According to Greek online news site ekathimerini, betting on games of chance in Greece increased by 9% in 2014 from 2013 totals, based on information provided by the Gaming Commission. 5.9 billion euros were spent on wagers towards games of chance last year and this was the first time the gaming industry in Greece saw an increase in betting since 2009.

The data provided by the Gaming Commission also showed that Greek gamblers were willing to wager 187 euros per bet which was an increase of 7.5% from 2013 wagers of 172 euros per individual bet. Of the 5.9 billion euros in 2014 bets saw OPAP earning handle 3.8 billion and Hellenic Lotteries with 500 million. The combined turnover of the two companies created 72% of the market with casinos earning 27% and the Horse Racing Organization of Greece (ODIE) earning the remaining 1%.

Taxes gained were 525 million euros for 2014 from the games of chance while the turnover for Greek casinos totaled 1.6 billion euros. This was a slight decrease from the 2013 total of 1.7 billion. ODIE’s earned 50 million euros which was also a decrease from 2013 of 65 million euros earned.