Swedish gambling revenue slumps 4.1% in Q2

Swedish gambling revenue fell 4.1% year-on-year in Q2 2020 to SEK5.94bn (£530.6m) with fears the new online casino restrictions will have further complications in H2. Revenue dropped as the financial implications of Covid-19 once again reared its head in the gambling industry, as revenue from land-based operators fell by more than SEK20m (£1.7m) year-on-year. Elsewhere, the number of players who self-suspended by the end of Q2 rose to just over 52,000, marking a 4% increase quarter-on-quarter. The new online casino restrictions, which came into effect post-Q2, include a SEK5,000 weekly cap on player deposits as well as a SEK100 cap on operator bonuses. There are worries that these regulatory headwinds will further impact the revenue generated by licensed firms in the Nordic nation, with the threat of decreasing channelisation also apparent. Gustaf Hoffstedt, BOS CEO, said: “What we can see is an acceleration of the transition from land-based gambling to gambling online. This would have happened anyway, but the Covid-19 situation fuelled that transition. “The Q2 period was prior to the temporary restrictions for online casino. Those were implemented on 2 July. It may have been one of the government’s intentions with the restrictions to safeguard land-based gambling, but I expect that the Q3 figures will show little support for such effect. I rather expect an increased loss in channelisation,” he added. Hoffstedt went on to implore the regulator to continue to battle the black market. He said: “We continue to urge the SGA to investigate the level of channelisation in Sweden, or alternatively to treat the channelisation reports from our association as official governmental documents. Correct estimates of the channelisation is the number one KPI whether a gambling regulation is meeting its goals or not.”