEK100 cap on bonuses. Ostensibly designed to boost player protections, Spelinspektionen says they could help keep illegal operators in business.
“The proposed rules may affect key parts of the licensees’ technical systems,” Spelinspektionen said. “These changes can be both time-consuming and require re-certification of the systems. This entails a great risk that many licensees will not be able to meet the new requirements within the proposed time.”
The authority added that players could deposit far more than SEK5,000 in a single week through playing with multiple operators. It said that it was “not possible” to institute a national register or deposits or losses in order to monitor player activity between operators.
