Gambling Statistics Ireland — Annual Report 2026

Methodology

This annual report is an independent synthesis of publicly reported gambling statistics for Ireland. It is intended for journalists, researchers, students, charities, support services and policymakers who need a quick, sourced overview of participation, harm prevalence and the shape of the Irish gambling market. We do not run our own surveys; we do not commission polling; we do not extrapolate.

Each table cites the underlying source and the year of the most recent reporting we are aware of. Where figures vary between sources we present ranges rather than a single point estimate. Always cite the original source for academic, journalistic or policy use — this page is a summary, not the primary data.

Ireland's statutory regulator — the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland (GRAI) — was established under the Gambling Regulation Act 2024 and is in the process of taking on responsibility for licensing, advertising rules and a Social Impact Fund. As the GRAI publishes its own official statistics, this page will be updated to reflect them.

How to read these numbers

Gambling prevalence research is methodologically difficult. Different studies use different screening instruments (PGSI, DSM-IV, problem-gambling severity questionnaires), different reference periods (past year vs lifetime) and different sampling approaches (population surveys, household surveys, school surveys). Even small methodological differences can change a headline number by a factor of two or three. Treat single point estimates with care; treat trends and ranges as more robust.

We round figures conservatively. Where a figure is contested in the literature, we present the lower and upper credible bounds together. We do not extrapolate; we do not project; we do not commission private polling.

Why participation is high but headline harm is comparatively contained

Past-year gambling participation in Ireland — around half of all adults — is high by European standards. The bulk of that participation is lottery play, which carries a low individual harm profile. Headline problem-gambling prevalence is shaped much more by online sports betting, casino-style games and high-frequency products than by lottery.

The mismatch between participation and harm matters for policy: blunt restrictions on low-harm products do not move the harm needle, while targeted measures on high-harm product features (stake size, speed, in-play markets, advertising intensity) do.

Online and mobile growth

The single biggest market shift over the past decade has been the move from retail to online, and from desktop to mobile. The majority of gambling expenditure in Ireland now occurs online, with sports betting the largest single category. This shift compresses time between decision and bet, increases the number of betting opportunities per session, and makes self-exclusion at the operator level a far more important harm-reduction lever than it used to be.

Demographics

Problem-gambling prevalence is highest among adults aged 18–34, with a male-to-female ratio reported in the range of roughly 3:1 to 5:1 across recent Irish and comparable international studies. Adolescent gambling — particularly informal peer betting and gambling-style features in apps and games — is a growing area of research and concern.

Regional patterns

In-person support services are concentrated in Dublin, Cork, Galway and Limerick. Online and phone-based services give nominal countrywide coverage, but practical access to in-person counselling and peer support remains uneven. Online gambling participation appears to narrow historical urban–rural participation gaps.

Ireland vs UK

The UK is the most useful comparator for Ireland: a similar language, overlapping operator base, a longer-established regulator, and a richer body of prevalence data through the new Gambling Survey for Great Britain (GSGB). Headline participation in Ireland is somewhat higher than in the UK, while headline problem-gambling prevalence is broadly in the same range once methodological differences are taken into account. Direct comparison of single point estimates should always be cautious.

What we do not have good data on (yet)

• Real-time operator-level data on Irish player behaviour.
• High-quality longitudinal prevalence studies — most Irish data are cross-sectional.
• Quantified estimates of the number of people affected as "affected others" (partners, family, employers).
• Disaggregated data on harm by product type within Ireland specifically.

The GRAI Social Impact Fund and the HRB's continued research programme are expected to close some of these gaps over the coming years.

Methodology

Figures on this page are drawn from publicly available HRB bulletins, ESRI working papers, CSO household data, national lottery / industry reporting and — for cautious comparative context only — the UK Gambling Commission's GSGB. We do not run our own surveys.

Where two reputable sources disagree, we present the credible range. Where a single figure is widely repeated but poorly sourced, we omit it. Last updated: 2026-06-10.

Sources

• Health Research Board (HRB) — Irish state agency publishing alcohol, drug and gambling research.
• Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) — Working papers on gambling participation and harm in Ireland.
• Central Statistics Office (CSO) — Household budget and population data used to contextualise gambling expenditure.
• Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland (GRAI) — Statutory regulator established under the Gambling Regulation Act 2024.
• UK Gambling Commission — GSGB — Gambling Survey for Great Britain — used for cautious comparative context only.
• Citizens Information — Plain-English information on Irish public services.