The history of gambling in Ireland is long, with the signs of gambling activity dating back to the Middle Ages. During this time, horse racing sporting events were gaining popularity in Ireland, and regulatory bodies were beginning to be set up. In 1922, Ireland managed to successfully break away from the chains of British colonization, becoming an independent state. With its own government in place now, Ireland introduced the first-ever gambling law in 1926 to regulate the betting industry in the country. However, this piece of legislation did not manage to effectively achieve the purpose for which it was enacted; hence, gambling would remain unregulated for several decades.
In 1956, the Irish Authorities introduced the Gambling and Lotteries Act, which sought to ban all forms of gambling. Was this law effective? Only to a certain extent. Like the first piece of legislation, this Act left loopholes, which casino operators exploited to set up private clubs where people would go and gamble.
Gambling Nowadays in Ireland
As seen above, the regulation of the Irish gambling market has not always been so perfect. However, things seemed to have changed in 2001 when the Irish government approved the Horse and Greyhound Racing Act to regulate all the sports betting activities in the country, including online sports betting. Two years later, the government approved the Gambling Control Bill to fully regulate the Irish gambling market. According to this law, both landbased and online casinos are allowed to operate in Ireland as long as they have a license from the Irish gambling authority and pay tax to the government. Hence, the Irish people can register at any legal live online casino and play the games they want.
In 2017, suggestions to change the gambling taxation policy were introduced. According to the proposed changes, players will carry part of the tax burden, which according to the current policy, rests squarely on the shoulders of casino operators. Whether or not these suggestions will be approved is a wait-and-see scenario.
Future of Online Casinos in Ireland
No one can dispute the fact that the iGaming industry has witnessed several changes in recent years, with the internet becoming better and better. But what does the future look like? Well, if the current online casino gambling situation in Ireland is anything to go by, here is how the casino online in Ireland will most likely be in the future.
Mobile gambling: Mobile phones will be on the top of everything, given that playing on the go is quickly becoming popular. As if to add fuel to the fire, many live dealer games today are mobile-friendly.
Use of cryptocurrency: The emergency of cryptos, such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, means that many Irish players will be jumping at their benefits, including anonymity, improved security, and faster payments.
Virtual reality and augmented reality: While live casinos are already offering authentic experiences, this is likely to improve significantly in the future. Typically, new technologies like augmented reality and virtual reality have what it takes to impact the realism and authenticity of the online live casinos in Ireland, taking it to a whole new level.
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