There are still promising casino gaming markets within Europe, despite ongoing economic and regulatory challenges.
According to the ECA's European Casino Industry Report 2013, the results for 2012 gave a rather mixed pictured for the European casino industry. Excluding the UK, which is not one of the organisation’s members, total gaming revenues among the ECA’s 23 countries reached €6.58bn in 2012.
This figure was 6.5 per cent down on the previous year. Tellingly, 80 per cent of that total was generated by just eight countries – all of which reported year-on-year falls in gaming revenue.
Yet, despite the majority of the industry experiencing continued difficulties brought about by the economic downturn, the introduction of smoking bans and competition from online and other forms of gaming, there were positive signs of growth in 2012.
Hungary, where slots have been banned anywhere outside its casinos, saw revenue increase 32 per cent in 2012, while operators in the UK recorded a 9.4 per cent jump in revenue to £872m (€1.035bn) and a record number of visitors.
Elsewhere, Poland made a significant recovery with revenues increasing 15 per cent, while both Estonia and Lithuania saw revenue rise around eight per cent. Finland, Sweden and Denmark also showed notable improvements, with the latter experiencing a 7.1 per cent uplift in slots win, for example.
ECA chairman Ron Goudsmit explained that the organisation is presently collecting information from its members for 2013’s results. The first indications, he said, “are not too good,” with both France and Germany down on 2012. Yet, while the “general trend is still down,” hopefully there are signs that a number of countries are bucking that trend.
