Just 4% of UK gamblers reported increased gambling spending in the first phase of the COVID-19 pandemic, although many of these were individuals whose gambling was already considered problematic.

A new survey commissioned by the industry-funded GambleAware responsible gambling charity and undertaken by YouGov queried two groups of individuals in October 2019 regarding their gambling activity, with a follow-up survey of the same groups’ activity in May 2020, which marked the start of the UK’s pandemic lockdown.

Overall, the survey found a 10-point reduction in the number of individuals reporting participation in any form of gambling, from 49% in October 2019 to 39% in May 2020. Male gamblers reported a larger decline (from 53% to 41%) versus female gamblers (36% to 31%), a shift the authors attributed to the pandemic halt of major league sports activity, on which betting is a primarily male endeavor.

Decreases in activity were noted across all gaming verticals except online casino games (including slots), which rose from 1.5% participation last October to 2.3% in May. The study found the online casino increase to be more significant among men (from 2% to 3.2%) than women (from 1.1% to 1.5%).