Legal Sports Betting In Nigeria

Online legal sports betting in Nigeria has been legal since 2005, and it has become a lucrative enterprise both for private businesses and for the government, which collects a portion of sports betting revenues in taxes. Unfortunately, brick-and-mortar sportsbooks are still illegal in Nigeria because of concerns about how they might endanger participants or compromise the integrity of sporting competitions in the country. Most betting in Nigeria still goes through unregulated underground bookies, which is bad both for the Nigerian economy and for bettors themselves. Expanding regulated sports betting will likely remain a big focus for Nigeria as it looks for new ways to monetize its rapidly growing population.

Legality Of Sports Betting In Nigeria

Legal sports betting in Nigeria didn’t become officially regulated until 2005, with the passing of the National Lottery Act. This essentially defined which forms of gambling in the country was deemed legal, including lottery, casino games as well as online sports betting. At the state level in the country, a committee was set up the nation’s largest city Lagos called the Lagos State Lottery Board. The committee was established by the Lagos State Lotteries Laws Cap L89 2004 Laws of Lagos State. The LSLB is responsible for the regulating of lotteries, online sports betting, scratch-off games, casino games, pools betting and more.

According to Chapter 22 of Nigeria’s Criminal Code, most forms of gambling are considered illegal. This is with the exception of skill-based card games, the Nigerian Lottery, and the countries three licensed casinos. One of the more notable offenses that occur is ownership of a gambling machine which has been a major problem in the country but has yet to be enforced seriously. Owning a gambling machine in Nigeria carries a sentence of up to a year in jail. One of the main problems plaguing the country is that a majority of the gambling that goes on is illegal. Fake sportsbooks, underground casinos, and unauthorized lotteries are a mainstay in the developing nation, so it’s generally considered best to use online sportsbooks that are offshore and are regulated.

Is Online Sports Betting In Nigeria Legal?

It’s not to say that online betting is or is not illegal in Nigeria, it simply has to do with the outdated legislation. Nigeria’s Criminal Code Act of 1990 and the National Lottery Act of 2005 only vaguely explain the legalities of gambling in Nigeria. This is one of the main issues facing bettors in the country is that unlawful or illegal gambling practices take place and occur often. Simply put, based on the current legislation in the country, there actually is no law that specifically regulates online betting as opposed to other forms of gambling. Nigerian code states that “skill-based” gambling is considered legal gaming. Online betting is still dependent on skills in math and statistics so, by definition, this is what most bettors in the country go off of.

If the details of it are a little too confusing for your risks, you do have other options to place bets. Nigeria has three government-licensed land-based casinos where you can place bets, enjoy slots or other skill-based casino games. Outside of the country’s three land-based casinos, online sportsbooks have popped up all throughout the country. The first to open was NairaBet, licensed by the Nigerian government, which now has over 100,000 active users. Other online sportsbooks to use are Bet9ja ($10 million monthly turnover rate, Bet365Naija as well as MerryBet. There are also sportbooks such as BetOnline that accept players from Nigeria, though there may be a restriction on the bonus codes that can be used.

Nigerian Sports Betting Market

With the seventh highest population in the world, over 200 million people, and growing fast, it should come as no surprise that Nigeria is one of the largest countries with legal sports betting. With popular sports such as football/soccer, basketball, running, and Nigerian Dambe Boxing so popular, it is only natural for players to want to bet. Nigeria has plenty of gambling hubs throughout the country, with its most populous cities such as Largo, Ibadan, Benin City, Kano, and Port Harcourt representing the largest sports betting markets. Those markets particularly focus on the Nigerian football team, with the 2023 Nigerian Women’s team generating a ton of support at the Women’s World Cup.

Deposit Methods + Currencies Used In Nigeria

If you are wanting to bet on sports while you are in Nigeria, it is important for you to know what currencies are accepted. Online offshore sportsbooks have always been good in accepting most forms of currency, but they still need specific currencies from specific countries. Luckily, going to a sportsbook in Nigeria allows you to use some of the more common currencies in the world. You can use the US dollar, the Great Britain pound, or most importantly, Bitcoin. Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are the best way to deposit money into your sportsbook account. There are no fees and the money you deposit gets credited to your account faster than any other deposit method. If you are looking for other deposit methods that you can use in Nigeria and online offshore sportsbooks, check out our list down below of the sportsbook deposit methods.

• Bitcoin (BTC)
• Litecoin (LTC)
• Ethereum (ETH)
• Dogecoin (DOGE)
• Cash App
• Credit Cards
• PayPal
• Wire Transfer
• Zelle
• PaySafeCard
• EntroPay
• Astropay
• Visa Card
• MasterCard
• Skrill
• Neteller

How Do I Withdraw My Winnings In Nigeria?

If you are wanting to bet on sports in Nigeria, of course, it is important to know what sportsbook payout methods you can use when you win your wager. Most of the time, there are fewer ways you can withdraw your money than depositing your money. But you can rest assured that the withdrawal methods that you can use are absolutely safe and secure. Online offshore sportsbooks thrive on reputation in Nigeria and they do not want to break that. Bitcoin will continue to be the best way to withdraw money from your account. The reason for that is simply due to the fact that there are no fees with using Bitcoin and it is extremely fast to get money in and out of your account. If you are wanting to check out the other withdrawal methods, feel free to check out our list down below.

• Bitcoin
• Litecoin
• Ethereum
• DogeCoin
• Cash App
• PayPal
• Wire Transfer
• Zelle
• EntroPay
• Money Order
• Cashier’s Check
• ECheck

Who Regulates Sports Betting In Nigeria?

Nigeria is in an interesting state where despite having retail sportsbooks operating within the country, sports betting is for the most part unregulated. The retail books do not answer to any entity and online sportsbooks taking Nigerian players are readily available. The government simply allows these books to operate unabated. This could change in the future, as the Lagos State Lottery Board regulates lottery, scratch-offs, and others in state gambling operations. If voted on; they could possibly add sports betting to that list. For now, sports betting in Nigeria is essentially unregulated, allowing everyone regardless of where they live in Nigeria to partake in legal sports betting. The National Lottery Regulatory Commission oversees gambling in general.

Where Nigerian Sports Betting Revenue Goes

In Nigeria, it’s very difficult to pin down exactly where tax money from sportsbooks go. What is known, however, is that land-based operators are taxed on their profits. The percentage of the tax is generally unknown though as many believe sportsbooks operators pay taxes that are comparable to what typical businesses in Nigeria pay. In the same regard, it is also unknown how much bettors are taxed on winnings as some believe it’s taxed in the same way as normal income. Other African nations, though, say that tax rates on winnings can be as much as 20%. Either way you spin it, the common narrative is that if the government finds a way to properly regulate sports betting with updated legislation, the market for betting in Nigeria could explode.

Sports Betting Outlook In Nigeria

A study showed that only 20% of sports bettors in Nigeria wagered using offshore sportsbooks, which is not enough for lawmakers in the country to open that kind of platform for the industry. It would likely cost more to get the operations up and running than they’d see in returns. However, as the pandemic continues and brick and mortar facilities are limited or closed, sports bettors in Nigeria may warm up to the idea of mobile sportsbooks.

Countries With Legal Sports Betting