Table of Contents
Chile’s regulated casino sector posted a decline in 2025, with land-based gross gaming revenue falling 4.5% to CLP509.8 billion ($597.5 million), according to the annual report of the Asociación Chilena de Casinos y Juegos (ACCJ). Total tax receipts from the sector decreased 4.7% in real terms to CLP214 million, as illegal online operators — estimated to control a parallel market worth approximately $3.1 billion — continued to draw revenues away from the licensed channel.
Regulated Market Under Pressure
Chile operated 25 casinos in 2025. Of these, 22 held licences under Law 19.995 while three municipal venues were undergoing regulatory transition. Despite the stable number of establishments, visits to Law 19.995-authorised casinos dropped 7.2% year-on-year to 926,873 — a sign that footfall, not just spending, is eroding.
The ACCJ’s 2025 report positioned the illegal online market as the primary driver of the regulated sector’s decline. Unlicensed platforms operating beyond Chilean regulatory oversight grew more entrenched over the year, prompting the ACCJ to intensify calls for legislative and enforcement intervention.
The issue reached the judiciary. Chile’s Supreme Court issued a ruling mandating the blocking of illegal betting websites — a decision the ACCJ cited as necessary to protect consumers and tax revenues alike.
“We deeply appreciate the Supreme Court’s clear ruling on online gambling platforms, stating that they are illegal in Chile.” — Cecilia Valdes, ACCJ President
Under current law, gambling in Chile is legal only through the Concepción Lottery, Polla Chilena, racetracks, or expressly authorised casinos. The ruling reinforced that framework, though enforcement against offshore and unlicensed platforms remains a practical challenge.
Legislative Progress on Two Fronts
The ACCJ contributed technical input to two legislative initiatives in 2025. The first, Boletín 14.838-03, is a bill to regulate online betting platforms. It cleared a general Senate vote on 13 August by 27 votes in favour, three against and five abstentions, advancing to committee stage for further amendments.
The second, Boletín 15.975-25, proposes a “Subsistema de Inteligencia Económica” — a mechanism to alert authorities to organised crime-linked financial activities, including illegal gambling operations.
The ACCJ’s position on both bills is clear: future regulation must impose balanced obligations across all operators covering taxation, transaction traceability, consumer protection and enforceable compliance standards. The association explicitly argued against frameworks that would legitimise existing illegal practices without structural requirements.
Regional enforcement activity also intensified. Working with municipal governments, prosecutors, the Internal Revenue Service (SII) and police, the ACCJ identified a rise in clandestine gambling venues across regions including Antofagasta, Valdivia, Puerto Montt and municipalities surrounding Santiago, with links to broader informal economies and, in some cases, organised crime networks.
Chile’s regulatory trajectory mirrors pressures playing out across Latin America. Brazil’s regulated market generated $7 billion in GGR and attracted 25 million bettors in its first year of operation, and has faced parallel debates over the boundary between licensed and unlicensed activity. Brazil has since moved to regulate B2B suppliers directly, opening a licensing consultation process for platform providers and operators — a model the ACCJ may point to as Chile drafts its own online framework.
Youth Exposure Raises Regulatory Stakes
A study published in 2025 — Pantallas que atrapan: Radiografía del juego online en jóvenes chilenos — coordinated by the Corporación de Juego Responsable and Corporación Copreventive, provided the first national-scale data on young Chileans’ engagement with online betting.
The findings were notable: 26% of young people reported placing online bets in the previous 12 months. The average age of first gambling was 15.5 years. Of those surveyed, 92% had encountered gambling advertising via social media or livestream platforms. Micro-bets dominated, with 79% wagering less than CLP10,000 per transaction. A significant overlap with videogaming was recorded — 62% of young respondents had played games incorporating chance mechanisms such as loot boxes.
In response, the ACCJ extended its engagement to health professionals and government ministry officials, making the case that any regulatory framework must pair enforcement against illegal operators with education, digital literacy programmes and mental health prevention measures.
With illegal online revenues estimated at more than five times the size of the regulated market, the pressure on legislators to produce a workable framework before the Senate committee process concludes is considerable.
Source: Asociación Chilena de Casinos y Juegos (ACCJ)
