Are Online Casino Games Legal in South Africa? (6 November 2025)

There is ongoing uncertainty in South Africa about the legality of online casino-style games following a recent Supreme Court of Appeal ruling and new statements from the National Gambling Board. Many local betting platforms still display games such as slots, roulette, blackjack, crash games and live dealer tables, while regulators maintain that these products are unlawful. The result is a widening gap between what the law says and what is happening in practice, leaving players unsure about what is actually permitted.

South Africa’s gambling framework is based on the National Gambling Act of 2004. The Act defines any form of “interactive gambling” as unlawful unless specifically authorised through national regulations. These regulations have never been enacted, so at a national level online casino games remain prohibited. The law was written long before mobile and live-dealer technology existed and has not been updated to reflect how online gambling works today.

The provincial licensing system continues to operate alongside this outdated national prohibition. Provincial gambling authorities issue bookmaker licences and approve games supplied to those licensees. In practice, some provinces allow licensed bookmakers to host casino-style games as fixed-odds betting products. These games appear in betting sites’ casino sections and include slots, live tables, crash games and similar products. The approvals rely on the interpretation that these games are a form of betting rather than interactive casino play, which creates the impression that locally licensed online casino games are lawful.

That interpretation was challenged in Gauteng, where the Supreme Court of Appeal delivered its judgment on 28 October 2025. The court found that a bookmaker licence does not extend to offering casino-style games such as roulette. The ruling confirmed that these games fall under the definition of interactive gambling in national law and are not covered by bookmaker licences. The decision applied to operators in that province but carries national influence because the Supreme Court of Appeal is one of South Africa’s highest courts.

Following the ruling, the National Gambling Board issued a public statement on 3 November 2025 declaring that all interactive casino-style games are unlawful across South Africa. The Board instructed provincial regulators to apply this interpretation and to ensure that licensed operators remove such games from their platforms. Legal experts publicly disputed the statement, arguing that the Supreme Court ruling addressed a specific provincial law and does not automatically apply nationwide. They maintain that the legal position remains uncertain until provincial regulators issue their own directives or until national legislation is updated to provide clarity.

As of 6 November 2025, the legality of online casino-style games in South Africa remains uncertain. In Gauteng, these games are now clearly unlawful under bookmaker licences. In other parts of the country, some licensed operators continue to display them while waiting for formal instructions from their provincial regulators. The National Gambling Board considers them unlawful, but not every province has aligned with that view.

For South African players, the safest approach is to avoid any operator that offers casino-style or crash games until the situation is clarified by law or regulation. Online sports and numbers betting remain lawful under provincial bookmaker licences, but interactive casino products are subject to ongoing legal uncertainty. Anyone who chooses to gamble should confirm that the platform holds a valid South African licence and should verify that licence directly with the relevant provincial authority.

What This Means Going Forward

The 2025 ruling marks a turning point for South Africa’s online gambling market. For players, it highlights how important it is to understand who regulates the site they use and what that licence actually covers. Many users may not realise that the legal definition of “interactive gambling” has never been modernised, and that what appears to be a normal casino game on a local platform may now fall into a legal grey area. Until there is formal guidance from each provincial authority or an update to the National Gambling Act, players face continued uncertainty about which games are permitted.

For licensed operators, the judgment has created an immediate compliance challenge. Bookmakers that have built large parts of their business around online casino-style content now need to reassess those offerings. Some may suspend or remove certain games voluntarily to avoid potential regulatory penalties, while others may wait for clarification from their provincial regulators. Industry legal teams are reportedly reviewing the Supreme Court decision in detail, and it is possible that operators or suppliers will seek to appeal or request a formal review of the National Gambling Board’s interpretation.

In the months ahead, attention will likely turn to whether provincial boards align with the National Gambling Board’s position or adopt a narrower interpretation that preserves some forms of fixed-odds casino-style betting. The national law itself may also be reconsidered by policymakers who recognise the growth of the online gambling sector and the need for a clearer framework. For now, however, both players and operators are operating in an environment of uncertainty. The legality of online casino-style games in South Africa remains unclear and unsettled, and caution is advised until the courts or regulators provide definitive guidance.