Online gambling confusion in South Africa

The recent Gauteng High Court judgment, supported by the Supreme Court of Appeal, that relates to betting on roulette should not be interpreted as a national ban on online gambling in South Africa.

This is according to Wayne Lurie, an attorney who has practised gambling regulatory law for nearly 24 years, who pointed to a statement by the National Gambling Board and several media reports.

He argues that the judgement was misinterpreted by the National Gambling Board, which stated that the ruling applies to the entire country.

Instead, he states that the judgment is fact-based and only interprets one clause in the Gauteng Gambling Act.

Since each province has autonomy over its own gambling regulations, it only applies in Gauteng.

The ruling involved a complaint made by the Casino Association of South Africa (CASA) regarding the Gauteng Gambling Board’s decision to permit Portapa, trading as Supabets, to offer bets on live-streamed roulette games from Lithuania.

These live streams were offered at Supabets and Supaworld venues using software approved by the Gauteng Gambling Board.

CASA argued that, according to section 55 of the Gauteng Gambling Act, bookmakers were limited to offering bets on sporting events.

However, Portapa countered that this contradicts the National Gambling Act, which states that bookmakers may offer bets on any contingency.

The defence also argued that roulette qualifies as a sporting event, which would allow bookmakers to offer fixed-odds bets under the Gauteng Gambling Act.

Both of these arguments were ultimately rejected. The High Court ruled, firstly, that there was no conflict between the two pieces of legislation.

Secondly, it agreed with CASA’s argument that a sporting event refers to a “ball game, race, or other athletic or sporting contest.”

The court held that roulette is a casino game and may only be offered under a casino licence.

“The Supreme Court held that, in terms of the Gauteng Gambling Act, it is unlawful for bookmakers to offer fixed-odds bets on the outcome of a casino game, including the game of roulette,” the NGB said afterwards.

However, Lurie, who is also the CEO of the South African Responsible Gambling Association, said that this is the entirety of the ruling.

“It did not pronounce on the legality of online betting itself, nor on the status of bookmaker operations licensed under other provincial regimes.”

He explains that both national and provincial authorities have jurisdiction over casinos, racing, gambling, and wagering.

While the National Gambling Act establishes national norms, definitions, and an oversight framework, it is up to provincial licensing authorities to issue and regulate operator licences within their jurisdiction.

Therefore, he says that each province determines which types of events a bookmaker may offer.

In the case of Portapa, the Gauteng Gambling Act limited betting to sporting events, despite the National Gambling Act allowing bookmakers to accept bets on any contingency.

“Provincial discretion allows regulation to respond to local economic conditions, social priorities, and enforcement capacity,” Lurie said.

“Where the Constitution grants concurrency, provincial legislation prevails unless uniform national legislation is required for reasons of national interest.

To suggest otherwise would require a constitutional amendment supported by a two-thirds majority in Parliament — not an irresponsible media statement,” he added.

The case of the Western Cape and Mpumalanga

Lurie points out that the Western Cape and Mpumalanga tend to have more flexible gambling legislation than Gauteng and other provinces.

This is evident in the revenue generated and taxes paid by gambling businesses in provinces across the country.

According to the National Gambling Board, the province with the highest amount wagered throughout the year was Mpumalanga, at R623 billion (41.5%).

The Western Cape was second at R402 billion (26.8%), followed by Gauteng — South Africa’s most populous province and roughly three times the size of Mpumalanga — at R179 billion (12%).

The report also revealed that the gambling sector generated R75 billion in revenue during the period, representing an increase of roughly R16 billion from the previous year.

As with the turnover figures, the majority of this was generated through betting activities (R52 billion), followed by casinos (R17 billion), slot machines (R4.1 billion), and bingo (R1.7 billion).

However, despite Mpumalanga accounting for 41.5% of the money wagered on gambling activities, businesses registered in the province only generated 30% (R22.2 billion) of the country’s total gambling revenue.

Almost all of this was derived from betting, amounting to R21.3 billion.

This stands in stark contrast to five years ago, when the figures were significantly different.

In 2019/20, Gauteng generated the most gambling revenue in the country, accounting for 40.2% of the total, followed by the Western Cape at 18.1% and KwaZulu-Natal at 17.6%.

Read more: South Africans spent R1.5 trillion on gambling activities last year