The Asociación Chilena de Casinos y Juegos (ACCJ) has stepped up its call for tougher regulation and enforcement against illegal gambling, underscoring the issue in its 2025 annual report released Monday. Chile’s gambling market is one of the most developed in Latin America, ranking fourth in iGaming size behind Brazil, Mexico, and Argentina.
Yet while land-based casinos continue to shrink, the unregulated online sector is booming, a trend mirrored across the region, where countries such as Colombia and Argentina have already formalised online gambling frameworks.
Declining revenues in the regulated market
Data revealed that licenced casinos in the country saw a decline: gross gaming revenue of CLP509.8 billion ($597.5 million) in 2025, down 4.5 per cent from the previous year. Additionally, tax collections fell, dropping 4.7 per cent to CLP214 million ($238 million).
The country operated 25 casinos last year, 22 were under Law 19.995, and three municipal venues were in regulatory transition. Visits to licenced casinos declined 7.2 per cent to 926,873, highlighting the sector’s weakening performance. Contrastingly, estimates reveal that the illegal online gambling market is worth $3.1 billion, dwarfing the regulated sector and destroying its competitiveness.
Judicial and legislative action
The ACCJ welcomed a Supreme Court ruling ordering the blocking of unauthorised betting websites, calling it a crucial step to safeguard revenues and consumer safety. According to ACCJ President Cecilia Valdés: “We deeply appreciate the Supreme Court’s clear ruling on online gambling platforms, stating that they are illegal in Chile.”
To date, gambling is allowed in Chile, but only through the Concepción Lottery, Polla Chilena, racetracks, or expressly authorised casinos.
In 2025, the ACCJ contributed technical expertise to two major legislative initiatives. The first is Boletín 14.838-03. This bill regulates online betting platforms and passed a general Senate vote on 13 August, advancing to committee review. Next is Boletín 15.975-25, which proposes establishing a Subsistema de Inteligencia Económica to detect and prevent organised crime-related activities.
Regional context
Compared to other regions in Latin America, Brazil leads in football-driven sports betting. But enforcement remains uneven. Mexico has operated under a regulatory framework since 2004, allowing both casinos and online operators. Argentina’s provincial approach has created a patchwork of regulations, with Buenos Aires Province leading the way.
Meanwhile, Chile’s delay in formalising regulation risks further losses in tax revenue and consumer protection, while illegal operators consolidate market share, according to several media outlets.
ACCJ’s position and enforcement push
The association has asserted that future regulations must go beyond legitimising current practices. It also champions balanced obligations across all operators, including taxation, transaction traceability, consumer protection, and enforceable compliance standards.
To combat clandestine gambling, the ACCJ has partnered with municipal governments, prosecutors, the Internal Revenue Service (SII), and police forces. Regional hotspots such as Antofagasta, Ovalle, Valdivia, Puerto Montt, Los Ángeles, Castro, and municipalities around Santiago have seen a surge in illegal venues tied to tax evasion and organised crime.
Insights have shown how illegal online gambling presents serious harms. They can lead to financial ruin, addiction, fraud, and links to organised crime. In addition, these platforms remove players from consumer protections, deprive their governments of tax revenue, while strengthening criminal networks once these operations occur outside of these regulations.
The ACCJ has organised workshops and coordinated enforcement initiatives to counter these risks, highlighting that unsupervised illegal gambling undermines both the economy and public trust.
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