Gambling, casinos, slot halls and online casinos in Gibraltar

Nowadays, Gibraltar is considered to have one of world’s most significant gambling markets. The Gibraltar government has been attracting online gambling companies with low tax rates and other incentives. Such policy has resulted in the recent boom in online gambling making this British Overseas Territory and many of its residents very rich. The gambling industry contributes greatly to Gibraltar’s economy and employs a lot of residents. According to the Gibraltar Betting and Gambling Association, gambling constitutes up to 25% of Gibraltar’s GDP (https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/gq89g4/the-battle-for-the-rock-224). The minimum age for gambling varies for different forms of gambling: 16 years for participation in lotteries and 18 years for any other gambling.

Land Based Gambling

Casinos Games

One land-based casino currently operates in Gibraltar. Sunborn Casino Admiral is located in a first-class super-yacht hotel in Ocean Village Marina. It is spacious and offers table games and slot machines. The Casino has 35 jackpot slot machines and 7 live gaming tables including American Roulette, Blackjack, 3 Card Poker, 5 Card Stud Poker, and Punto Banco. Sunborn Casino Admiral is open 24/7. Tables are provided from 8pm until 3am (https://www.sunborngibraltar.com/casino-sunborn/).

Slot Machines

Machine gaming is provided in casinos.

Online Gambling

Under the Gambling Act, online gambling falls within the definition of “remote gambling”. Gibraltar has been one of the most preferred destinations for online gambling companies since the Gibraltar Gambling Commission began issuing licenses and regulating the online betting industry in the country in 1998. There are currently 37 registered online casinos and other operators running in Gibraltar, representing some of the top companies in the global online gaming market (https://www.gibraltar.gov.gi/finance-gaming-and-regulations/remote-gambling). The Gibraltar Gaming Commission maintains very strict requirements for those that apply for a license and has a strong reputation in the online gaming regulatory industry. Gibraltar is included in the UK Gambling Commission whitelist; the country can advertise and offer its gambling services on the territory of the UK.

The Gibraltar Gaming Commission grants only one type of remote gambling license, the operator license. There are sub-categories of this license depending on the nature of the services provided: casino (including poker, bingo, slots, among others), betting, and lottery.

Players participate in remote gambling using remote communication: the internet, telephone, television, radio, and any other technology for facilitating communication.

Online betting is very profitable for Gibraltar. Most major online betting sites are licensed out of the region offering their services to EU players. The Gibraltar Licensing Authority makes sure that online betting companies abide by the rules and follow strict data-protection guidelines. Failure to adhere to the strict Gibraltar gambling rules, will see an operator fined or potentially lose their Gibraltar betting license. Gibraltar football betting is the most common. Premier League, Champions League, and many other European leagues form some of Gibraltar’s best football bets at betting sites.