We turn our attention to Spanish-speaking major population areas such as Spain, Colombia, Argentina, Peru, and Chile to observe the development of the sports betting industry in these regions.
As of January this year, Spain's population exceeded 49 million, with a GDP per capita of $35,789. Among the countries I have written about, the per capita income is only lower than Australia and Japan.
Spain is one of the countries in the European Union with the most mature gambling regulations, overseen by the Directorate General for Gambling Regulation (DGOJ). To legally operate in Spain, one must obtain a license issued by the DGOJ and pay a 20% gambling tax based on the total gambling revenue (GGR).
The DGOJ issues two types of licenses: general licenses (for all types of games) and singular licenses (for specific games). General licenses are valid for 10 years, and operators must meet the following requirements to obtain one:
1. Be a legal entity registered in any EU member state
2. Provide a financial guarantee of 2 million euros
3. Pay at least 53,000 euros in fees when submitting the registration application
The top 10 gambling websites in Spain in terms of traffic are all from EU and UK companies.
Loteriasyapuestas.es and juegosonce.es are the operators of Spain's two major digital lotteries. The former operates the well-known Christmas El Gordo lottery.
The latter is affiliated with the ONCE Foundation (Spanish National Organization for the Blind), and it operates lotteries themed around the Chinese Lunar New Year.
In the field of sports betting, operators can be divided into local and old EU (UK left the EU in 2016). Sportium and Codere operate within two enclaves in Morocco—Ceuta and Melilla.
Outside of Spain, Sportium's products are also present in Spanish-speaking countries like Colombia, Panama, and Mexico. Codere's operations cover Mexico, Colombia, Panama, and Argentina. According to traffic information, Codere's marketing is somewhat better in terms of international expansion.
Old EU operators, such as the UK's Bet365, Austria's Bwin, France's Winamax, and the UK's William Hill and Betfair, all share a slice of the Spanish market.
Additionally, the world's largest porn index site ranks high on the Spanish-speaking Apustas website affiliate rankings with PlayUzU, GratoGana, and other Casino websites. BetiBet and ExclusiveBet (formerly Jetbull) are also included by affiliates.
Social Media Operations
Sportium has its own channel on Twitch, Sportium TV, and Codere has its promotional platform on YouTube, Codere+.
In the Spanish market, top operators have set up regional accounts on X community, covering 100% of the Spanish-speaking audience. Local companies Sportium and Codere pay attention to the detailed needs of Spanish-speaking customers, setting up channels specifically for online match discussions.
Other Spanish-speaking countries
Colombia
When it comes to the second largest Spanish-speaking country, many might guess Argentina or Spain? Actually, it's neither; the answer is Colombia, with a population of over 51 million and an official GDP per capita of $7,000.
Since 2016, Colombia's online gambling industry has been fully regulated by the local gambling authority, Coljuegos, which introduced a licensing system. Currently, all operational sites in Colombia have a .co suffix and hold a license.
Betplay, Wplay, and Rushbet dominate the traffic in Colombia. There is fierce competition among them, and earlier this month, Wplay sued Betplay for unfair competition, accusing it of not paying VAT as required by the government during Colombia's turbulent period.
Betplay and Wplay are both local Colombian companies, while Rushbet's parent company is Rush Street Interactive from Chicago, USA, which also operates BetRivers targeting the US market.
Argentina
The third largest Spanish-speaking country, with a population of over 46 million. In 2020, Argentina allowed companies with physical casinos in the capital Buenos Aires to apply for online gambling licenses. Codere and Sportium obtained legal licenses during this period and secured exclusive market access in Argentina. Russian-backed 1xbet, Brazil's Betano, and Chile's Jugabet have also obtained market access in Argentina.
Compared to these licensed sites, the cryptocurrency gambling site Stakes has higher traffic in Argentina. Today, with the Argentine peso's value deteriorating, Argentinians might find it more appealing to transfer wealth through cryptocurrencies.
Peru
As of the end of 2024, Peru's population is over 34 million, making it the fifth largest Spanish-speaking country, with an official GDP per capita of $8,300.
The local brand Apuesta Total was established in 2014 and has hundreds of thousands of customers in Peru. Last year, 70% of their shares were acquired by Spain's Cirsa Group, which is backed by the well-known Blackstone Group.
The recent high traffic volume is related to a potential massive leak of customer data, but I could not find third-party information to verify the authenticity of this incident.
Inkabet is a sub-brand of Bettson in the Peruvian market. The Bettson Group has launched three sub-brands in Peru: Bettson, Betsafe, and Inkabet. Meridianbet is a subsidiary of the publicly traded company Golden Matrix Group, showing signs of expansion in Latin America. Doradobet operates in Peru, Ecuador, Chile, Guatemala, Honduras, and other Latin American countries simultaneously.
Ecuador
In Ecuador, Brazil's Betano dominates the traffic. Coolbet and Doradobet, along with Bettson and Becris, form the second tier. Estonian company Coolbet was acquired by GAN in 2021 and currently has strong market competitiveness in Ecuador and Chile.
Uruguay
Surprisingly to many, Uruguay's population is only 3.4 million; the local company Supermatch monopolizes the sports betting traffic.
Chile
Brazilian company Betano leads the Chilean gambling market in terms of traffic, with Jugabet and Coolbetchile ranking first and second in the sports betting market according to similarweb statistics. Jugabet.cl became the official sponsor of Chilean football powerhouse Colo-Colo earlier this year, further expanding its influence in the Chilean market. Coolbetchile holds a Chilean license, and Chile is expected to fully regulate online gambling in the coming years.
Venezuela
Facilitobet dominates the gambling traffic in Venezuela. Due to currency instability, Venezuelan users also prefer to use the cryptocurrency site Stakes.
Panama
Codere.PA dominates the market traffic in Panama.
Conclusion
This brief report covers the current development dynamics of the gambling industry in global Spanish-speaking countries (excluding Mexico). We see strict regulation of online gambling in Spain and Colombia; real traffic choices under poor monetary policy in Argentina; early industry competition in Peru, Chile, and Ecuador; and monopolistic markets in limited markets like Uruguay, Panama, and Venezuela.
In some sports leagues in Latin America, gambling advertisements have completely corroded the image of the leagues. In places lacking reliable commercialization paths and experiencing a siphoning effect, who would give up such readily accessible benefits?
