- The Internet betting business of the 22 licensed companies in Bulgaria was worth nearly 1.1 billion levs (562 million euro) last year.
- The advertising budgets of the betting companies in Bulgaria decreased for the first time in 2023.
- Offline betting shops have returned to pre-pandemic levels, but increased taxes could hit some actors.
In 2021 and 2022, online gambling in Bulgaria grew by more than 50% year-on-year due to market opening to new actors, but in 2023 this business entered a more mature phase. There was growth, but it was much slower, at some 10%, and new players emerged, with some slight shuffling among the top five betting sites.The business of traditional casinos and gaming halls also grew last year, albeit at a slightly lower pace, with industry representatives saying this segment has recovered from the COVID crisis. However, changes to the Gambling Law adopted at the end of 2023 will likely lead to a new reshuffling. These changes reduced the tax rate for physical sports betting outlets, effectively green-lighting the emergence of such facilities. A similar network was built by Eurofootball owned by gambling tycoon Vasil Bozhkov but in 2020, the state revoked its license. Now, new companies are entering this market segment.
The advertising sector is also changing. After the advertising boom around the 2022 FIFA World Cup, the gambling industry proposed a controversial self-regulation of advertisements to quell widespread dissatisfaction. Combined with the lack of a major sporting event in 2023, this led to the first decline in total annual gross budgets for TV advertising by 13% year-on-year.
Following a record-breaking 2022 and reaching the tolerance limit among people, the gambling industry reported a decline in investments in TV advertising for the first time in 2023. The sector invested 168.3 million levs (85.7 million euro), or 13% less compared to 2022, according to data provided by Publicis Groupe Bulgaria to Capital Weekly.
Online Betting on the Rise
The sector has undergone significant changes over the past four years. Following the removal of Vasil Bozhkov's companies which were then-largest players, the market for online games opened up, and currently, 22 companies hold licenses. Just three years ago, there were only six. The sector's expectations are that this year, new local and foreign actors will enter the Bulgarian market. "The online sector is growing faster. A late market entry does not preclude opportunities but requires a larger investment. However, this applies to any market," says Angel Iribozov, chairman of the Management Board of the Bulgarian Association of the Gaming Industry (BAGI).
Bulgarian online gambling is a business of 1.1 billion levs (561 million euro). The estimate is based on the taxes on this activity paid last year and represents the revenue from bets minus the winnings paid out to gamblers. The sector continued on an upward path but its growth slowed down to nearly 12% last year. The calculations are based on the National Revenue Agency's data on paid gambling taxes.
The largest segment is online casino games with a two-thirds share, while sports betting accounts for 30-35%, according to estimates by sector representatives. At least a million people play online, and despite expectations for a strongly predominant male profile, according to a sector representative, about 40% of bets are placed by women.
A Small Roulette in the Sector
Last year also saw shifts among the top five. In casino games, Winbet (a company associated with Valter Papazki) took the lead from Efbet (owned by the Naydenov brothers Boyan and Tsvetomir), which came in second. Among the top five, the market also lists Palmsbet (associated with Milo Borisov and publicly traded Telematic Interactive Bulgaria) and Top Bet, known by its brand 8888.bg. Last year, there was an interesting change in the ownership of Top Bet, with 60% acquired by Dencho Ganev - the father of Ganev brothers Dimitar and Milen, who had been partners in the lottery business of Vasil Bozhkov.
The Stake Online Increases
The sector has undergone significant changes over the past four years. Following the removal of the largest actors at the time, Vasil Bozhkov's companies, the market for online games opened up, and currently, 22 companies hold licenses. Just three years ago, there were only six. The sector's expectations are for new local and foreign players to enter the Bulgarian market this year. "The online sector is growing faster. A late market entry does not preclude opportunities, but it requires more significant investment. But this applies to any market," says Angel Iribozov, chairman of the management board of the Bulgarian Gaming Association (BGA).
In sports betting, Bet365 from the UK is considered number one by general consensus, having been in the Bulgarian market for years. Efbet is second. The industry points to Greek brand Betano as the fastest-growing in this segment in 2023. Betano entered the Bulgarian market in 2022 with aggressive marketing and investments.
"I do not expect a serious redistribution of market share among operators this year. Perhaps the trend from 2023 will be carried over into 2024," says Lachezar Petrov, executive director of Telematic Interactive Bulgaria. According to the company's individual report for 2023, gross revenues from bets i.e. received bets minus paid winnings grew by 16% compared to the previous year, reaching 113 million levs, with over 90% of them coming from casino games.
Risk Loses, Risk Wins
This year might be more dynamic for terrestrial gambling (i.e. gambling that is not on the Internet). The reason lies in changes to the Gambling Law hastily adopted at the end of last year. They increased the alternative tax for gaming halls and casinos, as well as the taxes for holding a gambling license. And since licenses for gaming halls and casinos are issued on a per-object basis, some market participants predict difficulties for the sector.
By the end of last year, there were about 20 casinos in Bulgaria and nearly 1110 gaming halls. Here, ownership is much more fragmented, with some of the online brands also operating chains of gaming halls and casinos. For example, Efbet has 65 facilities, Winbet has 36 gaming halls, and the Magicbet chain has 22 facilities. According to the most recent report of BAGI, the other commercial brands with the largest terrestrial facilities and online sites are Palms Bet, Alphawin, Inbet, Sesame, and Elitbet. Again, according to the same analysis, which the association traditionally prepares every year, the gaming equipment in the halls is increasing. Thus, if in 2022 there were 31.7 thousand gaming machines, electronic roulettes, and other multiplayers, in 2023 they increased to over 33.2 thousand.
- The Internet betting business of the 22 licensed companies in Bulgaria was worth nearly 1.1 billion levs (562 million euro) last year.
- The advertising budgets of the betting companies in Bulgaria decreased for the first time in 2023.
- Offline betting shops have returned to pre-pandemic levels, but increased taxes could hit some actors.
In 2021 and 2022, online gambling in Bulgaria grew by more than 50% year-on-year due to market opening to new actors, but in 2023 this business entered a more mature phase. There was growth, but it was much slower, at some 10%, and new players emerged, with some slight shuffling among the top five betting sites.The business of traditional casinos and gaming halls also grew last year, albeit at a slightly lower pace, with industry representatives saying this segment has recovered from the COVID crisis. However, changes to the Gambling Law adopted at the end of 2023 will likely lead to a new reshuffling. These changes reduced the tax rate for physical sports betting outlets, effectively green-lighting the emergence of such facilities. A similar network was built by Eurofootball owned by gambling tycoon Vasil Bozhkov but in 2020, the state revoked its license. Now, new companies are entering this market segment.
