To gain a deeper understanding of the opportunities and challenges in South Africa’s iGaming market, we spoke to Dr. Eyal Loz, Chief Product Officer at RubyPlay, James Bustin, Commercial Director South Africa at Light & Wonder, Dominik Öller, Sales and Key Account Manager at Greentube, and Vagelis Bairlis, Sales Manager at Altenar.
From uncovering the key factors driving growth and identifying promising verticals, to exploring how suppliers are tackling unique infrastructure challenges, their expertise sheds light on the strategies shaping the market.
iGaming Expert: What factors are driving the growth of iGaming in South Africa, and which verticals show the most promise?
Dr. Eyal Loz: The South Africa market is very mature. Players seek and enjoy more complex slots, where top performing games correlate with what we see in other mature markets. For example, traditional US and Australian style slots work well with mechanics such as hold and spin, multi ways, multi features and jackpots.
Branding is also very important in South Africa, and our bespoke titles generated a lot of interest with our partners there. Over the past year, the support we got from our partners in Lotto Star ensured that we stayed relevant to the market. Our games were featured regularly in media campaigns and also in the VIP only section of their casino, which increase exposure and engagement with our content.
James Bustin: We have seen growth across all iGaming verticals in South Africa, but the most significant driver continues to be slots. Within this vertical, one of the biggest opportunities we are focusing on is marketing jackpots. South Africa has unique regulatory restrictions that don’t allow traditional wide area progressive or local area progressive jackpots, so Light and Wonder have developed an innovative and customisable jackpot solution tailored to the local market which we are really excited to launch.
Beyond slots and marketing jackpots, another major focus for us is aggregation – helping third-party game providers enter the South African market. Historically, getting content live in South Africa has been challenging due to regulatory complexities, but we have worked closely with regulators and operators to streamline the process.
As a result, we already have over 20 providers set to launch with us in 2025, and we are actively encouraging more studios to enter the market through our aggregation platform which is a key part of the service we bring to the SA market enabling our customers to access the world’s best content.
We also place significant emphasis on omni-channel solutions, working closely with land-based operators expanding into online gaming and creating a holistic online/offline customer engagement model. South Africa has such a strong land-based gaming sector with some of the world’s best operators, and we are supporting them first in integrating retail and online experiences for a seamless hybrid model.
Dominik Öller: South Africa’s iGaming market is witnessing substantial growth driven by a confluence of factors, primarily resting on the solid foundation of its robust sports betting and land-based casino sectors.
The nation’s deep enthusiasm for sports and a long-established familiarity with traditional gaming have created fertile ground for online expansion. Historical sports betting data and engagement offer a strong analytical basis for operators to customise their offerings and target specific demographics.
In particular, we see immense potential in online slots. South African players, like many worldwide, appreciate the accessibility and engaging nature of these games. Greentube’s strategy is to leverage our internationally acclaimed titles, such as Book of Ra deluxe, Lucky Lady’s Charm deluxe, and Sizzling Hot, to resonate with this audience. These games have proven popular globally, and we are confident they will find a receptive audience in South Africa.
We anticipate combining familiar, high-quality content and innovative, localised offerings to drive significant growth in the South African iGaming market.
Vagelis Bairlis: The iGaming industry in South Africa is expanding due to high smartphone penetration, mobile betting growth, and shifting consumer preferences toward immersive experiences like live dealer games and esports betting.
Sports betting remains dominant, holding around 60% of the market, driven by strong local interest, particularly in football. Mobile gaming is also thriving, with increased engagement through accessible platforms.
Despite regulatory challenges such as fragmented laws and a 15% VAT, the sector continues to attract investment. Live dealer games and esports betting are emerging as high-potential verticals, reflecting growing demand for interactive gameplay. With rising digital adoption and evolving player behaviour, South Africa’s iGaming market is poised for continued growth.
iGX: How do you ensure your solutions are scalable and adaptable to South Africa’s unique infrastructure challenges?
JB: First, all of our infrastructure is hosted locally in South Africa. This minimises latency and ensures that operators and players get the best gaming experience. Hosting everything within the country, rather than relying on European servers, provides a major advantage.
Second, we have placed great emphasis on bet settings, carefully optimising minimum bet sizes to align with the market and enhance accessibility for players.
Third, we recognise the growing popularity of crash and fast games in the African market and have expanded our offering to meet this demand. As part of this, we are bringing in an exciting range of studios, including Incentive Games, Ricochet, Rogue, and Galaxsys.
Ricochet’s games, in particular, stand out for their simplicity, entertainment value, and customisability, giving operators the flexibility to tailor experiences to their players.
Finally, we place a big emphasis on localisation, and we are developing bespoke games for operators, adapting them to match their brand and players’ preferences. This tailored approach is a key part of how we ensure our content fits the South African market.
DÖ: Recognising the unique infrastructure challenges present in South Africa, including potential latency and connectivity issues, Greentube has implemented a robust and forward-thinking solution with our new platform, Mynt. The platform mitigates latency, with its localised infrastructure minimising delays and ensuring a seamless gaming experience.
Mynt is engineered with a resilient architecture that effectively isolates gameplay from potential disruptions in communication. The platform is designed to intelligently queue and synchronise configuration and data updates once communication is restored, ensuring data integrity and consistency without impacting the player’s experience.
Scalability is also a core principle of Mynt. The platform is designed to accommodate future growth and evolving market demands, allowing us to integrate new content and features seamlessly. This adaptability ensures our solutions remain relevant and competitive in the dynamic South African iGaming landscape.
VB: At Altenar, we combine advanced technology with flexibility and scalability to meet the diverse needs of iGaming operators. This approach allows for seamless adaptation to varying market demands and infrastructure conditions.
Recognising the importance of managing fluctuating user traffic and game complexity, we place at a lot of emphasis on scalable hosting solutions. By ensuring that server capacity and processing power can be adjusted on demand, we can maintain consistent performance, even during peak periods.
Additionally, our commitment to top-tier business, customer, and technical support ensures that operators receive comprehensive assistance tailored to their specific needs. This support framework is crucial for navigating the unique infrastructure challenges present in South Africa.
DEL: Scalability and adaptability are at the core of our development approach. Our success with Lotto Star is a testament to this, as we continuously optimise our games to align with player preferences and market demands.
iGX: What cross-border opportunities exist for suppliers looking to expand their reach beyond South Africa?
DÖ: Securing a licence in South Africa represents a significant strategic advantage for iGaming suppliers seeking to expand their reach across the African continent. South Africa’s regulatory framework is among the most stringent and respected in the region, positioning it as a key gateway for expansion into other regulated markets.
A South African licence serves as a powerful testament to a supplier’s commitment to compliance and responsible gaming practices. This credibility is invaluable when navigating the regulatory landscapes of other African nations, many of which are increasingly prioritising robust licensing and oversight.
Nations adopting more structured and regulated iGaming frameworks will look to companies that have already passed the intense scrutiny of the South African licensing process. This opens doors for partnerships and entry into emerging markets seeking experienced and trusted suppliers.
By establishing a strong foothold in South Africa, suppliers can lay a foundation for sustainable growth and capitalise on the burgeoning iGaming opportunities across the African continent.
VB: Suppliers expanding beyond South Africa can tap into key African markets like Nigeria with its large population and strong football culture, or Kenya with its mobile-driven betting and high mobile money adoption. Untapped regions offer early-mover advantages in online casinos, sports betting, and esports.
With Africa’s mobile-first landscape, lightweight apps optimised for low-bandwidth areas are crucial. Regulatory developments in various countries are creating more structured iGaming environments.
Key success factors include localisation (languages, currencies), mobile payment integration, and infrastructure adaptation for varying connectivity levels. These strategies help suppliers scale effectively in Africa’s growing iGaming market.
DEL: It’s important to acknowledge that, like any other continent, different countries and markets in Africa represent very different player preferences and culture. For example, in some countries, players have access to modern mobile devices but have very unstable internet connectivity.
In other countries, players average wagers that are only a few cents, making many slot games too expensive to be relevant. In other countries still, like Zambia, the majority of player activity is driven by small local influencer engagement.
At RubyPlay, we are following the same principles that allowed us to gain significant market share in LatAm; we treat each region with the respect it deserves. For example, we support very low wager, as low as 1 cent in some of our games.
Also, we make our games stable in a variety of different technological environments. It’s important to remember that unlike South Africa, other markets in Africa are not very mature, and are still dominated by simple wagering games.
We believe that the same trend we saw globally, in other emerging markets over time, will repeat here. That is, we believe that very soon, slot content will dominate the bet share in all locations across the continent. There is a very simple reason to that. From a player perspective, slots are simple and fun, and from an operator perspective, slots have the highest turnover of all other games of chance.
JB: South Africa has the largest regulated online gaming market on the continent, but there are several other African markets that are showing significant growth. Some of the most notable ones include Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania, Ghana, and Zambia.
These are all key markets for Light & Wonder in 2025 as we expand into broader African territories. We’re working closely with multi-territory operators to establish a stronger presence in these regions, and we are approaching this expansion strategically, carefully selecting the right partners, brands and markets to ensure long-term success and we are focused on partnering with established, high-quality brands that align with our vision and can drive meaningful growth in the region.
Some of these newer markets have fewer barriers to entry, making them easier to penetrate, but they still require the right localised approach.
Of course, while Africa as a whole is a very large and complex region with varied regulatory challenges, South Africa has been a great starting point to our Africa journey, and we are so excited about the next iGaming chapter in this continent of opportunity.
