Illegal gambling also thrives in Greece. According to a survey conducted by KAPA Research on behalf of the Gaming Control & Supervision Committee, 900.000 players gambled at least once on illegal gambling events last year, losing at least €1,7 billion.
This number corresponds to 10,2% of the country's population over the age of 17. Of these, 750.000 played illegal Internet gambling and the remainder played illegal 'land-based' gambling. 70% of those who participate in illegal gambling also play legal gambling, while 30% of them bet exclusively on illegal gambling.
According to data presented by the Hellenic Gambling Association (HGA), player losses in illegal gambling last year amounted to 1,7 billion euros.
If this figure is accurate, it is equivalent to 65% of legal gambling in Greece, given that the latter amounted to €2,56 billion in 2023.
Of the 1,7 billion euros lost due to illegal gambling, 1 billion euros is related to illegal online gambling and the remaining 700 million euros are estimated to be traditional gambling (clubs, betting , etc.). The biggest problem of illegal gaming is therefore found in online gaming, which is also distinguished by the per capita spending allocated to these two categories of illegal events.
Last year, each player who played on illegal sites spent 1.194 euros, while each player of traditional illegal games spent 738 euros.
The 55-64 year olds seem to bet more on traditional gambling games, since in these age groups the average annual expenditure amounts to 1.985 euros, while the 35-54 year olds seem to bet mainly on online gambling games where the average expenditure per year amounts to 1.371 euros.
According to the survey, the main motivation for participating in illegal gambling is anonymity (48,37%). Participation in these events usually does not require player identification or occurs in a less rigorous manner.
The second reason for participating in such events is the absence of taxation on player profits (45,71%) and the third factor is the offer of better bonuses (41,63%).
The fourth factor that makes illegal events popular is the better returns that illegal organizers provide compared to legal providers (41,22%) and also, an important factor is that illegal organizers offer ways to deposit and withdraw money that guarantee the anonymity (33,06%).
