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The allure of the casino world isn't just reserved for Las Vegas; it has found a significant footing in Brazil.
In assessing the value of the Brazilian gambling market as a whole, Brazilian MPs in the Chamber of Deputies indicated that between 2021-2022 it was worth around BRL 44 billion.
They went further in terms of separating legal and illegal gambling: illicit gambling activities, or black market gambling if you prefer, totalled around BRL 27 billion. In contrast, legal gambling venues produced BRL 17 billion in revenue.
But what’s the role of casino mobile apps in all of this? How much is the casino mobile apps market worth in Brazil and how does that compare to other Latin American countries?
What’s the value of the Brazilian casino app market?
The mobile casino gaming app sector in Brazil is worth somewhere between USD 35 and 40 million according to estimates made by research company Statista.
Interestingly, about 50% of these earnings stem from revenue generated from advertisements, while the other half arises from in-app purchases, which obviously includes playing the actual games for real money.
When viewed from a wider angle, this represents approximately just 1.53% of Brazil's online casino market, which is a staggeringly low figure when one considers the close relationship between playing casino and Brazilian customers’ heavy use of mobile phones.
After all, Brazil has an internet penetration rate of 81%, totaling 173 million users, and ranks 5th in the world in total mobile connections, as highlighted in a research study made by online casino KTO, a website operating within the Brazilian market.
Revenues of online casino game apps in Brazil. Source: Statista
Why the low numbers for casino apps?
The numbers are modest due to the inherent constraints of mobile gaming platforms, which offer limited selections of app-based casino games, both traditional and contemporary. The only games accounted for are poker at 34%, bingo at 16%, and select individual slot apps at 10%.
The world of digital casinos landscape seems to be moving away from its past focus on app-based platforms with both the casinos and customers themselves seemingly preferring
mobile web platforms. This is particularly the case in newish or partly-regulated markets, of which Brazil itself and South Africa are two good examples.
This strategy addresses the strong demand for real-money play, all while managing the frequent turnover of users.
Simply put, casino aficionados tend to visit sites, play the games they like, and then move on.
They'll circle back if they're satisfied, but most don't feel the need to clutter their devices with countless apps.
Brazil compared to other LATAM countries
Despite the low percentage of revenue that mobile apps contribute to the overall value of the online casino market as a whole, a Statista study shows Brazil topped the Latin America list for casino gaming mobile apps in 2021, generating almost 22 million U.S. dollars.
Projections suggest a steady increase in this total, which could potentially reach an estimated 39.5 million U.S. dollars by 2026.
Source: Statista. Revenue of casino games apps in selected Latin American countries from 2017 to 2021, with a forecast until 2026(in million U.S. dollars)
Brazil’s dominance here shouldn’t come as any big surprise given it’s rapidly emerging as the biggest player in the gambling industry in LATAM.
Statista reason that assuming that the South American nation introduces gambling rules by 2022, the projected online Gross Gaming Revenue (GGR) for Brazil in 2026 is about 1.6 billion U.S. dollars.
Meanwhile, Mexico's online gross gaming revenue is anticipated to reach 1.15 billion U.S. dollars in the same year while for Colombia it’s estimated to be 0.8 billion U.S dollars; for Argentina it’s 0.35 billion and for Chile it’s estimated at 0.3 billion.
