Africa gaming heatmap: See the biggest growth markets across the continent
Online betting and gaming USD
Africa’s online betting and gaming market is experiencing rapid growth, predicted to go from $12.7bn in 2026 to $19.4bn by 2030, signalling a 52.76% increase. This expansion is increasingly driven by the onshore, regulated market which is overtaking offshore operators and taking a larger share of the sector.
This move indicates a shift towards greater regulation and market maturity across the continent. Although online betting continues to dominate the market, online gaming is growing consistently and steadily increasing its share, pointing to longer-term opportunities for operators in player engagement and retention.
Interestingly, growth accelerates massively from 2025 onwards, which demonstrates a key turning point for the sector likely driven by improved internet and mobile access, enhanced payments infrastructure, and regulatory clarity.
Total Online GGR
From analysing Africa’s Total Online GGR, it’s clear to see that Africa’s online betting and gaming market is not only rapidly growing but also becoming increasingly concentrated and structurally complex across the continent.
South Africa has emerged as the dominant market to watch, looking set to exceed $5m by 2030. Nigeria, despite being one of the continent’s largest markets, has struggled to fully realise its growth potential, with sharp declines after 2022 highlighting ongoing volatility and structural challenges.
Elsewhere, Ghana, with a population of around 35 million, is on track to become one of the continent’s strongest-performing markets, while Cameroon has appeared unexpectedly as a major growth market with strong long-term potential.
Giorgi Shaverdashvili, regional head of commercial for Africa at SmartSoft, tells iGB: “Ghana is the most stable market out of the three (alongside Cameroon and Uganda) with less currency devaluation.
“Uganda is interesting because mobile adoption is really high so the deposit experience is frictionless. In Cameroon there is a strong football culture and a big population, but the market was ignored for a long time so what we are seeing now is basically catch-up growth.”
[Nigeria] began with the devaluation of the Naira, which significantly reduced players’ spending power. This was compounded by payment infrastructure challenges, as banks classify casino transactions as high-risk, resulting in frequent deposit blocks
— Giorgi Shaverdashvili, regional head of commercial for Africa, SmartSoft
Onshore Online GGR
If we look at Africa’s onshore online betting and gaming market, we can see that it is driving the majority of industry growth — growing speedily from just over $5m in 2023 to $14.2m by 2030, representing a projected increase of 184%. This can be attributed to the acceleration of regulation and localisation across Africa.
While South Africa remains the dominant regulated market, projected to reach $4.3bn by 2030, other strong growth opportunities are not always where you might expect. Ghana and Tanzania are emerging as standout markets, showing that smaller or less obvious territories can deliver significant long-term value.
Online betting GGR
Analysing the online betting market data, we can see it continues to dominate Africa’s betting and gaming landscape. Remaining the primary driver of overall market expansion, it has a projected 158% increase, growing from approximately $5.8m in 2023 to nearly $15bn by 2030.
Nigeria, despite a sharp dip in 2024, remains one of Africa’s largest markets, although its uneven recovery highlights ongoing volatility and slower long-term momentum.
Shaverdashvili explains: “It began with the devaluation of the Naira, which significantly reduced players’ spending power. This was compounded by payment infrastructure challenges, as banks classify casino transactions as high-risk, resulting in frequent deposit blocks.”
Strikingly, developing markets such as Uganda, Ethiopia and Cameroon are driving the next phase of growth, demonstrating increasing geographic diversification.
Online gaming GGR
Online gaming is emerging as one of the fastest-growing segments within Africa’s betting and gaming market, increasing from approximately $1.4m in 2023 to $4.5m by 2030. Ghana stands out as the largest individual market to watch, with a prediction of $634m by 2030.
Furthermore, emerging markets such as Uganda are proving that some of the strongest growth opportunities lie beyond the obvious major markets, driving a more diversified and strategically attractive expansion story across the continent.
Overall, the data indicates that online gaming is becoming an integral lever for long-term value, supporting deeper player engagement and revenue variation across the continent.
