Report

Illegal online gambling - Phase 3: Understanding push factors for consumer engagement with illegal gambling websites

The Gambling Commission's research into consumer engagement with the illegal online gambling market.

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Published
20 October 2026

Last updated
20 October 2026 - Changes

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Contents

• Illegal online gambling - Phase 3: Understanding push factors for consumer engagement with illegal gambling websites

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• Executive summary
• Introduction
• How to read this report
• Methodology
• • Digital intelligence
  • Quantitative phase
  • Qualitative phase
  • Strengths of the approach
  • Limitations of the approach
  • Ethics and governance
• Findings
• • Exploring the persona audiences
  • Attitudes towards gambling companies and regulation
  • Influences shaping illegal gambling website usage
  • Exploring attitudes towards push factors and influences in more depth
• Conclusions and next steps
• Appendices
• • Appendix A – Qualitative pre-task
  • Appendix B - Focus group discussion guide
  • Appendix C - Qualitative sample breakdown of 15 participants
  • Appendix D - Digital intelligence list of platforms evidence was sourced from
  • Appendix E – Quantitative survey
  • Appendix F – Quantitative sample

Qualitative phase

The qualitative phase was designed to build a deeper understanding of how participants experience and interact with illegal gambling websites. While the quantitative phase assessed the proportions of each of the 4 audience groups and identified broad ‘push factors’ of the consumers within these groups, the qualitative phase explored how these journeys unfold in practice and the human rationale behind the numbers.

In particular, the qualitative phase focused on:

• identifying participants' broader online behaviours, pathways into illegal gambling websites, and how they first encounter them
• exploring the underlying motivations that attract individuals to the illegal market and mapping the relative importance and impact of these factors in encouraging usage
• understanding the specific role that licensed gambling companies, gambling regulation, and other relevant agencies or authorities play in influencing use of illegal gambling websites.

The qualitative research consisted of a multi-stage methodology designed to build rapport and capture uninfluenced perspectives. It began with an independent online pre-task where participants detailed their online habits and were introduced to the concept of push and pull factors (in relation to illegal website use). This was followed by a pre-recorded webinar, shared with participants to watch in their own time, which outlined the research purpose and prepared them for the main discussion.

Finally, participants attended one of two 2-hour online focus groups. To ensure relevant and productive conversations, these groups were split based on intentionality (those intentionally gambling on illegal online websites versus unintentionally gambling on illegal online websites).

The sample consisted of 15 participants who gamble using illegal gambling websites:

• Group 1, intentionally gambled on illegal websites: 7 Skilled Advocates
• Group 2, unintentionally gambled on illegal websites: 4 Social Explorers, 4 Accidental Tourists.

Participants were recruited directly from the quantitative phase, and during the recruitment process, participants were re-screened and their answers were re-verified, particularly in regard to the frequency and recency of indicators of illegal gambling website usage.

Fieldwork for this qualitative phase was conducted in July 2026.

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Quantitative phase Next section
Strengths of the approach

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Last updated: 20 October 2026

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