Responsible gambling is key to SA betting industry sustainability

• You can’t watch your favourite sport, be it a Betway Premiership game, a sold-out Springbok test, an English Premier League clash featuring Arsenal, or a Betway SA20 game, without seeing advertising for sports betting or an online casino game.
• We have gotten so used to it that we have accepted it as part of our everyday lives.

The sports betting and online casino industry has seen rapid growth since the Covid pandemic with an ever-expanding and engaging audience that transcends race and gender with a 40% increase year-on-year between 2019 and 2023, contributing hundreds of millions of Rand to the South African economy and providing employment to thousands of South Africans.

Ladies and gentlemen, that trend is not going to change anytime soon. The days of grannies lingering in dark and dingy casinos playing the “one-arm bandit” until 4 a.m. are becoming a thing of the past because accessing a sports betting platform is really simple, and placing a bet on your phone is the present and future of gambling.

South Africa is projected to reach revenue of USD 828 million this year. That is a chunky number.

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It poses a challenge to the industry though as many illegal betting brands have flooded the South African market and taken advantage of the “online betting boom” by promising all sorts of odds and promotions, yet they are not licensed, don’t verify the age of their customers and end up robbing customers lured into their product offerings and evade paying SARS millions of Rand in tax from their ill-gained profits with a hefty amount of currency leaving the country, deliberately not employing South Africans, while also not paying betting tax to regulators which has an impact on local economies.

Sean Coleman, CEO of the South African Bookmakers Association, “The South African Gambling Industry is facing an online, illegal gambling “pandemic”. Over 16 million South African citizens are gambling on illegal sites resulting in R55 billion in GGR going offshore. Apart from the obvious loss in taxation revenue to the fiscus, players are directly exposed to gambling harm and have no ability to self-exclude. We need to get this “pandemic” under control.”

Regulated operators comply and play by the same rule book, contributing a considerable amount to the economy, providing jobs, and spending large amounts of their profits on corporate social responsibility programs.

The Betway Cares Foundation has been particularly active in supporting water projects in KwaZulu-Natal and Mpumalanga, sports development through multi-purpose facilities, uplifting communities with cleaning up litter projects, helping athletes and artists who have done South Africa proud on some of the biggest sporting stages of them all, contributing to women’s sport, the Betway 12th man program, which allows retired athletes to acquire new skills for the next chapter of their lives and constantly engaging the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture on many ongoing initiatives to give back and make a difference to those in need.

Betway along with other established and regulated operators financially supports the South African Responsible Gambling Foundation, who play an integral part in treating gambling addiction and providing counselling to people who have reached out for help, treating over 20 000 in the last two decades.

Executive Director, Sibongile Simelane-Quntana believes that more can always be done, "The foundation's mandate is to prioritize the well-being of gamblers and their families by leading advocacy and raising awareness about responsible gambling. Collaborating with Betway and the PSL during National Responsible Gambling Month is part of our effort to highlight not only the potential risks of problem gambling but also the availability of free support services, such as counselling and treatment, for those facing gambling addiction.”

At a press conference for Responsible Gambling Month in conjunction with the Premier Soccer League, Betway CEO, Laurence Michel added his respected voice to the conversation, “As proud title sponsors of the Betway Premiership, we continue to act on our responsibility as a leading global sports betting brand, to educate our customers and the South African public about responsible gambling. Through our partnership with the PSL, Betway remains committed to its objective of encouraging responsible gambling across all its platforms. We therefore reiterate our messaging of Bet Responsibly to all football fans and our customers during November and beyond.”

There is no doubt that as more people open accounts, the possibility of problem gambling increases and that is due to the sheer amount of players eager to change their economic circumstances, South Africa is after all facing all sorts of socio-economic issues, and sports betting or online casino games provide an opportunity to change circumstances. It certainly doesn’t mean it is a free-for-all and that people should not be responsible with their money. Always remember to spend what you are prepared to lose, use that as a rule of thumb if you are new to sports betting, it should be purely used as a form of entertainment and not for financial gain alone.

The economic contribution of regulated operators like Betway to South Africa cannot be ignored and combined with the commitment to uplift communities through various initiatives gives added confidence that the sports betting industry is contributing positively to the rainbow nation while also adding entertainment and an extra thrill to the sports that we all love.

Source: Briefly News