WLA steps up efforts to combat illegal gambling market

One of the greatest challenges is to accurately estimate the value of the global, illegal sports betting market, given its scope, complexity and transnational nature. However, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) puts the annual figure at USD 1,7 trillion, wagered on illicit betting markets controlled by organized crime.

Partnering with the University of Lausanne

The WLA has partnered with the School of Criminal Sciences Justice at the University of Lausanne (UNIL), which completed a research report to address the definition, challenges, and estimation methods of the illicit gambling market.

The report offered a scoping review and a qualitative analysis, aimed to assess existing knowledge on the subject and present different perspectives.

Global experts share insights at international workshop

Using the report as a starting point, WLA and UNIL organized an event on Defining and Estimating the Illegal Gambling Market, held at the Lausanne UNIL campus in February.

International experts from UNIL, the Council of Europe, Interpol, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the Asian Racing Federation, American Gaming Association, H2 Gambling Capital, Yield Sec, and CK Consulting presented the results of their estimation work and provided insights into various specific aspects.

Different approaches were taken, from diverse countries and global regions. For instance, bottom-up, focused on collecting detailed data from local sources, while top-down, used statistical models to extrapolate figures from aggregated data.

Key take aways

• It is paramount to have a common definition and therefore, understanding of legal versus illegal betting markets before embarking on developing a method to estimate illegal betting markets.
  
• It was agreed that the definition, adopted during the Macolin Convention of the Council of Europe, offers a clear and precise approach to the concept of illegal sports gambling. It says that illegal sports betting is “any sports betting activity whose type or operator is not allowed under the applicable law of the jurisdiction where the consumer is located”.
  
• Different methodologies gave results that could not necessarily be compared for individual results where there were large discrepancies, even if the overall trend was similar.
  
• In the absence of a standardized approach, it is vital to recognize these variations and uncertainties when interpreting the results and formulating public policies. A more collaborative and transparent approach among researchers could help reduce gaps and enhance the reliability of estimates of the illicit gambling market.
• Adopting a unified approach would enhance the evaluation and analysis of this complex topic.
  
• In practice, the challenge still remains that there are concepts of "grey" and "black" markets, which often obscure the boundaries between legality and illegality. 

Positive outcome

The WLA and UNIL were pleased with the event’s outcome. Participants reached a general consensus to join forces, pool their respective expertise and resources, and work on developing a common methodology for sizing the illegal betting market, based on a standardized definition.