CYPRUS: Revenue from betting increased by 24% YoY in Q3 2022.

The gross betting revenue of class A and B receivers (land-based and online betting) increased by 24% year over year in the third quarter of 2022, reaching €238,175,857 as opposed to €192,087,098 in the same quarter of 2021. In comparison to 2020, the increase is 39%. The figures are the outcome of the National Betting Authority disclosing the financial results for the third quarter.

Of the total income of recipients, €65,617,373 pertains to Class A recipients, while €172,558,484 pertains to Class B recipients.  The gross income of Class A recipients recorded a slight increase of 1%, compared to third quarter of 2020 and an increase of 12% compared to the third quarter of 2021.  Gross revenues for Class B recipients increased by 29% in comparison to the same quarter in 2021 and by 63% when compared to the second quarter of 2020.

According to figures from the National Betting Authority, Class A and B player profits are also increasing steadily. In the third quarter of 2018, they totaled €208,470,718. This represents an increase of 43% over the same period in 2020 and 24% over the same period in 2021. The majority of the profits, or €156,467,293, were earned by Class B players (internet betting) in this quarter.

In terms of Class A and B betting receipts, they totaled €29,705,139, representing a 24% rise over the same quarter the year prior. More specifically, Class A betting revenues totaled €13,613,948, an increase of 19% over the same quarter in 2021, and Class B betting receipts were €16,091,190, a rise of 28% over the same period in 2021.

Additionally, according to the Betting Authority's announcement, when compared to the third quarter of the previous year, the overall number of Class A facilities remained steady. Particularly, licensed properties totaled 498 across Cyprus, with Limassol coming in second with 149 properties and Nicosia maintaining the lead with 169 properties. With 92 properties, Larnaca is third in terms of the total number of licensed properties. Following it are Famagusta with 35 properties and Paphos with 53 properties.

A notable drop of 55% in license withdrawals or cancellations was observed when compared to the third quarter of 2021. When compared to the same period the year before, the number of people employed by licensed properties increased by 10% to 1,433.

The results of the blocking of illegal websites providing betting services for not securing a Class B license, which has been in place since 2015, saw an increase in the number of websites in the second quarter of 2022, with the number reaching 16,983 websites.  In comparison to the second quarter of 2022, there were 2.6% more blocked websites, and 441 illegal websites were added to the list.

According to the press release, NBA President Ioanna Fiakkou noted that the third quarter of 2022 results best confirmed the sector's growth prospects. He emphasized that "the non-negotiable objective of the Authority remains the sustainable development of the sector through the strengthening of supervision and the application of new technologies and modern tools, while implementing policies and initiatives to protect players, vulnerable groups and society at large from harmful consequences of gambling"

By fLEXI tEAM