People have been gambling since the beginning of time. It did not matter to many if it was legal or illegal. The legality of Gambling in SA has been strictly controlled for centuries. The Gambling Act of 1965 banned almost all forms of gambling in South Africa. The only gambling that was allowed was horse racing.
Despite the ban on gambling, casinos still operate in South Africa. They are run in the independent areas of South Africa known as the Homelands. Illegal casinos operate throughout South Africa. The 1996 National Gambling Act allows for licensed casinos and the National Lottery.
The original National Gambling Act of 1996 was repealed in 200, and the National Gambling Amendment Act was introduced in 2008. Since then, the growth of gambling in South Africa has brought it to people in many different ways, including casinos, lotteries, sports wagering, and online gambling.
Online Gambling
The 2008 Act was intended to legalize online gambling, but it was not able to accomplish this at first. In 2010, it was illegal for businesses to process payments for online gamblers, and violators were subject to fines of up to 10 million, prison terms of up to 10 years, or both.
The problem is that operating a gaming website on the internet in South Africa is not illegal. Operating it as a legal casino is a different story. Sportsbooks and horse race betting sites can get the licenses they need to operate in South Africa. Casinos have tried to use servers outside of South Africa to manage and handle payments. Still, South Africa can block these, leading to possible punishments if the rules are violated.
There are several South African Online Casinos that you can easily find on the internet. They are all trying to get a license from the Government so they can legally operate as a casino in South Africa. The casinos can obtain licenses in jurisdictions that allow gambling. It is also possible for people in the South African regions to access online casino sites.
There are also poker rooms in and around South Africa. These are facing the same issues as the casinos, struggling to get the license to operate in South Africa.
What’s Next
The biggest question people have is what is next in South Africa. Fully licensed online casinos will eventually become legal in South Africa. The law already allows for the licensing of online casinos. It is now down to implementing it.
Online casinos have one thing in their favour. They offer the countries where they operate a revenue stream that is growing quickly. South Africa will eventually want to get its cut from the money spent at online casinos and find a way around the stalemate that seems to exist. When that happens, playing at the online casinos in South Africa will get much easier.
Mobile Gambling Legal in South Africa
As per NGA, “gambling activities” include:
- Placing bets or wagers, or of any value, on fixed-odds bets, open bets with bookmakers;
- Playing bingo, electronic bingo, or offering bingo;
- Accepting or placing totalisator bets;
- Playing any gambling game with a chance of receiving money, whether by skill or luck, and/or making such a game available; and
- Playing any fun game with a restricted reward.
Legal gambling includes:
1. Casinos
This includes land-based casinos, which, by any measure, are the heart of the South African gambling industry. As per NGB figures, they contribute 70.5% of the total gross gambling revenue (GGR) of R26 billion. It offers 64,000 jobs, according to Casa.
2. Limited-payout Machines
These gambling machines offer limited amounts to bet and win and are operated at licensed venues like pubs and gaming arcades. They experienced good revenue growth from year to year (13.7% in 2015/16) and accounted for 9% of total GGR in 2016.
3. Bingo
Most operational licenses to operate electronic bingo terminals (EBTs) are in Gauteng. They are also a matter of dispute for the casino industry. EBTs are no different from casino slot machines; they work without a casino’s infrastructure or social obligations. Bingo revenue dropped by more than 16% in 2016, accounting for 3.6% of total GGR. This is the case for the legality of gambling in SA.
4. Horse Racing
It has been a popular sport in South Africa since the 170s but is now in decline. However, as per research, betting on horse racing still supersedes all other sports betting, generating R1.9 billion on the horses.
5. Sports Betting via a Licensed Bookmaker
This is the only legal online option for placing bets regarding the legality of gambling in SA. The legitimacy of this type of gambling goes with the fact that the internet is merely the medium of communication. The results of the betting take place elsewhere. The combined (sports and horse racing) betting industry grew in revenue terms by almost 28.5% in 2015/16.
6. The National Lottery
The Licensed local lottery operators can conduct their business online or in retail, so several websites offer lottery games. The revenue from this has accounted for R4 426 million.
Buying offshore lottery tickets is illegal, but you can place online bets, such as the EuroMillions, through the relatively new website Lottostar (www.lottostar.co.za). It has been functioning for over two years and delivered R180 million in winnings.
Impact of Online Gambling
In South Africa, at least 5% of the money on gambling goes to illegal websites, as per Casa. Casa is neutral on the question of legalization. If online gambling becomes legal, Casa will become an online operator.
Gambling on personal computers is a small part of the problem; most online gambling in South Africa is conducted on-premises in establishments that call themselves internet cafés and entertainment lounges.
The Legality of Gambling in SA is confusing. It is not legal, uses illegal software from other countries, and operates in cash for as long as it can escape.