Leading Trade Groups Announce Partnership to Address Issues Facing Global Gaming Industry

The interests of gambling operators in the US, UK, and Europe are represented by three of the most well-known trade associations in the world, and they have announced an agreement.

The European Casino Association, the American Gaming Association, and the UK's Betting & Gaming Council established a memorandum of understanding on Wednesday, which initiates a transatlantic partnership to exchange industry principles and priorities. The three organizations pledged to address important issues that the global gaming industry faces, such as continued efforts to prevent illegal gambling and to encourage responsible gaming, innovation, and casino security.

"This new partnership is a significant step forward in our collective efforts to advance the legal gaming industry and protect consumers around the globe,” said AGA President and CEO Bill Miller. “By sharing our unique resources, we will expand our fight against illegal gambling to new fronts, work together to strengthen responsible gaming, and innovate around business best practices.”

The joint statement was made at the Global Gaming Expo (G2E), which is taking place at The Venetian Expo in Las Vegas right now. Today marks the end of the event.

Focus of Research

The alignment, according to the three trade groups that support legislation and regulations that benefit the casinos and gambling operators they represent, will accelerate the adoption of new best practices and better facilitate the creation of collaborative research.

A law enforcement roundtable in January 2025 will be the first initiative, according to the groups. The main topic of discussion will be how unlawful gaming endangers customers and affects the regulated business.

According to a statement on the collaboration, the session will look at ways to improve interjurisdictional communication and the creation of "actionable solutions" to deal with the problems related to illegal gaming.

Younger People Playing Video Games

The worldwide gaming industry is more profitable than it has ever been. The United States, the world's richest gaming nation, produced about $110 billion in gross gaming revenue (GGR) from commercial and tribal gambling activities in 2023.

The gaming industry is still growing globally. T he future casino business in the United Arab Emirates is anticipated to generate $5 billion in new GGR annually, while new casinos are also continuing to emerge in the Philippines, Vietnam, and South Korea.

The COVID-19 recovery in Macau is still going strong. Casinos are still opening in the US in places like Virginia and Illinois, and the upcoming integrated casino resort projects in New York City are a major focus for the international sector.

At G2E this week, Miller stated that the gaming population is finally becoming younger, at least in the United States. Miller claims that the industry's developers have finally discovered new ways to appeal to younger people after years of experimenting with new concepts, such as electronic games with skill features, because it was believed that millennials did not enjoy slots nearly as much as their parents and grandparents did. Additionally, sports betting has been beneficial.

"A decade ago, the gaming industry was trying to figure out why we weren’t appealing to younger generations. The mantra back then was, well, we’ll get them when they’re 50,” Miller explained.

According to Miller, the typical age of a casino visitor in 2019 was fifty. It's 42 T oday.

“This is a huge shift,” Miller said. “It’s one that we need to keep driving to stay on the growth trajectory.”