What is iGaming Vertical: A Comprehensive Guide to the iGaming Market

September 27, 2024

iGaming is an exploding market of online gambling activities like casino games, sports betting and poker. With the advancement of digital technologies and global internet penetration this high-ROI niche has attracted millions of users worldwide. For advertisers iGaming is a playground to test different strategies and make quick money.

In this guide, we, the experts at ROIads ad network, will dive deep into everything iGaming. We’ll cover the main types of games, market regulations and media buying strategies. iGaming is a massive market and now is the time to get in and ride the growth.

What is iGaming Vertical

iGaming or online gambling is a global digital industry of internet based gaming. This includes online casinos, sports betting, poker, lotteries and many other forms of gambling. iGaming and gambling are essentially the same thing, just different words for the same online entertainment.

As technology and internet penetration have advanced iGaming has become a global industry with big numbers. According to Statista, the global online gambling market was $74.2 billion in 2024 and is projected to be $145.6 billion by 2029. This steady growth is driven by increasing internet penetration, growing number of smartphone users and increasing interest in online entertainment.

YearMarket Size (Billion USD)
202363,5
202474,2
202585,9
202699,1
2027114,3
2028129,8
2029145,6

These numbers show that iGaming is more than just entertainment — it’s a business opportunity for media buyers. Affiliates and advertisers can test different strategies to attract users and make money. The sooner you get in this growing industry the more opportunities you’ll have to ride the growth.

What Types of Games Are Included in the iGaming Vertical?

iGaming encompasses a wide variety of gambling activities, each offering a unique experience for users.

1. Online Casinos

Online casinos are the most popular form of iGaming. Players can play games like slots, roulette, blackjack, poker and many more from the comfort of their own homes. Blockchain and Random Number Generators (RNG) ensure fairness in gameplay and transaction security.

2. Sports Betting

Sports betting is one of the fastest growing segments of iGaming. Users can bet on the outcome of sports events like football, basketball and horse racing. Esports and fantasy sports are also growing and attracting a new and diverse audience.

3. Poker

Online poker is still a big part of iGaming. Players compete in real time in popular formats like Texas Hold’em and Omaha. Tournaments with big prize pools attract both pros and casual players.

4. Lotteries

Online lotteries allow users to play in major international draws and instant win games directly from the internet. This segment is growing in popularity because of its ease of play and quick results.

5. Bingo and Other Games

Skill based games like bingo, card games and chess are also part of the iGaming vertical. While these games may not be as big as casino or sports betting they have a loyal audience.

Why is the iGaming Niche Growing?

Here are the reasons why the online gambling industry is booming:

  • Technology: The internet and mobile devices have made gambling more accessible than ever. You can play iGaming from anywhere and at any time.
  • Convenience: Online platforms are 24/7, so you can play whenever and wherever you want. That’s what modern players are looking for instant entertainment.
  • Innovation: Technologies like Virtual Reality (VR) and blockchain are making the gaming experience more interactive and transparent. Blockchain for example provides secure and verifiable transactions, so players can trust the gaming platforms.
  • Global Reach: iGaming is being legalized in many countries and the market is growing in Europe, North America and Asia. This widespread acceptance is opening up new opportunities for players and advertisers.

iGaming Regulation: What is the Legal Status of Gambling in Different Countries?

iGaming regulation varies greatly from country to country and region to region. This is due to different legal systems, cultural norms and approaches to gambling. In some countries gambling is fully legal and strictly regulated, in others it’s prohibited or lightly regulated.

Knowing this is key when choosing geos for your future gambling campaigns. A smart choice of regions with a good legal framework will boost your efforts.

Europe — The Leader in iGaming Regulation

Europe is the most advanced region when it comes to iGaming regulation. Countries like the United Kingdom, Malta, Sweden and Gibraltar offer the most reliable and strict licenses for operators, so these jurisdictions are the most attractive for international companies.

  • United Kingdom: The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) is one of the most respected regulators in the world. UKGC ensures fair play standards, player protection, anti-money laundering policies and operator responsibility. UKGC license is the gold standard for reliability.
  • Malta: Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) is well known for its licensing approach. Malta is an iGaming hub for operators due to low taxes and clear regulatory requirements. MGA licenses many big companies, including online casinos and sportsbooks that operate globally.
  • Sweden:  In 2019 Sweden introduced a new licensing system for online gambling, so operators can get Swedish licenses to operate in the country. The regulator, Spelinspektionen, focuses on player protection and responsible gambling.
  • Gibraltar: Despite being small, Gibraltar is one of the world’s main online gambling centers due to its flexible tax system and strong regulatory framework.

North America — A New Wave of Legalization

In North America iGaming is regulated differently in the US and Canada.

  • United States: In the US online gambling is regulated at a state level so there are many different laws. For example New Jersey, Nevada and Pennsylvania have fully legalized online casinos and sports betting with their regulators overseeing operators. Texas and Utah have banned gambling altogether. Notably a 2018 Supreme Court ruling gave each state the right to regulate sports betting themselves and since then many states have legalized it.
  • Canada: In Canada iGaming is also regulated at a provincial level. Ontario has recently introduced its own licensing system for iGaming operators through the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO). This allows licensed operators to offer their services to players in Ontario.

Asia — A Complex and Diverse Market

Asia is one of the most complex and varied iGaming markets where laws and their enforcement differ greatly.

  • Philippines: The Philippines is one of the few places in Asia where online gambling is legal and regulated. PAGCOR licenses both local and international operators. This has made the Philippines a hub for operators targeting Asian markets.
  • China: In China online gambling is strictly prohibited. The only exception is state run lotteries. The Chinese government blocks international websites and prosecutes players who try to play online.
  • India: Online gambling in India is unclear. Some states like Sikkim and Nagaland have legalized online casinos and sports betting while in other parts of the country it’s illegal.

Africa — An Emerging Market

Gambling regulation in Africa is evolving but with many different approaches:

  • South Africa: Online sports betting is legal in South Africa and local operators can get a license. Online casinos and other forms of gambling are prohibited.
  • Nigeria: Nigeria is the largest online gambling market in West Africa. Despite the lack of regulation some operators are operating legally through the National Lottery Regulatory Commission.

Australia and Oceania

  • Australia: In Australia gambling is regulated at a federal level through the Interactive Gambling Act 2001. Online casinos are forbidden for Australian residents but sports betting and lotteries are legal and regulated.
  • New Zealand: New Zealand allows its residents to play on foreign online platforms but local operators can only offer state run lotteries and sports betting.

Key Features of the iGaming Vertical in ROIads

At ROIads advertising network, where affiliate marketers and teams can buy Gambling traffic for casino promotion, we focus on the gambling and betting verticals. These are our main focus areas where we deliver the highest volume of traffic for advertisers.

  • Our top geos for сasino vertical are Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, Bangladesh, and Turkey.
  • Meanwhile, the top geos for sports betting vertical are South Africa, Bangladesh, Thailand, Mongolia, Burkina Faso, and Azerbaijan.

These geos have high demand for gambling so you should definitely add them to your future campaigns.

Brief Overview of the ROIads Ads Network

ROIads is an ad network that delivers traffic through push and pop ads. These formats are perfect for gambling as they grab users attention and generate high engagement and response.

Unlike Facebook and Google Ads, ROIads has minimal restrictions so you can launch campaigns without hitting the moderation or approval wall.

  • Push: This format allows short, vibrant messages to be delivered directly to users’ screens, making it ideal for attracting new players to casino or betting platforms. Push notifications are effective due to their high visibility and direct contact with the user, ensuring immediate engagement.
  • Pops: Pop ads open a new window behind the active browser, offering a subtle but noticeable way to draw attention to casino or betting offers. The main advantage of pop ads is that they don’t require complex creatives. All you need are well-designed pre-landing and landing pages that capture attention and quickly lead users to the desired action.
Massive reach900 billion impressions monthly, so your campaigns will reach global audience
High-Quality Traffic SourcesOur ad network has premium traffic sources from exclusive publishers
User-friendly platformEasy campaign management and detailed stats
AI Bidding TechnologyAutomatic optimization based on performance data

Effective Strategies for Promoting iGaming: Tips for Advertisers and Media Buyers

We’ve explored the potential of iGaming in affiliate marketing and understood the advantages of using the ROIads advertising network for launching such campaigns. Now, let’s move on to practical tips for those who are inspired and ready to work in this niche. While the iGaming niche is undoubtedly one of the most profitable, success depends on leveraging effective creative approaches and properly configuring your advertising campaigns.

How to Promote iGaming? The Key to Winning Over Your Audience

For media buyers or advertisers the main task is to attract the right audience — one that will register, deposit or play. This requires a deep understanding of your audience and creative approach. In iGaming vertical you should consider the following:

  • Study Your Audience: The core iGaming audience is divided into two groups: players who seek profit and thrill of gambling and those who play for entertainment. You should distinguish between these motivations and create creatives for each group.
  • Use Bonuses and Promotions: One of the best promotional tool are bonuses and promotions. Advertising campaigns with “free spins”, “deposit bonuses” or “exclusive offers” are very effective in attracting new users and to make them register.
  • Create a Sense of Urgency: In the iGaming vertical, it’s vital to create a sense of urgency or uniqueness. For example, ad creatives can include countdown timers for the promotion’s end or exclusive offers for the first 100 registered users.

Top 6 Ideas for iGaming Creatives with Push Ads

High quality push creatives are crucial for successful gambling promotion campaigns. They must grab attention, convey messages and make the user take action immediately. Based on our experience we have compiled 6 popular ideas to help you create great creatives.

1. Focus on Big Wins and Attractive Bonuses

The first type of creatives focuses on big wins and bonuses. Happy winner images with phrases like “Win a Million Easily!” or “Exclusive Bonus to Start” will get the user excited and curious. These creatives are for users who want quick and easy earnings. A CTA like “Try Your Luck” will motivate those who love to gamble.

2. Use Slot Machine and Casino Visuals

This type of creatives uses classic casino symbols like slot machines, roulette and the “777” icon. These familiar visuals will signal the gambling theme and attract experienced players. Bright and dynamic images of the gameplay will make the ads visually appealing. The CTA “Register and Get Bonus” will make the user take action immediately.

3. Limit Offers by Time

Creating a sense of urgency is one of the most effective ways to make the user take action immediately. These creatives focus on limited time offers, with phrases like “Only Today!” or “Hurry Up!” Adding a countdown timer will enhance the sense of urgency and will make the user take quick action. Perfect for short term promotions or exclusive bonuses that requires immediate action.

4. Feature Cash and Guaranteed Rewards

Images of cash and bank transfers are a powerful tool in the gambling space. These creatives focus on guaranteed bonuses and 100% rewards for users looking for risk free opportunities. Familiar images of money transfers and banknotes with guaranteed wins messaging will build trust and make the user take action.

5. 100% Bonus for Everyone

Creatives with messages like “100% Bonus for All” or “Get Your Bonus After Registration” will appeal to a wide range of users by offering rewards for everyone. Emojis and friendly faces will grab attention and make the user feel good. CTAs like “Register Now” or “Claim Your Bonus” will make the user register without delay.

6. Offer Personalized Bonuses

Creatives with exclusive offers like “Only Today!” will make the user feel like it’s a unique opportunity available to only a few users. These creatives will push the user to take action immediately as the user doesn’t want to miss out on the exclusive reward. CTAs like “Play and Win” or “Claim Your Bonus” will make it easy and appealing for the user and will drive engagement and conversions.

Tips for Pre-Landing and Landing Pages in Popunder Ads

When running popunder ads, make sure to pay attention to pre-landing and landing pages. These pages are crucial for conversion as they need to engage the user as much as possible and guide them to take action as fast as possible.

  1. Pre-Landing: Capturing Attention

The pre-landing page should grab the user’s attention in seconds. The visuals should be bright and interesting, like a spinning wheel or a bonus offer. You need to highlight the benefits immediately, like free spins, registration bonuses or instant winnings. The user should see the reward and understand that registration will bring them real benefits. The text should be short and clear, with calls to action like “Try Your Luck” or “Get Your Bonus Now.”Tip: Use animated elements like spinning wheels or pop-up prompts to keep attention and increase engagement.

Tip: Use animated elements like spinning wheels or pop-up prompts to keep attention and increase engagement.

  1. Landing Page: A Simple Path to Registration

The landing page should be simple and clear. After the pre-landing page has grabbed attention, the landing page should guide the user to action. The information should be minimal: registration form, bonus details and a button for the main action. The less distractions, the better — the faster and simpler the registration process is, the higher the conversion rate.

Tip: Break the process into a few simple steps with minimal input fields (e.g. name, email, password) and add visual markers that highlight the benefits — like bonuses or free spins after registration.

Nuances of Launching Advertising Campaigns in the iGaming Niche

Launching an ad campaign in iGaming vertical requires to pay attention to several nuances that can impact the ads performance. Here are few things to consider when running campaigns in this vertical:

1. Choose the Right Geos and Pay Attention to Regulation

Before launching a campaign you should understand the regulatory environment and demand in the target countries. For example, in countries like Indonesia, the Philippines, and Thailand, there is a high demand for gambling, but you must also consider local laws regarding gambling ads.

2. Audience Segmentation

iGaming campaign requires you to segment your audience. Segment your target groups by their preferences, geos to determine their tier: some players are looking for quick wins, others for entertainment. Segmentation will allow to target more precisely and increase conversion.

3. Creatives and Testing

Before you launch, create multiple creatives and test. iGaming creatives need to be bright, bold and attention grabbing. Headlines and text should be about bonuses, instant wins and strong CTAs. In one ROIads campaign you can upload up to 10 creatives.

4. Technical Targeting Setup

Use all the targeting options when launching your campaign, device, geo, OS, time targeting and more. This will help you target your campaign more precisely to your audience.

5. Budget Optimization

At the start of the campaign use broad settings and a lower budget to test different traffic sources. As data comes in you can increase the budget on the best performing sources and optimize bids accordingly.

6. Using Micro Bidding

Micro bidding is a key tool for optimizing bids across different traffic sources. It allows you to manage bids based on each source’s performance and increase bids where traffic is performing best. This will help you stop wasting budget on under performing sources and maximize ROI.

7. Using Whitelists and Blacklists

For more accurate targeting use whitelists and blacklists. Whitelists will focus on the best performing traffic sources and blacklists will eliminate underperforming or problematic ones. You can always ask your personal manager at ROIads for pre-made lists to boost your campaign performance.

8. Monitoring and Optimization

After you launch your campaign you need to monitor its performance. In iGaming metrics can change fast so regularly tracking CTR, CPA and CR is crucial. ROIads has real-time analytics so you can make adjustments and optimize your campaign.

Conclusion

We’ve covered the iGaming vertical in depth, the potential, the strategies and practical tips for running campaigns. Now you’re ready to run gambling campaigns like a pro.

Now’s the time to get in on this growing market. Whether you’re a seasoned media buyer or new to iGaming, ROIads has the tools and traffic sources you need to perform. Join us today and start monetizing traffic from one of the highest paying verticals!