InterGaming takes a look at the casino industry in the UK and Ireland

The leisure market in the UK and Ireland is fiercely competitive and has, in recent years, been hit by a downturn in consumer spending brought about the challenging economy and the introduction of a smoking ban. Those within the sector – including casino operators – have made a concerted effort to broaden their appeal and offer a more comprehensive entertainment experience.

For the gaming industry, however, public perception has arguably been the greatest hurdle to growth. Gambling is a particularly emotive issue that divides opinion across the British Isles. Millions of people play lotteries or bingo each week or place a bet on horse racing or football, but none of these activities has earned the ‘hard gaming’ label given to roulette or blackjack. The general consensus is that in order for the industry to move forward, the public – and media – perception must change.

The potential for change

One of the particularly frustrating elements of the super casino debate, which was brought about by the UK’s 2005 Gambling Act, was the mainstream press’ moral outrage at the thought of Britain becoming a nation of hardened gamblers overnight. The reality, of course, is that over 70 per cent of adults in the UK already participate in some form of gambling, making it a multi-billion pound industry.

Between October 2009 and September 2010, figures from the Gambling Commission show that the British gambling industry generated gross gambling yield of £5.6bn. The non-remote betting sector is by far the largest market segment with a 52 per cent share, followed by the casino sector with 14 per cent and remote gaming with 12 per cent. During the period, the country’s 145 casinos generated GGY of £782m and employed 13,094 – figures that the industry believes could be increased significantly if legislation could be changed. The majority of casinos in the UK are in the hands of just three operating companies - Genting UK, the Rank Group and the Gala Coral Group.

As of September 30, 2010, Genting, the UK subsidiary of Genting Malaysia, was the country’s largest operator with 46 casinos, followed by Rank with 35 and Gala with 28. The fourth largest – by some distance – was London Clubs International with 11. Whereas Gala continues to be linked to a possible sell-off of its casino division, Rank has announced plans to increase its portfolio of Grosvenor Casino properties to 45 over the next four years.  Under the 1968 Gambling Act, which sets out the areas casinos can be operated, the UK could have as many as 187 active casino licences but only within 53 designated areas.

The National Casino Industry Forum argues that if these restrictions were lifted, dormant licences could be relocated to other areas and the industry could expand without necessarily needing the creation of additional licences. This is one of several changes the NCiF is proposing, along with calling for greater harmony across the board for the machine to table ratio in casinos.

This report can be read in full in the January 2012 issue of InterGaming.