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Our weekly digest monitors where iGaming player interest is heating up or pulling back, based on week-over-week (WoW) movements in Blask Index.

Week’s headline

AFCON and the Christmas lottery lift two regions. The 2025 Africa Cup of Nations kicked off Dec 21 in Morocco, driving continent-wide betting engagement. In Europe, Sweden surged +35.9% after a $1.7M Eurojackpot win.

Note: WoW changes reflect Blask Index data; catalysts cited only when publicly documented during Dec 22–28.

Top gainers

1. Sweden +35.9% — Eurojackpot win lifted holiday search intensity.
2. Ivory Coast +32.7% — Title defense began with the AFCON opener victory over Mozambique.
3. Ireland +22.4% — Leopardstown Christmas Festival attracted Grade 1 racing action Dec 26–29.
4. Tanzania +20.3% — Taifa Stars’ AFCON campaign kicked off with a 2-1 loss to Nigeria.
5. Czech Republic +19.8%.

Top decliners

1. Ethiopia -42.1% — betting shutdown accelerated declines.
2. Colombia -34.4% — Senate rejected permanent 19% VAT; temporary tax expires Dec 31.
3. Panama -19.2%.
4. Costa Rica -18.5%.
5. Bolivia -17.4% — New president abolished gambling tax in fiscal reform.

Spotlight: Sweden | +35.9%

Sweden rose +35.9% WoW, coinciding with a high-visibility Eurojackpot $1.7M win that generated broad, mainstream coverage. This drove a corresponding spike in related search activity — precisely the type of attention Blask Index captures.

Large lottery wins reliably become a media news hook. Once picked up by outlets and social channels, that story converts passive awareness into active behavior: people immediately search for the jackpot amount, results, rules, and participating operators. 

That incremental, short-window search volume is exactly what lifts Blask Index — market’s measured attention signal — especially during holiday weeks when leisure time and “small-stakes aspiration” behaviors are elevated.

Regional snapshot

Latin America & Caribbean

Region-wide softness reflects US tariff uncertainty weighing on FDI (down 53% H1 2025) and structural low growth. Colombia’s 19% VAT impact, Bolivia’s political transition, and Central American exposure to US trade policy created headwinds.

Europe

Christmas week lifted regional betting activity. Sweden surged after the Eurojackpot win, split among ten players. Czech Republic gained on holiday betting engagement. Ireland rode Leopardstown Christmas Festival with seven Grade 1 races. UK Boxing Day scaled back to a single Premier League fixture for the first time; remaining matches spread across Dec 27–28.

Africa

The AFCON 2025 group stage dominated regional betting activity. The tournament kicked off Dec 21 in Morocco with 24 nations competing across six host cities. High-profile matchups included Egypt vs South Africa (Dec 26) and Nigeria vs Tunisia (Dec 27), driving engagement across the continent. Host nation Morocco enters as heavy favorite after their 2022 World Cup semifinal run.

Next week’s watchlist

• Africa — AFCON 2025 group stage continues through Jan 4, with Round 3 decisive matches determining knockout qualifiers. Expect elevated betting volumes across participating nations.
• Colombia — Temporary 19% VAT on gambling expires Dec 31 after the Senate rejected permanent extension. Operators and regulators face uncertainty heading into 2026; watch for policy signals or emergency measures.
• UK — Premier League New Year fixtures (Jan 1, 3–4) drive peak seasonal betting activity. Busiest wagering window of the English football calendar.

Methodology note

Blask Index tracks real-time iGaming player interest via AI-analyzed Google search data, updated hourly and filtered to remove low-intent noise (scams, complaints). WoW% measures momentum: positive indicates growing attention; negative indicates declining attention.

In this week’s digest, we continue tracking where iGaming player attention is accelerating or cooling, using week-over-week (WoW) moves in Blask Index.

Week’s headline

Saudi Arabia (-50%), Ethiopia (-36%), and Dominican Republic (+34%) led volatility this week. Saudi Arabia’s drop was a technical correction after last week’s +270% spike, while Ethiopia’s abrupt license revocations collapsed demand overnight and Dominican Republic surged amid seasonal betting activity tied to the Professional Baseball League.

Note: WoW changes reflect Blask Index data; catalysts cited only when publicly documented during Dec 15–21.

Top gainers

1. Dominican Republic +33.6% — Dominican Professional Baseball League postseason drives seasonal betting spike ahead of January finals.
2. Moldova +30.1%.
3. Egypt +19.1% — Africa Cup of Nations 2025 kicks off December 21 in Morocco; Egypt among tournament favourites with Mohamed Salah headlining.
4. Philippines +18.7% — PAGCOR reports record Q4 online betting surge amid holiday festivities; G2E Asia @ Philippines (Dec 10-11) elevated industry attention.
5. Togo +17.9% — Domestic football interest lifted attention as D1 LONATO fixtures were played over Dec 20–21.

Top decliners

1. Saudi Arabia -50.2% — Technical correction following +270% spike in prior week.
2. Ethiopia -35.6% — The Ethiopian Lottery Service revoked all sports betting licenses effective Dec 15.
3. Colombia -29.1% — Senate rejected permanent 19% VAT measure on Dec 15; uncertainty persists through year-end expiration.
4. Bolivia -19.3%.
5. Guatemala -18.7%.

Spotlight: Ethiopia | -35.6%

What happened

The Ethiopian Lottery Service revoked all sports betting licenses effective December 15, 2025, ordering immediate cessation of all wagering activity nationwide. The directive followed a criminal investigation into alleged revenue concealment exceeding $640M, with 24 suspects arrested across several operators.

Why it matters

• Opportunity: Near-zero for direct market entry; monitor for potential re-licensing framework in 12-18 months as government reassesses sector oversight.
• Risk: Operators with Ethiopian exposure face immediate compliance obligations including data preservation requirements; banks instructed to block all betting-related transactions.

Watch: If shutdown extends beyond Q1 2026, expect permanent market restructuring rather than temporary suspension.

Regional snapshot

Latin America & Caribbean

Sharp polarity defined the region: Dominican Republic (+33.6%) led on seasonal betting momentum as the Professional Baseball League approaches its January finals. Colombia (-29.1%) contracted despite Senate rejection of permanent VAT — the 19% levy still expires Dec 31, creating year-end uncertainty.

Middle East

Saudi Arabia’s -50.2% contraction reflects a technical correction following last week’s anomalous +270% spike rather than any regulatory catalyst. The structural posture remains prohibition-driven with high short-term volatility typical of restricted markets.

Africa

North Africa (Egypt +19.1%, Algeria +17.6%) showed strength amid the AFCON 2025 kick-off. Togo (+17.9%) also climbed as domestic football interest rose around D1 LONATO fixtures.

Asia-Pacific

The Philippines delivered the week’s best scale-plus-growth combination, driven by PAGCOR’s record Q4 online betting performance. India (+11.1%) rose, supported by heightened cricket-driven search interest around the T20I and WT20I series.

Next week’s watchlist

Colombia — 19% VAT expiration (Dec 31). Expected impact: Potential relief rally if tax burden lifts.

Ethiopia — Bank transaction freeze enforcement. Expected impact: Continued demand suppression; watch for government statements on sector future.

South Africa — National Gambling Amendment Bill committee activity. Expected impact: Any advancement could trigger attention spike as operators front-load marketing ahead of potential ad rule changes.

Methodology note

Blask Index tracks real-time iGaming player interest via AI-analyzed Google search data, updated hourly with up to 95% correlation with actual market share. WoW % measures momentum: positive = growing attention, negative = declining. The metric filters out noise queries (scams, complaints) to isolate genuine demand signals. 

This is the first edition of our weekly Blask Index digest. We track where iGaming attention is accelerating or collapsing, using week-over-week (WoW) moves in Blask index.

Week’s headline

This week’s tape was binary: event-driven demand ripped higher in a handful of markets, led by Saudi Arabia at +270% as late-December Riyadh Season fight-week interest pulled search attention forward.

On the downside, regulatory pressure and geopolitical disruption dragged several markets sharply lower, led by Ethiopia at -40% on license suspensions and Thailand at -17% as the SEA Games cycle was eclipsed by the Cambodia border conflict.

Note: WoW changes reflect Blask Index data; catalysts cited only when publicly documented during Dec 8–14.

Top gainers

1. Saudi Arabia +269.8% — Riyadh Season card pushed fight-week queries.
   
2. Costa Rica +43.5%.
   
3. Mexico +22% — Codere CEO lobbied for online-betting reform.
   
4. Venezuela +16.6%.
   
5. Gabon +16.4% — Momentum likely continued from the Interior Ministry ultimatum forcing E-TECH integration.

Top decliners

1. Ethiopia -40% — Regulator revoked 22 licenses, chilling player discovery.
   
2. Azerbaijan -26.9% — Central Bank suspended payment company Paysis amid $100M illegal iGaming case.
   
3. Nicaragua -17.8%.
   
4. Thailand -17.4% — SEA Games (Dec 9–20) ran under the shadow of the Cambodia border conflict, with Cambodia withdrawing on Dec 10 and war coverage dominating the week’s news cycle.
   
5. Colombia -16.6% — Congress archived funding bill, prolonging tax uncertainty.

Spotlight: Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia printed the week’s largest swing at +269.8% WoW, a scale move that dwarfed every other market. Attention concentrated into a short-window, event-shaped spike as combat-sports headlines and ticketing/search discovery intensified ahead of late-December Riyadh Season programming.

Why it matters:

• Opportunity: Build Arabic SEO/SEM “odds / fight card / where to watch” capture pages fast.
  
• Risk: Volatility is structural in prohibition markets; conversion predictability is fragile.
  
• Watch: Pre-event momentum into Dec 27 can sustain elevated search share.

Regional snapshot

Latin America & Caribbean

Mexico rose +22% while Colombia fell -16.6% as the policy narrative diverged. Mexico’s reform talk created a discovery lift, while Colombia’s tax politics prolonged uncertainty. 

Forward signal: Watch Colombia’s next fiscal/tax headlines — the sector reacts instantly to “cost-to-play” framing.

Europe

Lithuania and Slovenia both rose +14% with no regulatory catalyst. The lift tracks to year-end seasonality — more sports viewing, heavier promo spend — rather than policy news.

Africa

Ethiopia collapsed -40% after regulator action against 22 operators, while Senegal slid -15% amid renewed attention on the 20% winnings-tax regime.

Forward signal: Any follow-on enforcement (additional suspensions, arrests, payment blocks) can create second-leg declines.

Asia-Pacific

Thailand fell -17.4% as the SEA Games (Dec 9–20) played out against an escalating Cambodia border conflict, with Cambodia pulling out on Dec 10 and security headlines crowding out “sports-festival” attention. 

Forward signal: With the SEA Games still running through Dec 20, any fresh conflict or security updates can immediately reprice regional search interest.

Next week’s watchlist

Thailand — SEA Games final week (to Dec 20) amid Cambodia conflict headlines. Expected impact: elevated volatility; downside bias if security coverage intensifies.

Colombia — Post-archive tax narrative continues. Expected impact: muted acquisition, potential partial rebound if “relief” messaging sticks.

Saudi Arabia — Pre–Dec 27 Riyadh Season ramp. Expected impact: sustained elevated discovery.

Methodology note

Blask Index tracks real-time iGaming player interest via AI-analyzed Google search data, updated hourly with up to 95% correlation to actual market share. WoW % measures momentum: positive = growing attention, negative = declining. The metric filters out noise queries (scams, complaints) to isolate genuine demand signals.