German sports betting market set to soar

The German sports betting market may be roiled by legislative confusion, but it holds out the promise of big rewards for operators, according to a new study from the independent research and analysis company Gold Media.

The study of land and online gambling potential predicts that by the end of 2016 the German sports betting market will be worth Euro 5 billion or more…a significant Euro 300 million rise from the end-2015 figure, thanks in part to the currently running Euro 2016 football championship.

To give some perspective on the impact of Euro 2016, bear in mind that UEFA has recently estimated that wagers on this year’s football extravaganza will reach new heights at Euro 68 billion.

Gold Media has taken into account both licensed and “grey” unlicensed activity in the market, predicting that the “grey” operators will deliver the lion’s share of the betting bonanza at Euro 4.9 billion.

The study predicts that the German government will gather in tax revenues on sports betting of around Euro 250 million, with almost all of it coming from “grey” unlicensed companies who have nevertheless elected to pay tax (in the hope of eventually getting a licence once the lawmakers have cut through the legislative obstacles that continue to restrain development in the market).

That development has continued in spite of the muddled efforts of German lawmakers, with Gold Media calculating a creditable “grey” market growth rate of 12.1 percent annually since 2012 despite the dithering in political circles.

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