Azerbaijan

Almost 20 years after the ban, the legal online gambling market in Uzbekistan officially launched on January 1, 2025.

The main reason for the legalization of betting and gambling on the Internet was the growth of ludomania and fraud among the population, as well as the outflow of financial resources abroad. According to experts' estimates, from $350 million to $1 billion flows out of the country every year.

In addition, according to the report of the Consumer Protection Agency for 2021, government agencies conducted 27 thousand investigations related to the illegal activities of offline bookmakers and betting platforms.

According to official data, within 5 years the government of Uzbekistan plans to study the peculiarities of operators' work, as well as to consider the possibility of introducing more effective taxation mechanisms taking into account profitability and effective control.

Population

The population of the country is over 36 million people. 50.5% of residents are urban dwellers.

National composition: Uzbeks - 83.8%, Tajiks - 4.8%, Russians - 2.3%, Kazakhs - 2.5%, others (Karakalpaks, Kyrgyz, Koreans, Tatars, Turkmens) - 6.6%.

The average age is 29 years. Average life expectancy - 73 years.

Distribution by age:

• 0-4 years: 8.1%
• 5-12 years: 14.3%
• 13-17 years: 8.5%
• 18-24 years: 10,2%
• 25-34 years: 16,7%
• 35-44 years: 14,9%
• 45-54 years: 12,4%
• 55-64 years: 8.8%
• 65+ years: 6.1%

- Men: 50.1%

- Women: 49.9%

Education and languages

• Literacy rate: 99%
• State language: Uzbek (native language for 74% of the population)
• Russian language: about 14% of citizens are fluent and about 50% of residents understand Russian speech, as the jurisdiction was part of the USSR for 67 years
• English: about 11% of Uzbeks have a good command of the language (mostly young people)

Religion: Muslims - 96%, Orthodox - 2%, others (Catholics, Jews, atheists) - 2%.

Major cities: Tashkent (capital), Samarkand, Namangan, Andijan, Bukhara.

Currency: Uzbek soum (UZS). 100 USD = 1,293,293 UZS

Financial opportunities

Last year, the poverty rate among residents decreased from 11% to 8.9%.

The greatest reduction in socio-economic vulnerability was observed in Bukhara oblast (from 11.8% to 8.7%), Samarkand oblast (from 10.5% to 7.5%), Namangan oblast (from 10.4% to 7.6%) and the Republic of Karakalpakstan (from 13.6% to 10.8%).

The structure of the population's income last year:

• wages and salaries - 42.6% (in 2023 - 41.9%)
• income from entrepreneurial activity - 22.9% (21.4%)
• pensions, social benefits and subsidies - 18.2% (18.9%)
• Income from agriculture and horticulture - 10.7% (9.8%)
• remittances from abroad - 2% (3.1%)
• Other income - 3.6% (4.9%)

Unemployment rate for the previous (2024) year:

• total - 3.6% (in 2023 - 4.9%)
• among young people - 10.3%
• among women - 10.3%
• among men - 8.5%

Average wage - starting at $350. Minimum wage - from $90.

As a rule, on the 15th of each month an advance payment is given, and by the 5th of the following month - a monthly salary.

Mentality

Uzbek culture, like Chinese, Japanese and Kazakh culture, is categorized as collectivist.

The makhalla is the key social institution in the country. It is an urban neighborhood with a system of local self-government, where residents jointly solve problems. Unlike other Muslim countries, in Uzbekistan the status of makhalla is enshrined in legislation.

Public opinion is extremely important for Uzbeks. The population is inclined to demonstrate their prosperity and achievements in order to form a positive image among others.

It is not customary to show aggression in the country. This trait of the national character has developed historically: Uzbeks have traditionally been engaged in trade, which implies an exceptionally benevolent attitude to the buyer.

There is a clear hierarchy of family relationships: children are brought up in strictness, women are largely subordinate to their husbands and mothers-in-law, and the man always has the last word.

The family occupies a central place in the life of citizens, being the basis of their social structure. Often several generations live together, and family values have a higher significance than individual values.

Major purchases are discussed collectively. In addition, advertisements involving the older generation are more credible.

Traditional holidays (Nowruz, Ramadan Khait and Kurban Khait) are periods of active spending, so promotions, raffles, cross-marketing demonstrate high efficiency. Marketing emphasizing family and status benefits is especially relevant.

Residents value personal recommendations and “word of mouth”, for this reason advertising with testimonials or participation of local influencers works better than direct promotion.

Most Uzbeks observe traditions such as Ramadan fasting, but there is moderate religious observance in daily life.

Gambling Status

Online casinos and online betting are allowed in the state. The regulatory body is the National Agency for Advanced Projects (NAPP), which controls both gambling and the stock market, insurance organizations and the activities of the Central Securities Depository.

The functions of monitoring the compliance of game organizers with legislative acts are carried out jointly with the Department for Combating Economic Crimes.

Chronology of formation of the legal gambling industry

• On September 1, 2007, gambling and other risk-based games were banned, and liability for organizing such activities was stipulated
• On December 5, 2019, the President of Uzbekistan signed a decree “On measures to raise the development of soccer in Uzbekistan to a completely new stage”. As a result, offline bookmaker offices were legalized on January 1, 2021
• On April 6, 2022 the head of the country signed a decree abolishing legalization of gambling establishments.
• On April 19, 2024, he signed a document legalizing online gambling and lotteries from January 1, 2025.
  in early 2025, the jurisdiction officially launched a legal online casino and online sports betting market

Requirements for operators to obtain a 5-year license

1. Residents of Uzbekistan may organize activities using servers and domain names registered in the country
2. Companies must have authorized capital of at least 56.25 billion soums ($4.4 million) and a reserve fund of 28.125 billion soums ($2.2 million).
3. The license fee is 187.5 million soums (about $15,000) and 93.75 million soums ($7,300) for license amendments.
4. Tax for operators is 4% less paid winnings and returned bets.

Betting on local events or youth sports, with the exception of international competitions, is prohibited.

Rules regarding players

1. Only persons over the age of 18 can be players
2. Users are exempt from paying taxes on winnings

Restrictions and rules for legal gambling and betting advertising

1. Advertising is only allowed for licensed companies and must target citizens who are 18 years of age or older
2. Companies are prohibited from using images and messages that may appeal to minors, as well as promoting their services online
3. Ads must exclude information that encourages gambling as a means of solving financial problems
4. It is unacceptable to use celebrities or people of public trust in advertisements
5. Gambling advertisements are prohibited near schools, educational institutions and other places where minors may be present, as well as in the media

Public attitudes

In 2024, before the legalization of the industry in the country, a survey was conducted among 1,000 respondents on the topic of legalization of gambling in Uzbekistan

Results of the analysis:

• 52.9% of citizens supported or were neutral towards the legalization of online gambling and betting
• 48.2% - have never participated in the gambling sector
• 46.2% have participated in state lotteries and other types of gambling games

9% of Uzbeks stated that they will definitely gamble after legalization, 11.9% - are more inclined to participate in gambling, 15.3% - find it difficult to answer, 15% - do not intend to gamble on gambling and betting platforms.

It was also revealed that 56% of Internet users react positively to gambling advertising in case of interesting offers, despite its illegal nature.

Recent developments in the gambling industry

Processing fees

At the beginning of May, the authorities announced an initiative aimed at tightening control over P2P transfers. The document has already passed the first reading.

The act implies the introduction of automatic tracking of three or more consecutive transfers between individuals. It is planned to introduce biometrics for transfers of large sums.

In addition, starting from July 2025, passport data may be required for transactions exceeding $880. Enhanced verification is expected for amounts over $14,000.

Annual limits are also being discussed: tentatively about $7.8 thousand - for citizens and about $39 thousand - for entrepreneurs.

Combating illegal betting advertising on the Internet

According to the Competition Committee, there is a rapid growth of advertising of betting services on the Internet, especially on Telegram, where messages are posted anonymously, which makes it difficult to identify the distributors.

For this reason, in mid-April this year Uzbekistan launched a large-scale campaign to combat illegal online advertising of bookmakers with the support of the Interior Ministry.

“In order to take appropriate measures and identify persons responsible for maintaining information resources advertising gambling, available materials are sent to the Cyber Security Center (MIA),” the state body commented.

Volume of iGaming market

• Shadow sector: according to the National Agency of Perspective Projects (NAPP), from $300 mln to $1 bln flows out of Uzbekistan annually due to illegal operators
• Legal sector: according to the authorities' forecasts, the gambling industry should annually bring $6 mln of additional tax revenues to the budget.

Internet accessibility

At the beginning of 2025, there were 33.9 million Internet users in the country, and Internet penetration was 92.2%.

The average speed of wireless internet connection via Wi-Fi is 83.61 Mbps. The average speed of mobile internet connection is 53.33 Mbps.

Devices usage volume:

• mobile: 81.2%
• desktop: 9.8%
• tablet: 9%

Payment systems: Visa, MasterCard, Payme, Click, Humo, Uzcard, Apelsin (Uzum Bank).

Popular web applications: Telegram, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, TikTok.

• Telegram - over 20 million
• Instagram - 9.4 million
• YouTube - 7.5 million
• Facebook - 2.4 million
• TikTok - 3.12 million (officially blocked, but actively used via VPN).

In 2024, Telegram, Facebook and TikTok published the most content in Uzbek.

TikTok remains the only service, access to which is officially restricted in Uzbekistan due to personal data protection issues. However, users continue to actively use VPNs, circumventing the blockages.

By the way, in 2021, access to Telegram, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram was restricted for Uzbeks. As a result, the head of Uzkomnazorat, Ziyaev Golibsher, and the Minister of Information Technology Development and Communication, Shukhrat Sadikov, were suspended.

Portrait of a player

Residents between the ages of 20 and 35 prioritize gambling to make a quick buck.

The country's market is characterized by male dominance among users of gambling and betting platforms, which is related to gender stereotypes.

Preferences

1. Betting on sports is the most popular type of gambling. Top disciplines: soccer, boxing, tennis, athletics, wrestling, judo
2. There is a growing interest in cyber sports in the country. The leading games include Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Dota 2 and PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG)
3. Roulette, classic fruit slots, as well as slots with oriental motifs are in demand at online casinos
4. In card games, residents prefer poker and bridge
5. Kupkari horse racing, a traditional sport, is very popular in the country. Other popular equestrian competitions include ogdarysh (horsemanship), isindi (dart fight), sultonlar jangi (saber duel), kabahi (archery), nizaki netum (javelin throwing) and horse basketball.

Recommendations for creatives

Avoid aggressive marketing and overly dynamic videos with abrupt transitions.

Classic creatives with demonstration of winning and emotions, images of girls in combination with tempting figures, as well as plots of famous Uzbek TV shows work effectively.

We recommend integrating elements of folk gambling games, such as ashichki (Uzbek dice game) into the creatives, which will evoke nostalgia and trust among the local audience.

Intuitive interface (including simple registration) for Uzbeks plays one of the key roles in choosing a gambling platform.

To attract the attention of residents, specify the minimum deposit amount - this will emphasize the accessibility of the game for the majority of users.

The Russian-speaking audience of the jurisdiction is more aware of the Runet and the Western segment of the Internet, is interested in foreign news. Converting to leads is quite a difficult task for this category, but the upruv percentage of such users is higher.

Popular personalities

Athletes (especially respected in the country): Mahmud Muradov, Abdumalik Khalokov, Bakhodir Jalolov, Ruslan Nurudinov, Abdukodir Husanov, Odil Akhmedov, Eldor Shomurudov, Jaloliddin Masharipov, Omer Yurtseven and Nodirbek Abdusatorov.

Media personalities: Sariq Bola, Ozodbek Khurramov, Nazarov Yakhshi Bola, Zarina Nizomutdinova, Zhakhongir Paziljonov, Sitora Farmonova, Azamat Ahrorov, Nilufar Usmonova and Oybek Teshaboyev.

Popular media outlets

Kun.Uz, Lex.uz, Uza.Uz, Daryo.Uz, Xabar.Uz, Gazeta.Uz, Yuz.Uz.