Australian Gambling Today
When assessing the crowd of issues confronting Australia’s gambling sector – many of which flare with uncanny regularity around electoral cycles, yet are otherwise dismissed as too complex or politically costly – it’s difficult to whittle down to the most pressing and relevant matter for a short piece.
Among the policy debates, few have generated as much attention as the deluge of gambling advertising that periodically agitates public concern, and the prolonged debate over proposed reforms reflects the broader struggle between policy ambition and political pragmatism. The You Win Some, You Lose More parliamentary report recommended a phased ban on online gambling advertising, yet attention gravitated toward a call for a comprehensive, blanket ban across all media. Despite broad community concern, progress stalled in the absence of political conviction, slowed by industry lobbying and competing interests.
The government has been reticent to act decisively, even on scaled-back proposals, and deferred further consideration until after the most recent federal election, despite widespread stakeholder unease. While frustration with gambling advertising appears universal, it is largely driven by the saturation of marketing from corporate bookmakers – characterised by cheeky, sports-themed promotions and omnipresent branding across streaming platforms, live sport, and public spaces. In contrast, pubs, clubs, and casino operators remain heavily restricted in their ability to promote gaming. Yet, the broader industry continues to absorb collective blame, even though the lion’s share of advertising-related resentment is stirred by corporate wagering brands successfully fusing gambling with sport.
Another issue buoyed to prominence by alignment with the election cycle has been cashless gaming and the shift towards mandatory carded play – reforms effectively imposed on casino operators. The mandatory carded play in the casino environment has triggered concerns around competitive neutrality, with casinos subject to significantly more restrictive arrangements than pubs and clubs, which continue to operate the overwhelming majority of gaming machines. To put this disparity in context, The Star Sydney is capped at 1,500 gaming machines, Crown Sydney is not authorised to operate gaming machines at all, while some 90,000 are distributed across pubs and clubs in NSW.
Without diminishing the relevance of other regulatory issues, the most immediate and pressing imperative is the uplift in AML/CTF capability and compliance across the gambling sector. While the deficiencies in casino AML arrangements – exacerbated by historic leadership failures and skewed incentives – rightly triggered a reckoning and substantial remediation, particularly in the case of Crown, serious shortcomings remain in the wider industry. In fact, following intensive uplift efforts, Crown may now represent a leading example of financial crime capability and a stronghold against money laundering – a transformation that underscores what is possible when leadership, investment and accountability converge.
If the enforcement action against Tabcorp and the subsequent intervention at Crown weren’t already a clear warning, AUSTRAC’s ongoing investigations into pubs and clubs should be a wake-up call for senior leaders. As AUSTRAC CEO Brendan Thomas recently stated: “Your services and the gambling industry have been subject to this regime for many years now. It is your responsibility to comply with the law.”
The message is unambiguous: compliance is not optional, and the era of regulatory patience is over. Thomas has also warned against misplaced reliance on third parties, stating: “You can outsource the work, but not your legal liability.” This observation cuts to the heart of a recurring vulnerability in the clubs and pubs sector – a dependence on off-the-shelf AML templates and generic advisers, which has fostered false confidence and encouraged a ‘tick-and-flick’ mindset.
Perhaps most tellingly, Thomas has cautioned: “If you have the idea that AUSTRAC will continuously educate and educate and educate and then maybe take action years later – you are mistaken.” The time for delay and complacency has passed. What’s needed now is visible, proactive leadership, tailored programs, and a genuine commitment to financial crime resilience across all gambling channels.
A final observation on perhaps a more insidious challenge: the spectre of regulatory hostility and emergent anti-industry sentiment. One of the lasting consequences of the recent Royal Commissions has been the unshackling of regulators who were previously unduly constrained – not so much by industry capture, but by design underwritten by political inertia and the perceived risks of wading into contentious policy debates. With the gambling industry long embedded in the political apparatus, effective oversight was hobbled and reform often demanded more political capital than governments were willing to spend.
The recent casino-focused Royal Commissions laid bare serious leadership and governance failures, rightly prompting demands for more effective and independent regulatory oversight. That shift was both necessary and overdue. But in the wake of these reforms, there is a sense that political oversight and accountability have receded too far. While greater regulatory independence is a welcome development – particularly when it fosters rigorous, proportionate oversight focused on integrity, financial crime and gambling harm – it also carries risks. A creeping expansion of regulatory mission, at times marked by activist tendencies and an adversarial stance, threatens excessive regulatory burden and sector sustainability. It is difficult to identify another sector in which operators may routinely navigate commercial indifference or implicit hostility from their regulators.
As Gambling Insider celebrates 15 years chronicling the sector’s transformation, Australia’s gambling landscape stands at a critical juncture. The next phase will demand not only regulatory refinement but also renewed leadership—capable of balancing commercial vitality with integrity, sustainability, and public confidence.
The gambling sector is not central to the national story, yet it plays an important role in Australia’s economic and social fabric. From the glitz and global pull of integrated casino resorts that drive tourism and enliven destination cities, to the more modest but deeply embedded contributions of pubs and clubs – creating dining and entertainment experiences, supporting local sport, strengthening social cohesion, and generating employment – this is an industry that warrants robust but balanced regulation. It deserves leadership that maintains a vigilant eye on potential harms while also acknowledging and celebrating its contributions.
