Simon’s Global Casino Guide (Online & Land-based)

On this page I have collected all the casino guides I have written over the years, which is quite lot, 196 to be precise (one for each of the 196 countries of the world).

Click on your country on the interactive casino map below to access the guide specific to that country.

These casino guides deal with both the brick & mortar venues, and online casino sites in any given country. In addition, each one contains info about taxation, licensing, gambling age, dress code, entrance fee, and a lot more.

UPDATE 2022: Videos are also included, each casino has a video showcasing it, if one is available, and a “meta review analysis” (a summary of all the reviews found online about a specific casino).

Interactive Casino Map

Interactive Online Casino Map

Explanation of the colours:

BLUE – Online casino are legal in that country and you can freely play online.

/Comment: Whether these are state owned, private online casinos, or a mixture, it doesn’t matter. If any sort of digital casino platform is available to the players, then it is marked blue on the map.

Additionally, in a few countries online casino are not yet officially regulated, but it is de facto* legal, these are also marked blue.

It’s also possible (quite common actually) that the government’s of these countries officially say that online casinos are not actually legal, but this only extends to local companies. And playing in foreign online casinos, outside of the jurisdiction* of the country is either not regulated ,legal or de facto legal, and it is not prosecuted, fined, restricted at all. These are also marked blue./

YELLOW – Online casino are either severely restricted and/or officially illegal, and it is not know whether this is enforced online or not. In this case, the country is coloured yellow. Play at your own risk.

RED – The colour red means that all forms of online casino gambling are illegal, and players do get punished, fined, prosecuted for playing online. Do not play in any of these countries at all. Luckily, there are only a few.

*De facto definition: De facto means in reality, as is. In many countries online gambling is not regulated (you can check the other interactive map for the details) or it is illegal, but players can play freely online, and the state doesn’t restrict this. In that case online gambling is de facto legal. These are marked blue.

**Jurisdiction definition: Jurisdiction means that the laws, legislation of a country only extends up to the border of that country (and its territories, unless special agreements were signed, e.:g NAFTA, EU), and they only apply to the citizens of said country (unless otherwise specified).

Therefore, online casinos always have to abide by the laws of the country they are registered, licensed in, and by the extremely complex and complicated international laws (which are rarely enforced tbh.).

UPDATE: For technical reasons, I could only insert one interactive map on the site. Therefore, the land-based casinos do not have a similar map (but they do have info about their legal status, situation in the list below, or if you click on any of the countries on the map).

I apologize for this inconvenience, the page loads very slow as it is.

List of land-based and online casinos in the world, in all 196 countries

Professionals active in the gambling industry distinguish between three universally accepted types of casino gambling establishments: slot halls, electronic casinos and casinos. Here are the differences:

Slot hall definition: These types of venues only contain gaming machines, and they are usually smaller than casinos.
Electronic casino definition: They only contain gambling machines + electronic tables without live dealers and croupiers, usually bigger than a slot hall, but smaller than a casino. Thse are not mentioned on this page or on the map, this guide focuses only on casinos.
Casino definition: Bigger than slot halls and electronic casinos, often attached to a hotel or a resort complex. They have gaming machines + electronic tables + live dealer tables, roulette wheels with croupiers and card games (banking and non-banking).

Additionally, there are two vastly different types of land-based casinos:

1., European style casinos – Europe invented casinos. It wasn’t invented in Las Vegas, despite the popular misconception.

The word casino means “a building or room used for social amusements” – according to Merriam Webster*.

And the world’s first casino (a gambling house that was specifically named casino) is the casino of Theatre Saint Moses* from 1638.

/Clarification: The building was called Ca’ Vendramin Calergi** (built in 1481), and back then, the complex was known as Theatre Saint Moses***, and only the gambling section of this place was called a casino, where rich guests of the theatre went to socialize, drink and gamble after the plays, hence the definition “a building or room used for social amusements”.

Nowadays, since 1959, it is home to Casinò di Venezia. But at that time it wasn’t. They call themselves the oldest casino, but it’s not true, it’s just a marketing gimmick, it’s a lie./

These European casinos (the best example is probably the Casino Wiesbaden, a quintessential European casino, still in operation since 1771) were private, invitation only places for the rich, nobility and the famous & powerful, the so called ‘movers and shakers’ of the day.

It was their private club, where they discussed the fates of nations, and entire industries behind closed doors in carpeted rooms, sipping expensive drinks.

/Comment: It was more like Davos or the Bildenberg Hotel, where the 1% regularly meets nowadays, rather than the casinos of today./

And casino games where just a side attraction, not the main focus.

This is why, even to this day, almost all of the bigger European casinos are these posh places with dress codes (often semi-formal, not just smart causal), entrance fees (to make sure the poor doesn’t attend, but you can’t say this out nowadays, because it is not politically correct…).

And that is also why, that even to this day, European style casinos have significantly fewer and worse games than huge American style casino-plexes (see below).

And there are actual private clubs too, invitation only, e,g: Johnny Depp’s private club in Paris, the Paris Elysées Club (video below). Which is only open to the wealthy members (although, acquiring membership is easy).

It is the perfect example of a modern re-interpretation of what it means to be a European casino (it took an American to create the perfect European casino… :D ).

If you are interested, you can take a look at Johnny Depp’s Casino Club in Paris, by watching the video below (it’s for rich people only, and it is priced accordingly, and looks the part):

Sources:

*Definition of the word casino – Merriam-Webster

**Ca’ Vendramin Calergi – Wikipedia

***e-architect – Casino di Venezia – the oldest Casino is a masterpiece of Renaissance architecture

2., American style casinos – Europe might have invented casinos, but the US consumerism (and the world of organized crime…) created the casinos as we know them today. And Las Vegas did invent this one.

“Everything’s bigger in America” is the perfect way to describe the American casinos. Huge, sprawling, megaplex, outside of cites, only accessible by car, no dress code, no entrance fee, just come and bring your credit card, free parking. The more the merrier.

For a long time, the biggest casinos were in the USA. Huge, towering monstrosities, with fake European landmarks (e,g: ) or entire mock towns with multiple casinos (e.g: ).

Maybe throw in some monster derby*, and rodeo riding contest** as well, two golden arches, US flags everywhere, all wiretapped to please the NSA***, and you got your perfect Yankee casino.

UPDATE 2021: But nowadays, most of the biggest casinos are in China, which copied the US style of casinos 100%, but made them bigger and better (to directly compete with US casino destinations for international travellers, for political reasons, and for rich people, the private jet, private yacht type), and added even more surveillance and corruption…****, if that’s even possible…

The biggest casino in the world is still in the USA, it’s WinStar World Casino. But among the TOP 100 biggest casinos in the world, there are more and more Asian casinos, and all the big development takes place in Asia nowadays. Macau is the New Las Vegas.

Sources:

*Night of Destruction – Kewadin Tribal Casinos

**PBR: Unleash the Beast – MGM Grand Casino Las Vegas

***Spying on the Home Front – PBS

****Chinese casino bribery scandal – South China Morning Post

+EXTRA – Asian/pachinko casinos:

Not entirely a third kind, restricted to Japan and nearby countries only, but it’s definitely unique and different from the two above. And it is definitely a sight to see.

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but when it comes to pachinko parlours, a video is worth a million.

Therefore, it’s best to show how a pachinko casino looks like, WARNING, LOUD:

A cacophony of sound and light. The tile of the video is not entirely a clickbait.

Pachinko parlours are loud, ~~people smoke inside~~ (UPDATE, not anymore, since 2020 pachinko parlours are non-smoking*), flashing lights are everywhere, it’s gaudy, and these venues have well known ties to Japanese organized crime, the Yakuza.

Personally, not a fan of these pachinko parlours myself, I certainly wouldn’t support the Japanese organized crime networks with my money. And every time you play in one, you do just that.

But the machines themselves do look fun, would love to try them out in a regular casino. Looks more fun than your average boring ol’ slot.

Sadly, the unchallenged dominance of pachinko parlours is over, now that casinos are being legalized in Japan**.

And Chinese investors are lining up already. They represent the American style, with slots and the usual casino megaplexes.

Hopefully they adapt to the local style instead of pushing the American style. But I doubt it, Chinese are known to disrespect and ignore local customs, traditions on purpose, and they “culturally colonize” areas where they are active.

Sources:

*iag – Smoking rooms the new norm as IRs, pachinko to be impacted by Japan indoor smoking ban

**iag – Japan formally establishes Casino Administration Committee

List of European Casinos (land-based and online)

Click on the flag or the name of the country for more information and a list of online gambling websites, which accept players from that country.

List of Middle Eastern Casinos (land-based and online)

Click on the flag or the name of the country for more information and a list of online gambling websites, which accept players from that country.

Middle East land-based and online casinos
Country:	Online casinos:	Land-based casinos:	Bitcoin casinos:
Afghanistan	illegal, players are not prosecuted	illegal	illegal, players are not prosecuted
Armenia	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Azerbaijan	illegal, players are not prosecuted	illegal, players are not prosecuted	illegal, players are not prosecuted
Bahrain	illegal, players are not prosecuted	illegal	illegal, players are not prosecuted
Iran	illegal, players are not prosecuted	illegal	illegal, players are not prosecuted
Iraq	illegal, players are not prosecuted	illegal	illegal, players are not prosecuted
Israel	illegal, players are not prosecuted	illegal	not specifically regulated
Jordan	illegal, players are not prosecuted	illegal	illegal, players are not prosecuted
Kazakhstan	illegal, players are not prosecuted	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Kuwait	illegal, players are not prosecuted	illegal	illegal, players are not prosecuted
Kyrgyzstan	illegal, players are not prosecuted	illegal	illegal, players are not prosecuted
Lebanon	legal	legal	not specifically regulated
Oman	illegal, players are not prosecuted	illegal	not specifically regulated
Pakistan	illegal, players are not prosecuted	illegal	not specifically regulated
Qatar	illegal, players are not prosecuted	illegal	not specifically regulated
Saudi Arabia	illegal	illegal	illegal
Syria	illegal, players are not prosecuted	illegal	illegal

List of African Casinos (land-based and online)

Click on the flag or the name of the country for more information and a list of online gambling websites, which accept players from that country.

Africa land-based and online casinos
Country:	Online casinos:	Land-based casinos:	Bitcoin casinos:
Algeria	illegal, players are not prosecuted	illegal	illegal, players are not prosecuted
Angola	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Benin	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	illegal, players are not prosecuted
Botswana	not regulated	legal, operators require a licence	not regulated
Burkina Faso	not regulated	legal, operators require a licence	illegal, players are not prosecuted
Burundi	not regulated	legal	illegal, players are not prosecuted
Cameroon	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Cape Verde	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Central African Republic	not regulated	legal, operators require a licence	not regulated
Chad	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not regulated
Comoros	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Djibouti	not regulated	legal, operators require a licence	not regulated
Democratic Republic of the Congo	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Republic of the Congo	not regulated	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Rwanda	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Egypt	illegal, players are not prosecuted	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Equatorial Guinea	not regulated	legal, operators require a licence	not regulated
Eritrea	not regulated	not regulated	not regulated
Ethiopia	not regulated	legal, operators require a licence	not regulated
Gabon	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated

List of Oceania Casinos (land-based and online)

Click on the flag or the name of the country for more information and a list of online gambling websites, which accept players from that country.

Oceania land-based and online casinos

Country:

Online casinos:

Land-based casinos:

Bitcoin casinos:

Fiji

legal, operators require a licence

not specifically regulated

UPDATE 2022: I’m redoing the entire guide, countries are added continuously, usually 2-3 per week. Check back later if you don’t find what you are looking for.

If you have any questions or you have something to add, just leave a comment below.

Last updated: 2022-05-21

Gamble responsibly,
SimonTheSorcerer

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Summary

Article Name

Simon's Land-based and Online Casino Guide

Description

Info about the legal status of brick & mortar casinos and online casino sites in all the 194 countries in the world with interactive map.

Author

Simon András Péter (SimonTheSorcerer)

Simon's Online Casino Gambling Blog

Europe land-based and online casinos
Country:	Online casinos:	Land-based casinos:	Bitcoin casinos:
Albania	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Andorra	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Austria	legal	legal	not specifically regulated
Belarus	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Belgium	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Bosnia and Herzegovina	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Bulgaria	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Channel Islands	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence
Croatia	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Cyprus	legal	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Czech Republic	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Denmark	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Estonia	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Faroe Islands	legal	illegal	not specifically regulated
France	illegal domestically, but players are not prosecuted for visiting foreign online casino sites	legal, operators require a licence	illegal domestically, but players are not prosecuted for visiting bitcoin casino websites
Georgia	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Germany	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Gibraltar	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	illegal domestically, but players are not prosecuted for visiting bitcoin casino websites
Greece	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence
Hungary	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Iceland	illegal domestically, but players are not prosecuted for visiting foreign online casino sites	illegal	not specifically regulated
Ireland	legal	technically illegal, but casino like private clubs are legal	not specifically regulated
Isle of Man	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Italy	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Kosovo	illegal domestically, but players are not prosecuted for visiting foreign online casino sites	illegal	illegal domestically, but players are not prosecuted for visiting bitcoin casino websites
Latvia	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence
Liechtenstein	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Lithuania	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Luxembourg	legal	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Macedonia	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	illegal domestically, but players are not prosecuted for visiting bitcoin casino websites
Malta	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Moldova	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Monaco	not regulated	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Montenegro	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Netherlands	legal, operators require a licence	legal	not specifically regulated
Norway	legal	illegal	not specifically regulated
Poland	illegal, players can be prosecuted	legal	not specifically regulated
Portugal	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Romania	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Russia	illegal, players are not prosecuted	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
San Marino	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Serbia	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Slovakia	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Slovenia	legal	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Spain	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Switzerland	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
Turkey	illegal	illegal	not specifically regulated
Ukraine	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	not specifically regulated
United Kingdom	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence	legal, operators require a licence

Simon's Online Casino Gambling Blog

Simon’s Global Casino Guide (Online & Land-based)

Interactive Casino Map

List of land-based and online casinos in the world, in all 196 countries

List of European Casinos (land-based and online)

Europe land-based and online casinos

List of Middle Eastern Casinos (land-based and online)

Middle East land-based and online casinos

List of African Casinos (land-based and online)

Africa land-based and online casinos

List of Oceania Casinos (land-based and online)

Oceania land-based and online casinos

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