Denmark reports large decrease in total gambling spend – but led by one market only

The Gambling Authority in Denmark has found a large decrease in the total gambling spend compared to the same period in 2024.

The Danish Gambling Authority has shared data for October 2025, highlighting a large decrease in the total gambling spend when compared to the same month last year, led primarily by the betting market. The total gambling spend has fallen by 3.4% from October 2024 to this year.

However, it’s worth noting that this is primarily led by a massive 46% drop in the betting market. Indeed, that was the only market in Denmark to experience a decrease.

In other areas, like online casinos, for example, gambling spending is actually up. Online casinos saw the biggest increase of 24.4%, while physical casinos and gaming machines rose by 6% and 0.6% respectively.

“The statistics show that the decrease for the total gambling market is due to a large fluctuation in the betting market in October 2025 compared to October 2024,” confirms the statement from the Danish Gambling Authority.

These trends echo similar increases reported earlier this year in Denmark, which saw online casino and betting increasing by 21.6% and 6.1% respectively. Looking at the decrease now, it’s clear that it’s only dropped by that much thanks to the remarkable 46% decrease in the betting market.

Why is Denmark’s betting market trending down?

While there’s no one clear answer for why this is, it could be due to reduced sporting interest, economic caution as recessions loom across Europe, or increased competition from digital casino products. Indeed, the latter option could be a logical assumption, considering online casinos have seen the largest increases since last year.

Indeed, studies show that, while physical casinos tend to suffer during economic downturns, players tend to gravitate towards luck-based games, which could account for increased interest in slot games or online casinos, stealing potential spend away from the betting market, for example.

Featured image: Stenbom on Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0