UK faces growing illegal gambling market

The U.K.’s illegal gambling market is growing, with an estimated £2.7 billion wagered annually on unregulated sites. In a Guardian investigation, reporter Rob Davies examines how easily UK gamblers can access offshore operators that avoid requirements for responsible gambling, affordability checks and other player protections.

Davies highlights the potential exploitation of vulnerable gamblers, including people who have self-excluded from licensed operators. His reporting also examines weak oversight in jurisdictions such as Curaçao and efforts by U.K. authorities to gain greater powers to tackle the illegal market.

From the article:

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There’s no need to venture on to the dark web to find an unregulated outfit. If a UK customer tries to visit a non-UK licensed casino, the website should display a message stating it’s unavailable. But “some sites simply don’t bother blocking access,” says Rob, “and users can easily bypass these blocks using a simple VPN.”

Some users simply aren’t aware of the licensed/unlicensed distinction. For users, most platforms look virtually identical. Advertising further blurs these lines. While unlicensed operators can’t technically publish ads in the UK, sponsorship deals offer a loophole. Premier League football clubs frequently advertise unlicenced in Britain offshore gambling on their kits, while other clubs have their own commercial deals. These practices are currently legal, though there are moves to clamp down. (For more on the football front, this piece on Josimar is well worth reading).

And plenty of these sites do have legit-looking credentials, licensed not in the UK, but offshore where there are looser regulations. Many are registered in the Caribbean nation of Curaçao, which has over 8,000 online casinos in its jurisdiction – that’s one for every 20 of its residents.

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Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/world/20...ambling-empire

the affordability checks part is the bit nobody wants to say out loud. every extra document request on a licensed site pushes a share of players to sites that ask for nothing, and those are exactly the ones with no self exclusion and no dispute process. so the rules protect the players who stay and quietly lose the ones who leave. for affiliates the practical risk is a different one. if the ukgc gets more powers over the illegal market, the easiest target is not an offshore operator with no uk presence, it is the sites and people sending traffic to them. worth keeping your toplists clean if you have any uk pages.

That's what happens when it's easier to get a personal loan than gamble with your own money on a regulated site.

Can someone suggest some ok UK facing affiliate programs? I mean those "illegal", not the regulated bs? I know only Goldenbet, which is so far excellent. I need to extend portfolio there.

The tougher the UKGC gets on licensed operators, the greater the risk that some players will turn to offshore sites that don’t fall under UK regulations at all. That’s not an argument against regulation - without it issues like gambling addiction would be even harder to tackle. But it is an argument for finding a smarter balance.

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Originally Posted by QuantumNomad

The tougher the UKGC gets on licensed operators, the greater the risk that some players will turn to offshore sites that don’t fall under UK regulations at all.

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I agree, but I think the problem goes further. The UKGC isn't being tough only on licensed operators but also on the people it's supposed to protect. They're making players jump through hoops and share sensitive financial information to spend their own money. Even if the financial costs aren't passed on to players, the hassle itself pushes people towards other (not necessarily healthier) alternatives.