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Betting in Argentina

Published on: 30/11/2015

Since becoming free from Spanish rule in the late 1800s, Argentina has established itself as a major power on the South American continent. As residents of a democratic country, the people of Argentina can enjoy a range of betting activities including most popular types of sports gambling.

Pari-mutuel horse race gambling was one of the earliest forms of sports betting to gain popularity in the republic. In 1882, the Buenos Aires Jockey Club was founded and became responsible for thoroughbred racing in the city until midway through the 20th century. In 1935, the Grand Hipodromo de San Isidro Racetrack was constructed by the clubs appointment. This specially-built racetrack is located to the north of the Argentine Capital.

The San Isidro complex is currently owned and run by The Argentine Jockey Club, which was established in 1966. An electronic betting system known as a totalisator was installed at the complex in 1979. This system was connected to around 600 gambling machines where punters could place cash bets. Today, the Racetrack at San Isidro is regarded as one of the grandest to be found in all the Americas.

The horse racing action has since benefitted from a second racecourse close to Buenos Aires, called the Hipodromo de la Plata. Betting outside of the racetracks has also been permitted through licensed agencies. Punters may also choose to wager over the telephone and more recently, via the internet. In Argentina, lotteries are also permitted by law; many of which offer large cash rewards. The Qiuniela lottery game is favoured by the Argentinean Lotto punters; however, there are many different games to choose from including:

When it comes to gambling, Argentina is renowned for its love of casinos. The country has more casinos than any other nation in central or South America. Many of these are located in a range of venues from clubs and hotels to luxury resorts and cruise ships. These casinos can be found in cities all across the country including Posadas City which boasts seven major gambling establishments. Approximate calculations put the total yearly gambling income in Argentina at a figure in excess of 4 billion dollars.

Some of that revenue comes from the vigorous sports betting business with football being particularly popular amongst Argentinean punters. The national lottery and is another popular form of betting in the country.

Betting companies carry out trade everywhere in Argentina. From the 1990s, the familiar bookmakers Ladbrokes has been running active betting shops all over the country.

Thanks to the huge amount of tax revenue it generates for the country, the government of Argentina has taken a relaxed approach to online betting. In 2002, the first licensed online casino appeared and later, in 2006, the first sports betting sites went live. Today around 20 bookies provide online gambling facilities in Argentina.

However, websites for online casinos and sports betting from other countries have not yet been granted official permission to operate by the Argentine government. In 2008, unlicensed betting companies from abroad were banned from carrying out business altogether; however, the Argentinean authorities have struggled to stop transactions involving foreign companies.

Despite Buenos Aries court rulings against Victor Chandler and 888.com, the locals carry on visiting many well-known foreign betting sites including TitanBet, Ladbrokes, Bet365, Paddy Power, Unibet and Betfred.