Nearly four in ten Irish gamblers who opened an online account for sport or horse racing later moved into faster products such as casino games, slots, bingo or digital scratchcards. The finding comes from new research commissioned by the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland.
The ESRI study surveyed 1,000 people who had gambled in the previous year. It found that 80% had at least one online account, while 53% of account holders maintained more than one. Forty-four percent combined online and in-person gambling.
Operator contact was widespread. Most account holders received communications every week, and roughly a quarter of those receiving app alerts got them at least daily. The survey also found that depositing money was more often described as very easy than withdrawing winnings, while almost one in five people who tried to close an account reported difficulty.
The Irish regulator said the evidence can inform the continuing rollout of the Gambling Regulation Act 2024. The report points to notification consent, account closure, withdrawals and a central self-exclusion register as areas for regulatory attention, while noting that more work is needed to test whether product expansion directly increases harm.
