The Ministry of Social Rights, Consumer Affairs and Agenda 2030 has released the “2024 Report on Gaming Activity in Spain”, approved last July by the Council for Gambling Policy. The report, prepared by the Directorate General for the Regulation of Gambling (DGOJ), presents detailed data on the sector’s evolution over the past year and highlights a significant increase in online gambling activity coinciding with the return of welcome bonuses.
According to the Ministry, the number of active online players grew by 21.63% in 2024, precisely when welcome bonuses—promotional incentives used by betting operators to attract new users—were reinstated following a ruling by the Supreme Court. The bonuses had been banned until April 2024, when the Court annulled several articles of Royal Decree 958/2020, including the one prohibiting their use.
In response, the Ministry led by Pablo Bustinduy has introduced an amendment to the upcoming Customer Service Law to ensure that the legislation includes a specific ban on such promotional practices in online gambling.
Nearly 2 million active players, most of them young men
The Ministry also presented the “2024 Online Player Profile” report, which offers additional insights into the spike in user numbers. In total, 459,266 new players joined online gambling platforms in 2024 compared to 2023, bringing the total number of active players to 1,991,550.
The report further reveals that 83.15% of players are men, while only 16.85% are women. A clear majority of users are young: 85.70% of active players are between 18 and 45 years old.
Operator profits soar
The Gaming Activity Report also highlights the substantial profits generated by gambling operators from player losses. Using the Gross Gaming Revenue (GGR) indicator—which measures the difference between total bets and prizes awarded—the Ministry reported that operators earned more than €8 billion in 2024, specifically €8.108 billion.
The most notable increase occurred in state-licensed online gambling, where GGR rose by 17.6%, reaching €1.454 billion.
The report also notes a 7.1% increase in total stakes. Regionally licensed games rose by 2.5%, totaling €1.199 billion, while games reserved for the state, including lotteries and pools, increased by 9.2%, reaching €5.454 billion.
Breakdown by game segments
The €1.454 billion in GGR from state-licensed online gambling in 2024 was distributed as follows:
Casino games: €730.71 million
Sports betting: €608.85 million
Poker: €100.08 million
Bingo: €14.94 million
Among these, sports betting saw the largest growth in operator revenue, with a 23.80% increase compared to 2023, largely driven by conventional fixed-odds and live betting. Online casino revenues also grew significantly, up 16.96%, especially due to slot machines. Bingo revenues rose by 3.96%, while online poker was the only segment to decline, with a 4.99% drop.
Marketing spend and active accounts
The report also details marketing expenditures by gambling operators in 2024, which totaled over €526 million. The largest portion was allocated to promotions (€261 million) and advertising (€203 million). Additional spending included €56 million for affiliate programs and €5.45 million for sponsorships.
The monthly average of active accounts increased by 23.48%, reaching 1,433,715, while the average number of new accounts rose by 34.73%, with 151,898 new registrations per month.
Collaboration with regional governments
For the first time, the report was validated by the Council for Gambling Policy and compiled in collaboration with Spain’s regional governments. As a result, it offers a comprehensive and unified view of the national gambling landscape, positioning itself as the main official source for analyzing the reality of gambling in Spain.
Thanks to the contributions of the autonomous communities, the report now includes territorial breakdowns and allows for regional comparisons across different gambling modalities. It also introduces new data on self-exclusion registries and sanctions imposed by each administration, whether related to online or land-based gambling.
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