Bookmaker Bonuses Increase Player Spending by 11%

A study supported by Ireland’s Gambling Regulatory Authority has found that promotional bonuses offered by gambling operators lead to an average increase of 11% in player spending. Although the research was conducted in the weeks leading up to EURO 2024, the findings were published only recently.

The study involved over 620 men under the age of 40, who were presented with a range of betting offers and bonuses — including free bets and cashback promotions.

The key takeaway: when bonuses are available, bettors tend to wager more than they would without any incentives. On average, their spending increased by 11% compared to situations without bonuses. Moreover, the study revealed that players are more likely to place unprofitable bets with low odds when trying to qualify for a bonus.

For example, only 7.9% of participants opted for such “bad” bets when no bonus was offered. But when a bonus was tied to those bets, the number jumped to 27.2%.

A similar pattern was observed with cashback promotions: just 4.9% of players selected poor-value bets without a bonus, while 19% did so when cashback was on the table.

“Our results add to the growing body of evidence that bonuses not only increase the number of people gambling, but also drive higher spending — which results in greater consumer losses and increased operator profits. We also found that bonuses have a particularly harmful impact on individuals with gambling problems,” the study concluded.