National Gambling Board: A New Survey of Gambling in South Africa

What the Board is asking for

The National Gambling Board (NGB) published a request for proposals, bid NGB 002(2026/2027), titled "Research to determine the prevalence of gambling and problem gambling in South Africa". The document is dated 2 October 2026. The study is to cover "South African adults aged 18 years and older", and the contract runs for nine months.

Bidders must attend a briefing on 16 October 2026, and proposals close on 27 October 2026. So the survey has not started yet: the Board is choosing who will run it.

What it will measure

Among other things, the Board wants how often people gamble and on what, nationally and per province, their reasons for gambling or not, the impact on households and work, and attitudes to land-based and online gambling.

Online gambling is to be broken down into online sports betting, online horse racing, online casino and online bingo, and the study must "distinguish between gambling occurring on South African licenced, South African unlicenced and foreign operators". Done that way, the survey would show how common online gambling on sites without a South African licence is.

The Board also wants to monitor more often. It notes: "The UK for example currently runs prevalence studies annually".

What the last study found

The tender sums up the Board's previous socio-economic study of 2023-24: "65.7% of the respondents had engaged in gambling activities in the 12 months before the survey, a substantial increase from 30.6% in the 2017 national study." The National Lottery was the most common form, followed by sports betting and lucky draws.

The same summary says that 29% of respondents knew of underage gambling in their close social circles, and that 27% of gamblers received a social grant.

What it means for you as a player

Nothing changes for players today: this is research, not a new rule. What it tells you is where the regulator is looking: online play, unlicensed and foreign sites, young people and households on grants.

The practical step is the same as before: check that a bookmaker holds a South African licence before you sign up. Our licence check guide shows how, and every review on this site gives the licence the brand states, or says plainly when a brand is not licensed by a South African board.

If gambling has stopped being fun, the South African Responsible Gambling Foundation helpline 0800 006 008 is free; our responsible gambling page lists more ways to get help.