The Directorate General for the Regulation of Gambling (DGOJ), a body under the Ministry of Social Rights, Consumption and 2030 Agenda, published an analysis on female participation in the online betting market in Spain. The results confirm a trend of sustained growth, although they also expose significant gaps in digital security and notable differences in gambling habits between men and women.
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How many women play online in Spain according to the DGOJ
The DGOJ report recorded an increase of 23,53% in the number of women actively participating in online gambling platforms in Spain. Despite this growth, which exceeds the percentage recorded by men in the same period, the female presence remains a minority within the market.
Active female players represent 16,9% of the total, with 335.627 women out of a universe of almost 2 million people who bet online in the country. The market remains predominantly male, but the trend indicates that this gap is gradually narrowing.
The profile of female players: young and under 35 years old
One of the most relevant pieces of data from the study relates to the age of the participants. 59,4% of women who play online in Spain are under 35 years old, which shows a strong concentration in the youngest segments of the population.
The lower presence of older women suggests that the growth of female online gambling is particularly linked to generations with greater familiarity with digital environments. It also coincides with the general expansion of online betting as a form of entertainment among young adults in Europe.
Almost half of identity theft reports are filed by women
One of the most striking findings of the DGOJ report is that 46,1% of identity theft reports in online gambling correspond to women. These reports are channeled through the Protocol for Action for Identity Theft Victims (PACS) and represent a very high proportion considering that female players only constitute 16,9% of active users.
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The regulator points to several hypotheses to explain this phenomenon: the existence of financial control dynamics in close environments, persistent gaps in digital security among the female population, and the possible use of women’s identities in fraudulent practices by third parties.
Differences in spending: women deposit less and lose less on average
The study also detected significant differences in the economic patterns of gambling between men and women. Female players record higher maximum winnings and lower extreme losses compared to men, although their average loss amounts to 539 euros.
Regarding the money deposited, women deposit an average of 2.019 euros annually into their gambling accounts, compared to the 2.482 euros deposited by the general population. This behavior suggests greater financial caution on the part of female players, although it does not exempt them from the losses inherent to the activity.
When women play more
The times when female activity is concentrated also differ from general market patterns. According to the DGOJ report, women record higher participation on Tuesdays and Saturdays, with a predominant time slot in the late afternoon and evening, a period that coincides with the peaks of the sports offer available on the platforms.
This data reinforces the hypothesis that a significant part of female participation is linked to live sports betting, a segment that has experienced strong growth throughout Spain in recent years.
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