Introduction
The Armenian gambling market is big — the online gambling market revenue is projected to reach $25.42 million in 2025, and the volume is expected to grow to $32.64 million by 2029. But while local players are more active than in many large gambling markets of the world, the government is unswayed by the level of demand. Armenia is politically and economically intertwined with both Russia and the EU (Armenia, together with Georgia, is considered European as per EU neighborhood policy and has been a member of the EU Eastern Partnership since 2009). This country, located in the South Caucasus, has a regulated gambling market, and the government has been moving in the direction of increased regulation in the last couple of years. The first step was an advertising restriction banning TV and internet advertising — with a few exceptions — and other measures soon followed. Several amendments to the tax code were introduced in 2019 to compensate for the overall loss of government revenue with increased tax rates for alcohol, tobacco, and gambling enterprises. The government also made clear its intention to limit or restrict bookmakers, which caused a wave of protests in the industry. Similar to Russia and Kazakhstan, special gambling zones were to be created in the towns of Tsaghkadzor, Sevan, Jermuk, and Meghri. The effort seems to be driven by an idea to shift the gambling industry towards mainly catering to tourists and foreigners while decreasing the Armenian public's access to casinos and sports betting shops. Eventually, the Armenian government's attitudes and requirements for regulating the gambling sector were reflected in legislation. In 2022, new legislation was introduced to impose restrictions on all forms of gambling advertising. This led to a ban on such promotions across various platforms, including the internet, television, radio, and public spaces. Furthermore, starting from July 1, 2023, a new law came into effect, raising the costs of fees and licenses for betting companies and online casinos. However, in February 2025, the government introduced a draft law regulating business in the gambling sector and defining state control. The Chairman of the RA State Revenue Committee (SRC) Rustam Badasyan commented: We know exactly how to control it, we know what the international standard is, we know how we will check the compliance with the international standard. All the measures mentioned above limit players' opportunities, but foreign platforms still accept Armenian players.
