Norsk Tipping turnover up as foreign market shrinks, reports Norway regulator
The number of gamblers using Norsk Tipping’s products surpassed two million in 2024, up 11% from 1.8 million in 2023, the regulator wrote in a 2024 report on the market’s gambling activity.
The report, published on 24 April, found that domestic gambling revenue also increased in 2024, while the foreign market shrank. This, it said, was the result of the regulator successfully blocking illegal sites in the market, forcing players to use the monopoly offering.
Turnover at Norsk Tipping and pari-mutuel racing monopoly Norsk Rikstoto, for games in competition with foreign operators, increased from NOK2.6 billion ($249,482,084/£186,990,102) in 2023 to NOK3.1 billion in 2024. This marked a 19% increase from the previous year.
Norsk Rikstoto also reported that its active player base grew by 5% in 2024, up to 175,000 active customers.
By comparison, the report said the illegal market turnover had declined 18% in 2024 to NOK1.3 billion. This was instead of NOK1.6 billion in 2023.
Norwegian Gambling Authority director Tore Bell said, “More and more people are saying that they played Norwegian games, last time they played, and they play Norwegian games the most.
“We see that the number of players at the exclusive operators is increasing and that their turnover on games in competition with the foreign operators is increasing.”
Norway illegal sites on the wane
The Norwegian Gambling Authority claimed the unlicensed market maintained a 22% and 28% share of what it claimed were the “riskiest online casino style games” in 2024. This was down from a high of 35% in 2023.
The regulator has actively been blocking websites and payment providers, banning gambling advertising and collaborating with Google and Facebook to police black market advertising and access online.
In April, the authority blocked 57 unlicensed websites in the market. It had warned roughly 50 companies last autumn that it would be blocking their sites and reported in April that 40 of these groups had left the market in response.
The Norwegian Gambling Authority said it expects Norsk Tipping and Norsk Rikstoto to reduce their own marketing.
Norway’s younger players at risk
The Authority found a “side effect” of its channelisation efforts is the number of younger players using the monopolies to play “high-risk” casino games had increased.
It urged Norsk Tipping and Norsk Rikstoto to do more to curb the risk for younger players.
The regulator recommended casino games be made less risky and that pause and self-exclusion functions have greater visibility and be made easily accessible. Additionally, it said that gamblers under the age of 25 should not receive promotional messaging.
“The side effect of good channelling is that the exclusive operators get more players. We note that many in the youngest group of players have the playing habits of experienced players. They play the games with the highest risk,” Bell stated.
The state-owned monopoly Norsk Tipping introduced reductions on loss limits for players aged between 20 and 24 last January.
Under the limits, Norsk Tipping customers aged 20 to 21 can lose a maximum of NOK3,000 (£216/€256/$264) per month. Loss limits were set higher at NOK5,000 for players between the ages of 22 and 24.
Norsk Tipping noted in one of its own surveys that one in five men aged between 18 and 25 are “considered risky and problem” gamblers.
It pointed to the weakened position of foreign operators and increased channelling efforts for bringing these risky players onto the platform.
It noted that there was a “normalisation” of casino gambling among younger male players. This was in part due to their increased exposure to streamers who portray casino games as “cult”, as well as videogame gambling of skins or other items.