The United Kingdom gambling industry has long been viewed as the standard bearer for the sector as a whole.
Its success has been built around the fact that people in the UK love to gamble – sports, casino games, bingo, lotteries – you name it, they will wager on it.
This ethos has undoubtedly influenced many other nationalities to jump on the bandwagon, even in countries where gambling has traditionally been frowned upon.
For example, betting has become increasingly popular around the Arabian Gulf – a factor that gambling operators have been quick to leverage to their advantage.
As evidenced by this YYY online casino review, bettors in the region now have some superb sites where they can play their favourite games.
Much like the top brands in the UK, YYY offers players the opportunity to play hundreds of different table games and slots on a fully licensed and regulated site.
The boom in popularity of sites such as YYY has inevitably sparked interest across the gambling industry, with operators eager to grab a piece of the pie.
While it is difficult to pin down the value of gambling revenues in the region, many respected analysts have forecast it could become one of the most lucrative jurisdictions in the world.
Moves are already underway to regulate gaming in some resorts in the area, which will unquestionably have a positive impact on the online sector.
These developments could be landmark moments for the Gulf – a region that has traditionally imposed much tighter restrictions on gambling.
Quite how the overall regulatory picture will look as things move forward is unclear, with each country likely to put their own spin on what they will and won’t allow.
However, with countries in the region keen to pivot away from oil as their main source of income, it is clear that the gambling industry will become big business there over the coming years.
Given its position as a world leader for gambling regulation, it is highly likely that Gulf countries will take their lead from the set-up in the UK.
The Gambling Commission is well respected globally having helped to establish the UK as one of the main jurisdictions for betting in the world.
Their most recent research and statistics highlight just how popular online gambling has become in the UK over the past couple of decades.
From April to September 2020, the total gross gambling yield for remote sports betting, casino and bingo games was an eye-watering £3.1 billion.
When you consider that online gambling has only been around since the mid-1990s, the growth of the industry in the UK is staggering.
The success of this newly created sector unquestionably has its roots in how firmly embedded gambling is within British culture.
From a sports perspective, wagering on football and horse racing have been a traditional activity in the UK for several decades now.
Land-based casinos have also been hugely popular, although the costs of visiting such establishments limited the demographic who played the games.
By contrast, bingo has always been a game that could be played by the masses, and its appeal has not diminished in the online arena.
All of these branches of gambling have flourished online, with the supporting technology creating an environment where the practice has become much easier to undertake.
Bettors are no longer forced to visit betting shops, casinos or bingo halls – they simply login to a site via their chosen device and start wagering.
This level of convenience has unquestionably contributed into forcing Gulf countries to rethink their restrictive stance on gambling.
Where once it was easy to limit what people did in brick-and-mortar establishments, digital technology does not allow for the same level of control.
Even the use of geo-blocking technology has become largely redundant, with Virtual Private Network (VPN) proving bettors with an easy way to circumnavigate this issue.
As the growth in the UK has demonstrated, resisting the march of online gambling is an exercise in futility and Gulf countries are clearly wising up to this fact.
With licensed operators such as YYY leading the way, it is likely to be just a matter of time before the region fulfils its potential as a global gambling hub.
Read more:
UK bettors inspiring other nationalities to join in the fun
