Largely, the betting and iGaming ecosystem has been fuelled by the World Cup as operator engagement is generally on the up. However, for Macau casinos, it continues to be a burden on overall revenue.
June Gross Gaming Revenue decreased by a total of 12% to MOP 18.5bn (£1.7 bn), with the World Cup splitting the gambling spend of VIPs, who would normally be dedicated to Macau resorts.
Macau’s sports betting options are somewhat limited; however, with it permitted through the sports lottery regime, nothing close to the expansive portfolio offered on the market when it comes to casino games.
Given that the Macau consumer is used to a high-level offering, it is unlikely that the limited sportsbooks on offer are to the desires of players, with a potential chunk of traffic being diverted to the growing black market in China.
Whilst there is no direct evidence that the drift in revenue for June has been a boost to the black market, there are challenges for China when it comes to the illegal operator growth.
In the run-up to the World Cup, Chinese officials issued stark warnings that sought to deter players from engaging with World Cup betting rings, as the major tournament was cited as a potential risk to diverting players to the black market.
The threat of the black market is largely circulated in Mainland China. However, traffic dropping in Macau could indicate that it is also at risk of unlicensed operators, heightened at a time of elevated sports betting activity like the World Cup.
It is predicted that even with the continuation of the tournament, Macau is set to bounce back in July, but June’s dip represents a challenge that the region aims to solve.
Chinese officials have been on a wider clampdown of unlicensed activity, pressuring authorities in Cambodia to take action.
As a result, Cambodia closed 91 casinos accused of supporting online fraud networks, not long after China’s intervention.
Furthermore, Xinhua News Agency also reported that Phnom Penh raided 250 online scam centres in the past nine months and deported over 13,000 foreign nationals linked to online scam operations.
Wang Yi, China’s Foreign Minister, visited the Cambodian Prime Minister and urged him and his government to take stronger action against cross-border gambling and online fraud.
