The History of Online Gambling in Malta

Malta was one of the first countries in Europe where players could gamble online. But a long history preceded this. Malta, of course, was really not immediately one of the countries where players could go to gamble. It was, however, the first country in Europe to literally dare to take the gamble. It dared to be the first to enter the world of online casino. While other European countries were still reluctant to develop online casinos on the internet, Malta went full steam ahead.

Malta has always had a love for gambling

According to Onlinecasinolegends.com, gambling and Malta have been going hand in hand for years. The island has a huge penchant for gambling and this does not come out of the blue. In 1922, for instance, they were the first country in Europe where you could participate in a legal lottery. From Italy, they even came to Malta to buy lottery tickets. It was their first step into the legal world of gambling. But for centuries they loved gambling in Malta. The island had been gambling among locals for much longer. Of course, this did involve illegal betting. To better supervise it all, Malta eventually legalized it. The government also saw this as a way to collect extra taxes. This was the main reason why lotteries were legalized.

In 2001, the Malta Gaming Authority was established

The Malta Gaming Authority was to legalize gambling in general. Until now, there were all small organisations in Malta. One dealt with land-based casinos and the other with lotteries. This was all merged into the Malta Gaming Authority. But the MGA was also going to start a new division for online casinos. They were the first country in Europe to decide to legalize online casinos. Those online casinos where without registration systems like the Cruks. So all online casinos where like a no cruks casino back in the days. Internet was really still in its infancy, but a few websites were already operating as online casinos. At that time, they were not yet legal because no license existed. Malta wanted to change this and allow players to gamble legally. In addition, they saw it as a new source of income for the island.

MGA grows into one of the largest casino licenses in Europe

By 2004, the MGA had already provided a hefty list of licensed online casinos. Slowly, other countries also decided to legalize. The UK was active in setting up a license not long after the MGA. But the Netherlands decided to legalize only in 2021. Not surprisingly, with a huge track record, the MGA has an incredible number of online casinos. Today, casinos are still not land-based. This means an MGA-licensed casino can operate in all countries worldwide. A license in the Netherlands really only operates in the Netherlands. This is also a reason why many casinos specifically choose the MGA license.

12% of the GDP is held by online casinos

Today, the MGA license is proving to be a huge boost to Malta’s economy. Online casinos account for 12% of GDP. The whole economy is also geared towards online casinos and the iGaming world. Several casino software providers are also based on the island. The island has invested millions in high-speed internet so that remote work can be done. Much of the economy literally runs on online casinos. This does show that online gambling in Malta has had a huge impact. Today, thousands of people are employed by the MGA, but many more work in the iGaming industry in Malta.