Gambling in South Africa
Encyclopedia
Following a near outright ban for most of its history, several forms of gambling
were legalised in South Africa
in 1996. A change in legislation saw the establishment of legal casino
s, a national lottery
and other forms of gaming.
. In the late 1970s casinos started operating in the bantustans of Bophuthatswana
, Ciskei
, Transkei
and Venda
. By 1995 an estimated 2000 illegal casinos were believed to be operating within the country. In 1996 the National Gambling Act instituted a system of licensed casinos and a single national lottery
.
s (27.7% participation), scratchcard
s (22.7% participation), charity jackpot competitions (11.6% participation) and horse racing betting (11.5% participation). 8.3% of respondents said they never gambled and a further 5.5% characterised themselves as occasional game players with no regular forms of gambling.
In the 2006/2007 financial year licensed gross gambling revenue as monitored by the National Gambling Board totaled R13.52 billion, from R11.4 billion the previous year. 86.2 percent of that revenue was derived in casinos.
In the same period the Board reported a total of 455 raids on and closures of presumed illegal gambling operations.
Betting on horse races is controlled by Saftote and operated by Gold Circle in KwaZulu-Natal
and the Western Cape
and by Phumelela in the remainder of the country.
Gambling
Gambling is the wagering of money or something of material value on an event with an uncertain outcome with the primary intent of winning additional money and/or material goods...
were legalised in South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
in 1996. A change in legislation saw the establishment of legal casino
Casino
In modern English, a casino is a facility which houses and accommodates certain types of gambling activities. Casinos are most commonly built near or combined with hotels, restaurants, retail shopping, cruise ships or other tourist attractions...
s, a national lottery
South African National Lottery
The South African National Lottery was established in 2000 and is the most popular form of gambling in South Africa by value and number of players...
and other forms of gaming.
History of gambling in South Africa
Most forms of gambling were banned or restricted from as early as 1673, with the Gambling Act of 1965 officially banning all forms except betting on horse racingHorse racing
Horse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...
. In the late 1970s casinos started operating in the bantustans of Bophuthatswana
Bophuthatswana
Bophuthatswana , officially the Republic of Bophuthatswana was a Bantustan – an area set aside for members of a specific ethnicity – and nominal parliamentary democracy in the northwestern region of South Africa...
, Ciskei
Ciskei
Ciskei was a Bantustan in the south east of South Africa. It covered an area of 2,970 square miles , almost entirely surrounded by what was then the Cape Province, and possessed a small coastline along the shore of the Indian Ocean....
, Transkei
Transkei
The Transkei , officially the Republic of Transkei , was a Bantustan—an area set aside for members of a specific ethnicity—and nominal parliamentary democracy in the southeastern region of South Africa...
and Venda
Venda
Venda was a bantustan in northern South Africa, now part of Limpopo province. It was founded as a homeland for the Venda people, speakers of the Venda language. It bordered modern Zimbabwe and South Africa, and is now part of Limpopo in South Africa....
. By 1995 an estimated 2000 illegal casinos were believed to be operating within the country. In 1996 the National Gambling Act instituted a system of licensed casinos and a single national lottery
Lottery
A lottery is a form of gambling which involves the drawing of lots for a prize.Lottery is outlawed by some governments, while others endorse it to the extent of organizing a national or state lottery. It is common to find some degree of regulation of lottery by governments...
.
Prevalence and value
According to a 2006 study the most popular forms of gambling in South Africa were the National Lottery (86.9% participation), slot machineSlot machine
A slot machine , informally fruit machine , the slots , poker machine or "pokies" or simply slot is a casino gambling machine with three or more reels which spin when a button is pushed...
s (27.7% participation), scratchcard
Scratchcard
A scratchcard is a small card, often made of thin paper-based card for competitions and plastic to conceal PINs, where one or more areas contain concealed information which can...
s (22.7% participation), charity jackpot competitions (11.6% participation) and horse racing betting (11.5% participation). 8.3% of respondents said they never gambled and a further 5.5% characterised themselves as occasional game players with no regular forms of gambling.
In the 2006/2007 financial year licensed gross gambling revenue as monitored by the National Gambling Board totaled R13.52 billion, from R11.4 billion the previous year. 86.2 percent of that revenue was derived in casinos.
In the same period the Board reported a total of 455 raids on and closures of presumed illegal gambling operations.
South African National Lottery
The South African National Lottery was established in 2000 and has been in continuous operation since, apart from a suspension between April 2007 and October 2007. In its last year of operation transaction values totaled R3.972 billion, with an average of five million transactions per week, making it the most popular form of gambling in South Africa.Horse racing
On-track betting on horse races was the only legal form of gambling in South African until 1996. Due to its complexity and the difficulty of attracting new players it did not effectively compete with the newly-introduced National Lottery and casino games.Betting on horse races is controlled by Saftote and operated by Gold Circle in KwaZulu-Natal
KwaZulu-Natal
KwaZulu-Natal is a province of South Africa. Prior to 1994, the territory now known as KwaZulu-Natal was made up of the province of Natal and the homeland of KwaZulu....
and the Western Cape
Western Cape
The Western Cape is a province in the south west of South Africa. The capital is Cape Town. Prior to 1994, the region that now forms the Western Cape was part of the much larger Cape Province...
and by Phumelela in the remainder of the country.