In March 2022 was presented a draft law that seeks to regulate the development of online betting platforms in Chile. This proposal is currently under discussion in the Economy Commission of the Chilean Chamber of Deputies and could be approved by the end of 2023. Current regulations prohibit even the country’s licensed land-based casinos from offering their services online. The planned regulations would allow both casino gaming and sports betting to increase tax revenues and ensure player safety.
This initiative represents a measure to protect licensed operators from grey market activities and will allow companies incorporated in Chile to obtain a general license for five years, renewable, or a temporary license for six months, non-renewable, for the operation of any betting or gaming object, except lotteries.
Before 1990 the only gambling permitted in Chile was betting on horse races. This was done primarily as pari-mutuel betting on track, which is still possible at all five tracks and at dog racing meetings too. While this satisfied many Chilean sports-bettors and still proves very popular today, other betting markets, such as football were conducted illegally.
The first legal sports betting in Chile came in 2008 when the lottery operator Polla Chilena sought permission to offer fixed odds betting. Online casinos are illegal, although the new legislation is expected to allow an unlimited number of licenses. Potential operators will pay Chile’s national casino gaming authority an annual fee of $70,000 and a 20% tax on gross operating proceeds.
During 2021, online gaming, a phenomenon that had been consolidating in Chile since before the pandemic, but which exploded in 2020 due to the confinement measures, was consolidated.
The online gaming industry in Chile paid 90 billion Chilean pesos in taxes (a little more than 100 million dollars) and could collect between 50 and 100 million dollars if the sector is regulated. According to the Asociación Chilena de Casinos de Juego (ACCJ), the digital platforms that do not comply with the law are approximately 900 and move between 130 and 170 million dollars in bets per year.
Legally operating casinos contribute millions to the state, generate tens of thousands of direct jobs and represent up to 40 percent of the budgets of the regions where they are located. Hence the interest in regulating and establishing a legal and fiscal framework that equates both activities.
Chile is the first Latin American country to deploy 5G telecommunications networks, and is a leading territory with Internet coverage, reaching 90% of the population. There are approximately 25 million mobile phone connections across the country. In Chile there are more female gamers than male mobile gamers, reaching 51% and 49% respectively. Players who are mostly in an age range between 25 and 34 years with 25%, followed by gamers from 35 to 44 years with 23%, leaving behind those between 16 and 24 years with 17%.
In relation to eSports, Chile is an emerging market whose citizens are increasingly interested in this activity. Recently, the National Professional Football Association (ANFP) launched with great success the first official FIFA league in Chile, with the participation of 12 teams and 24 players. The event was so well received that reputable teams, such as Universidad de Chile, continue to sign up for its training.
Chile will host the first Pan American eSports Championship in 2023, according to the announcement of Panam Sports and the Global eSports Federation, to be held in October in Santiago de Chile in parallel to the XIX Pan American Games. According to the official statement shared by the international organization, the Pan American eSports championship will feature the participation of different video game athletes from the 41 countries of the continent.
