French National Gaming Authority publishes online gaming and sports betting report
The ANJ's semi-annual report shows French gambling growth slowing to 0.5% in H1 2026, with online sports betting driving gains while FDJU and PMU declined.
The French National Gaming Authority (ANJ) published its semi-annual gambling report on 15 October, reporting slower growth. Gross gaming revenue excluding casinos and gaming clubs reached €5.66bn in H1 2026, up 0.5% year on year, compared with 4.1% growth a year earlier. The ANJ said FDJU and PMU activities declined while authorised online gaming drove growth, led by sports betting.
Online GGR rose 11% to €1.45bn, or 25.6% of the market excluding casinos and clubs. Active player accounts reached 5.85m, up 24%. Online sports betting stakes were €6.6bn, up 10.6%; growth peaked in June, when the FIFA World Cup began, with stakes up 47% and acquisition bonuses nearly four times higher than in June 2025, the regulator said.
Poker GGR reached €290m (+13.4%) and horse-racing stakes €920m (+16%). FDJU's GGR fell 2% to €3.43bn; it attributed a 7.6% drop in draw games to fewer and smaller EuroMillions jackpots and lower second-quarter retail footfall linked to the heatwave. PMU stakes fell 3.8% to €3.1bn and GGR 5.8% to €782m.
