Unlicensed offshore betting platforms have taken around 9% of the UK gambling market. This is the key finding of a study funded by Flutter UK & Ireland. These sites remain easy to access in the UK, and they are actively promoted via social media and bloggers. The scale of the problem is alarming to regulators and licensed operators.
Key findings of the investigation:
- Verification failures were catastrophic, including the successful registration of a six-year-old child
- Operators such as MyStake, Velobet and Cosmobet aggressively promote services without a UK Gambling Commission licence
- Influencers and betting-focused accounts direct followers to unregulated platforms
- Standard payment methods, including bank cards and e-wallets, make switching between legal and illegal services near-seamless
- The growth of the “shadow” segment threatens the government’s plans to collect taxes from the industry
Why regulators are finding it increasingly hard to curb the growth
Spending in the UK is rising not only on video games but also across the iGaming industry. The illegal online betting market in the UK is steadily expanding. International sites remain freely accessible, outside the jurisdiction of UK regulators.
This applies not only to sports betting but also to online casinos. Most gaming platforms operate under international licences. To find out how serious the issue is, we conducted our own brief check, using as a basis a list of online casinos that offer play Funky Time live game. This list was chosen because it includes many major gaming platforms that best reflect the realities of the local market.
The analysis showed that most online casinos are accessible in the UK, but fall into the so-called “grey” area. For players, this means the need to be careful when choosing a platform and to check not only the presence of an international licence, but also the operator’s reputation.
The situation is compounded by the fact that these operators aren’t hiding. The advertising is so overt that ordinary consumers often do not even realise they have switched to an unregulated platform.
A series of tests that exposed how superficial the checks were
Wood registered on several international platforms using obviously fake details. His aim was to test whether KYC and age-verification controls would stop clearly fraudulent sign-up forms.
In the first experiment, he entered the names of well-known figures in the horse-racing world — jockeys Harry Skelton and Jack Kennedy, as well as trainer Willie Mullins. Not a single platform reacted to the match with real public figures.
One platform accepted a registration in which the home address was listed as Cheltenham Racecourse itself. The system asked no further questions.
In the next test, Wood created an account in the name of the legendary racehorse Red Rum, listing occupation: “racehorse” and place of residence: “horse heaven”. All fields were accepted without the slightest difficulty.
The climax was an experiment in which it was possible to register an account for a six-year-old child with the address Buckingham Palace. The platform didn’t flag or block any of the fields.
Such weak checks make offshore platforms a magnet for those looking to bypass safeguards required of licensed UK operators, including self-exclusion schemes.
Brands under scrutiny and the Ronaldinho controversy
Among the identified brands operating outside UK oversight were MyStake, Velobet and Cosmobet.
MyStake claimed to have a sponsorship deal with football legend Ronaldinho. However, those claims were disputed after an analysis indicated that the promotional materials may have been AI-generated.
Wood described the scale of illegal and unlicensed content online as “quite striking” and said that social media platforms should be held accountable for its spread.
Instagram as a funnel for offshore bookmakers
According to Wood’s observations, his Instagram feed quickly filled with posts leading to offshore bookmakers. A significant portion of this content came from betting tipsters and influencers.
Some of the links redirected users to closed channels and private groups. Within such groups, betting tips and promo codes for unlicensed platforms were shared.
Bank cards without borders
Most unregulated platforms accept standard payment methods — debit cards and e-wallets.
This effectively removes the barrier between the legal and illegal segments. Switching from a licensed service to an offshore platform becomes almost unnoticeable for the average user.
Nine percent that hits the public purse
Illegal operators, according to the study’s estimates, account for around 9% of the UK gambling market. This share has grown noticeably in recent years.
The growth in betting volumes outside the regulated framework means that less and less money flows through official channels. This directly undermines the Treasury’s plans to increase budget revenues by raising taxes on the gambling industry.
A united front against the black market
Licensed operators are calling for closer coordination between government bodies, the regulator, and tech platforms. Specific measures include tightening oversight of advertising and the payments infrastructure through which unlicensed sites are promoted and serviced.
