In 2024, online gambling will turn thirty years old. This industry was born three decades ago when the island nation of Antigua and Barbuda chose to leverage its unique situation and desire for economic growth by allowing companies to offer remote gaming and betting services within its borders. It did this via a law called the Free Trade and Processing Act. Other territories of modest size, such as Curacao and Kahnawake, a Canadian native reservation, followed suit and copied this bold move, giving rise to this sector.
However, it was not until the 2000s that this industry gained significant traction globally. This occurred due to increased Internet penetration and people around the planet becoming aware they could gamble over the Web. At this time, casino sites only operated from the noted regions, and others like it, including Panama, the Isle of Man, and Alderney, were active. For the most part, these had no issue accepting users from anywhere.
That all changed after countries started creating laws that factored in the existence of the Internet, a novel technology that facilitated massive connectivity/communication. Parallel to this, developed nations also started to pass laws that legalized online gambling, seeking to regulate this sphere and rake in the tax benefits it generates. In the past few years, this has become a trend in Europe. Some African and South American nations with stringent anti-gambling stances are exploring this possibility. At the same time, things remain somewhat static in the USA, where sports betting is legal, but online casinos have only appeared in social casinos.
The Role of Legislation in Online Gambling
It is vital to point out that even today, hundreds, if not thousands, of unlicensed, unmonitored online casinos are active and have robust player pools. Granted, most of these are crypto ones or platforms that only offer less-established fiat payment methods. Visa and MasterCard still have strict criteria regarding what businesses they allow to accept money through their solutions.
In the most remote game of chance, enthusiasts see regulation as crucial. They believe licensed and overseen gaming hubs ensure fair play and protect them from fraud and exploitation. Gamblers hope a regulator steps in and acts as an unbiased arbiter when a dispute emerges between them and a specific platform.
When online gambling laws were passed, countries’ governments founded these organizations. In most cases, it is in these legal documents that the creations of bodies that shall govern this landscape in a specific region are outlined. For example, in 2005, the UK passed its Gambling Act, which established Britain’s interactive gaming realm and defined the creation of the UK Gambling Commission as an executive public body tasked with suppressing illegal gambling and overseeing the country’s entire gambling sector. That law noted that two years after its passing, the UKCG would replace the Gaming Board for Great Britain, which was abolished.
Recent Global Legislative Shifts
As noted above, significant movements have transpired worldwide, especially in the Old Continent’s gambling arena. In 2021, Germany, Greece, and the Netherlands passed into law regulations that allowed the inception of Internet gaming on their soil.
In October 2024, France proposed governing online gambling in 2025, based on an amendment filed by the French government to the country’s next year’s budget plan. Ireland passed a modernization gambling bill in December 2024 that became law in 2024.
More and more European nations are considering allowing their residents to enjoy games of chance and sports betting remotely. It must be noted that most are also enforcing rules concerning stricter affordability checks and creating laws that restrict gambling marketing. That is evident in the UK and Sweden, where online casinos have been forced to implement deposit limits and spin timers or wait periods between gaming rounds so slot gambling entertainment does not go by super-fast, causing sizeable losses for players quickly.
Nigeria, Kenya, and South Africa are the top remote gaming players in Africa, but they have yet to regulate this pastime in their territories. Only seven states allow it in the US, with Connecticut being the last to do so in 2021. In Asia, things are the most limited, with India only permitting online gambling in a few specific provinces.
Other Laws Affecting Casino Gaming
KYC or AML procedures are now becoming the norm worldwide. These are protocols that aim to stop money laundering and financial crimes. Today, virtually all licensed casinos, regardless of their regulator, are obligated to follow these policies that aim to identify gamblers and get evidence that they are who they say they are, gambling with their money.
The EU’s General Data Protection Regulation, or GDPR, has also dramatically reshaped the gaming domain regarding how online casinos handle player data. It has mandated that companies ensure they gain explicit player consent for data collection and safeguard against breaches. Non-compliance risks severe penalties, forcing operators to invest heavily in cybersecurity.
It should also be noted that aside from the mentioned advertising restrictions, many countries have implemented increased taxation on online gambling products and have put public funds funded by the tax money produced by this sector. Various laws have also been created in many places regarding responsible gambling practices that casinos must follow if they wish to operate, ones passed due to rising gambling addiction rates.
