The Ministry of Finance has published data on tax revenues for the first half of 2020. The part of the sports betting industry which operates legally has paid PLN 343.4 million of gambling and lottery tax in the above-mentioned period, which means a reduction of 10% as compared to the corresponding period of 2019.

In Q2 alone, bookmakers have contributed PLN 138.6 million to the Treasury, while in the previous year their contribution amounted to PLN 188.6 million, which is a decrease by as much as 26.6%.

The estimates of the “Graj Legalnie” Association suggest that STS has strengthened its position as the leader and, as a consequence, it controls half of the market the largest bookmaker has an almost 50% share of the Polish sports betting sector.

A comparison of the second quarters of 2019 and 2020 shows that STS has reported an increase of 4%. The position of second best is taken by Fortuna whose market share, as compared to Q2 2019, dropped by nearly 7%, and currently constitutes 25% in revenues of the industry in Poland. Forbet still remains the third largest entity, having increased its share by 1%.

The changes in the Polish sports betting industry have been brought about by the coronavirus pandemic. Limiting the number of sports events in Q2 of this year has translated to fewer offers from operators. The chronic unprofitability of bookmakers, except for the largest ones, has been additionally aggravated by the current situation. As the data from the Association suggest, STS has best adapted to the new conditions and, in difficult market circumstances, was able not only to retain its leadership but also to strengthen it. It is also expected that the digitisation process of the industry will be stronger in the near future. Some Polish operators already generate 85% of their revenues from online channels.