Italians lose 22 billion a year in gambling (like a financial manoeuvre)

The passion for gambling is rampant among Italians. The possibility of winning is indeed the magnet that attracts more and more gamblers. Yet, the net losses to their pockets amount to around EUR 21.88 billion, roughly the value of a financial manoeuvre.

We are talking about a sector that, in fact, knows no crisis. Suffice it to say that in 2025 the gambling sector reached an all-time high of 165.34 billion euro, an increase of 5% compared to the previous year. A result that is equivalent to 7.3% of the national GDP, driven above all by the boom of the online channel.

"The Loser State" is the title chosen for the presentation of the fourth edition of the Black Book on Gambling, the annual report produced by CGIL, Federconsumatori and Fondazione Isscon (Institute for Consumer Studies), in collaboration with Federconsumatori Modena. A survey that turns the spotlight on the gambling phenomenon in Italia. According to the study, the only big winners are the companies in the sector. In fact, Italia is the leading gambling market in Europe and among the main ones in the world, playing its games among sports betting, lotteries, card games and online casinos. The resources 'invested' come to be conspicuous. According to calculation, last year each adult spent an average of 3,284 euros on gambling.

Gambling has recorded peaks above all in the Middle-south: leading the ranking of chief towns is Isernia with 6,307 euro per capita. Leading the ranking of Italian municipalities is Patti, in the province of Messina, with 7,715 euro per capita in the online channel alone.

The most worrying growth, the report points out, concerns the online channel. A method of gaming that 2025 exceeded the 100 billion collection threshold for the first time, with an increase of 9.5 per cent over 2024 and as much as 221 per cent compared to 2018. There are an estimated 4.8 million active 'remote' gamblers, with an alarming growth among the youngest.