AFJEL, the Association Française du Jeu en Ligne, has published a new report. The report is about the performance of the legal betting market of France during the Euro 2024. The mixed results suggest that the country might be losing the war on illegal gambling.
The AFJEL report reveals surprisingly low or even declining figures. This is in comparison to previous iterations of the championship. Compared to Euro 2021, the volume of bets stagnated. It shows a lack of growth in bets for 3 years.
Moreover, the total bets were 25% lower than they were during the 2022 World Cup. The AFJEL pointed out that they were 50% lower than the estimates announced by the ANJ to put these figures into perspective. It had forecast a record-breaking figure of up to EUR 1 billion in bets.
Despite the French national team reaching the semi-finals of Euro 2024, authorities recorded alarmingly low figures. Furthermore, the figures recorded in France don’t align those recorded in other European markets where betting activity spiked.
The decreasing number of legal wagers in the country seems to prove the outflow of punters into the illegal market. For example, there was a 5.3% decline in the total number of players in 2023. This suggests lower channelization rates.
French gamblers have become increasingly more likely to bet with black market operators rather than selecting the legal alternative. This is despite of the efforts of the French regulators to get the matter under control.
However, the black market offers none of the safeguards provided by licensed gambling companies. This exposes players to higher risks of gambling harm.
The lack of evolution within the legal iGaming market has been pointed out by the AFJEL. It has been offset by the rapid growth of the illegal market.
