Global gambling black market reached $5.9tn in 2025

The global online gambling black market reached an estimated $5.9tn in 2025, according to new research from Gaming Compliance International (GCI).

The regtech supplier’s latest analysis suggested unregulated online gambling activity continued to expand despite tightening enforcement and advertising restrictions in several major markets.

GCI said offshore and unlicensed operators now account for most online gambling revenue globally, with growth being fuelled by crypto gambling, prediction markets and illegal sports streaming platforms.

Unregulated gambling continues to grow

GCI’s Online Gaming 2025: Global report estimated that unregulated online gambling wagering volume rose from $5.7tn in 2024 to $5.9tn in 2025.

This is a 4% year-on-year increase. It also followed a 12% rise between 2023 and 2024. The analysis focused solely on online gambling activity. Land-based operations weren’t included.

According to GCI, unregulated operators generated around 78% of global online gaming gross gaming revenue (GGR). Regulated operators accounted for the remaining 22%.

The report defined unregulated gambling as operators actively targeting local consumers without holding a local licence. This included:

• Sports betting
• Casino games
• Poker
• Crypto gambling
• Lotteries
• Prediction markets

GCI used automated monitoring systems alongside human analysis to estimate betting volume and GGR across the global market. It also assessed consumer behaviour using proprietary “Value Per Visit” metrics to compare spending patterns between regulated and unregulated sites.

Commenting on the findings, GCI chief executive Matt Holt said regulators were facing a challenge that had moved beyond the industry's margins.

“At $5.9tn in wagering value, unregulated online gambling is one of the largest economic systems in the world, operating largely outside regulatory oversight.” – Matt Holt, GCI Chief Executive

Prediction markets and crypto raise concerns

The report warned that loosely regulated prediction markets and crypto-linked gambling products were likely to accelerate offshore market growth during 2026.

GCI said consumers increasingly struggled to distinguish between regulated and unregulated products. It described this as a “White Noise Marketplace”.

The issue has become more visible globally as regulators take differing approaches to prediction markets:

• Brazil recently confirmed that prediction markets were illegal and blocked 28 platforms through the telecommunications agency Anatel.
• Gibraltar licensed Predict Street as its first regulated prediction market operator earlier this year.

The report also mentioned concerns around illegal sports streaming platforms. GCI estimated that unregulated gambling adverts appeared on more than 80% of illegal sports streams across the UK and US during 2024 and 2025.

Events, including March Madness and the FIFA World Cup, were identified as major traffic drivers for offshore gambling advertising campaigns.

Regulators tighten advertising restrictions

Several markets have already introduced stricter controls on gambling advertising and offshore activity.

Earlier this month, Ukraine launched a public reporting tool that was designed to speed up enforcement against illegal gambling advertising.

Australia has also proposed a nationwide package of gambling advertising reforms following the Murphy Report. The measures include banning wagering adverts during live sports broadcasts on free-to-air television between 6 am and 8.30 pm.

In the UK, MPs recently called for a pre-9 pm watershed on gambling advertising and restrictions on sports sponsorship agreements involving betting operators.

Separate research from H2 Capital last week estimated the UK offshore gambling market reached £16.6bn in 2025, up from £5bn in 2019.