Online French gambling operators spark industry growth in 2024, amid calls from casinos for ‘regulatory rebalancing and relief’.
French gambling operators reported a 4.7% rise in gross gaming revenue (GGR) in 2024, rising to €14bn. The companies fostered rapid growth for the sector, representing a 12% rise sector-wide, according to annual figures from regulator Autorité Nationale des Jeux (ANJ).
Specifically, online bookmakers in France like Betlcic, Unibet, and Winamax recorded €1.8bn of the €2.6bn GGR total, up 19% on 2023. That’s in no small part due to Euro 2024 and the Paris Olympics.
Speaking at Casinos de France’s AGM, ANJ President Isabelle Falque-Pierrotin said that the sector was in ‘relatively good shape’. However, Casinos de France itself, the professional casino union, painted a different picture in a newly-released statement, highlighting that the growth is not inclusive of all parts of the gambling sector.
In particular, Grégory Rabuel, Chairman of CdF and CEO of Groupe Barrière, stated that only large and medium-scale casinos enjoyed growth in 2024, posing a risk to France’s traditional model of local community financing. Without ‘regulatory rebalancing and tax relief’, the sector risked long-term stagnation despite the short-term growth it’s currently experiencing.
“Unlike other gambling operators, the physical casino sector will see virtually no growth in 2024,” said Rabuel, as reported by SBC News. “Faced with ever-increasing competition and a regulatory and tax environment that still differentiates between gaming operators, we need to support our sector in its transformation. The public authorities must give us the means for growth in order to innovate.”
The future of the French gambling industry
In terms of next steps, Rabuel is pushing for ‘calm discussions’ following the online casino amendment that was put forward by France’s previous government in October 2024, arguing that French casino groups were the best option to form a regulated online casino, with plans already in the works to digitize.
Rabuel also insisted that the country’s casino groups were best placed to operate any form of regulated online casino in France and since they plan to digitise their offerings, “we think it’s only natural that in order to respect the balance between local authorities and land-based casinos, (the) jobs and culture (they provide to French territories), it should be up to physical casinos to digitise” their offerings via the JADE project they have put forward to the authorities.
Featured image: Bonjour Paris, licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0
