South African Online Casinos

Gambling In South Africa: History And Laws

The first gambling records in South Africa are dated back to 1673 when gambling started being restricted by the state officials. Basically, nothing really changed in 1965 when the South Africa's Gambling Act was adopted to continue the legal ban on all the gambling activities except for horse racing betting, which was legally recognized as a sporting activity rather than a form of gambling. In fact, that’s the only reason for horse racing to be legally allowed. However even despite all these prohibitions on the legislative level gambling still remained popular in the state. Specifically, in 1995, it was revealed that there are more than two thousand illegal offline gambling houses scattered across the state. Good news is that in 1994 a new democratic government was formed, so all gambling activities were legalized by the National Gambling Act of 1996. Consequently, there was formed the National Gambling Board whose main responsibilities were to regulate and supervise the gambling industry in the state.

Online Gambling South Africa Law

In 2004, there was introduced another National Gambling Act that technically completely repealed the National Gambling Act of 1996. According to the newly implemented National Gambling Act of 2004, all the interactive gambling services were totally forbidden. These also included internet games. In such a way, all online casino operators (despite their license jurisdiction) that were offering such immensely popular online gambling activities as casino, poker, and bingo were totally banned. At the same time, online horse race betting, online sports betting, and bookmaking remained legal. 

Evidently, people were very unhappy with the National Gambling Act and they still continued gambling. That’s why in 2008 the government intended to legalize interactive gambling in the state under The National Gambling Amendment Act of 2008. Yet it failed because of severe confrontation with anti-money laundering authorities as well as land-based casinos (that are evidently the interested parties). That’s why The National Gambling Amendment Act of 2008 wasn’t adopted.

In 2010, there were even stricter legal bans in terms of gambling. Specifically, there was the North Gauteng High Court judgement that resulted in the total ban of South Africa online casinos, even offshore ones. Similarly to all the previous gambling regulations, online sports betting and licensed horse racing activities still remained legal by the North Gauteng High Court judgement. Moreover, violation of this law may lead to very undesired consequences. Specifically, all the online casinos, gamblers, internet service providers, and banks that process online gambling payments are subject to either 10 years of imprisonment or a fine of R 10 million. In some cases, both fine and imprisonment may apply. As you can see, the overall legal gambling situation is quite discouraging in the state. That’s why the only thing we have left is to simply wait for the The National Gambling Amendment Act of 2008 to come into effect one day. The sooner, the better!

How To Choose Reliable Casinos For South African Players?

If you have just decided to gamble online and have no idea what gambling website deserves your attention, this section is surely the best place to learn how to choose truly the best ones that fully correspond with your preferences as a gambler. 

First of all, you should make sure that the gambling website of your consideration is licensed. The most trusted licenses are issued by the Malta Gaming Authority and the UK Gambling Commission. However, the following licenses are also to be trusted: the Kahnawake Gaming Commission, Costa Rica Gambling Authority, the Gibraltar Gambling Commission, the Alderney Gambling Control Commission, the Curacao eGaming Licensing Authority, the Isle of Man Gambling Supervision Commission etc. Be sure, you won’t have any complaints regarding your safety and fairness of your gaming if you opt for a licensed gambling website. 

You should also check out the available banking options since you intend to play for real cash. The best ones for South African gamblers include the following: Bitcoin, Visa (credit / debit cards), MasterCard (credit / debit cards), Easy EFT (bank transfer), Internet Bank Transfers, SID (Secure Instant Deposit) Instant EFT (bank transfer), Entropay (virtual credit card), Skrill (e-wallet), Neteller (e-wallet), EcoPayz (e-wallet), EcoCard, Citadel, ClickandBuy, Ukash. 

These are basically the essential criteria. In the sections below, you can check out our different recommended gambling websites that are absolutely safe and fair to play with. 

Recommended Online Casino South Africa Legal Sites

Well, as we have already told you before, according to South African casinos online legal regulations, you can’t legally gamble in the state. Nevertheless, in case you know how to undermine these laws, you are highly welcome to check out our recommended licensed South African casino sites that are licensed by the trustworthy gambling authorities in the table below. 

Best South African Online Casinos 2020

In the table below, you are welcome to check out our recommended top online casinos in South Africa based on our experts’ ratings and reviews. As you can see, the #1 top online casino South Africa is Playamo whose rating is 9.6/10. Check out other best online casinos South Africa as well. Make sure to also check out the welcome bonus available at each online casino in South Africa listed below as well as the available deposit methods and short overall review that serves to highlight the main perks of playing with each of these gambling sites South Africa.

Playamo 

Playamo is truly among the best online gambling sites real money that you can only find on the web. Playamo offers you lots of tasty offers, such no deposit free spins on Mondays and high roller bonus. Playamo is among the best NetEnt casino sites where you can play over 2000 games from netent as well as other 20 providers. Playamo can also boast of fast withdrawals as well as a high withdrawal limit of 16000 EUR per week, which is particularly attractive for high rollers.

King Billy 

King Billy is among those cool btc gambling sites where you can also use other cryptocurrencies in addition to bitcoins, such as Ethereum, Tether, Bitcoin Cash, and Litecoin. King Billy is a trusted South African online gambling site that has been audited by iTech Labs. Here you can play best online slots as well as a wide variety of jackpot games by reliable providers such as Evolution, Quickspin, Betsoft Gaming, Blueprint, Nolimit City and so on. There’s also an impressively diverse and numerous selection of games that you can play with a live dealer. Another good point about playing with King Billy is certainly the availability of getting a large number of awards among which there is even an exclusive bonus for cryptocurrency deposits. 

Yeti 

Yeti is one of the most prominent Novomatic casinos where you can also enjoy over 700 games by other world’s leading developers as well, such as Microgaming, NetEnt, ELK, Novomatic, Bally, Barcrest Games, Merkur, Blueprint, WMS etc. Yeti lets you operate with South African rand as well as other currencies, such as Canadian dollar, Indian rupee, British pound, New Zealand dollar, Swiss franc, Swedish krona, Norwegian krone, and European euro. There’s also quite a high withdrawal limit in Yeti, which is 35000 EUR per week. It certainly makes Yeti a really good option for high rollers as well as amateur gamblers. 

Karamba 

Karamba is among our recommended Paysafecard online casinos where you can play over 800 games by the following developers: Microgaming, Play'n Go, Cadillac Jack, ELK, Cryptologic, IGT, Quickspin, Evolution, NeoGames, NextGen Gaming, Amaya, Aristocrat, Blueprint, Bally, NetEnt. Karamba has a very user friendly and fancily designed interface as well as 128-bit SSL encryption that protects your personal data. Another thing that proves Karamba safety is that it has been certified by iTech Labs. Here you can play some really cool scratch cards as well as try some free mobile slots. Besides, the minimum deposit in Karamba is only $10, which is quite democratic and affordable for anyone who wants to try real money gambling in a reliable online casino South Africa.

Fun Casino

Fun is L&L Europe Ltd owned online casino South Africa where you can play over 700 games by the following providers: ELK, Evolution, IGT, High5Games, Novomatic, Thunderkick, Amatic, NextGen Gaming, SG Gaming, NetEnt, Leander Games, Bally, JFTW, BigTimeGaming, Blueprint, Barcrest Games, Microgaming, WMS. The available currencies at Fun certainly include South African rand as well as other widely accepted currencies: Canadian dollar, British pound, New Zealand dollar, Swiss franc, Swedish krona, Norwegian krone, Indian rupee, European euro. In addition, Fun can offer you to make the first deposit as small as only $10, which is quite democratic and affordable for anyone who wants to play for real money in trustworthy online casinos for South African players.

777 Casino

777 is a legal online casino South Africa where you can play baccarat game as well as Poker, Roulette, Slots & Jackpots, Blackjack and many other cool and exciting games by IGT, Section8, Ash Gaming, Booming Games, Bally, NextGen Gaming, Barcrest Games, NetEnt, and WMS. Mind that only the following international currencies are available for gambling transactions at 777 online casino ZA: Bitcoin, British pound, United States dollar, and European euro. Moreover, the minimum deposit in 777 is only $10, which is quite affordable for anyone who wants to test real money online gambling in South Africa.

21 Dukes 

21 Dukes is a good online casino for South African players that uses the latest 128-bit SSL encryption, which means that you can safely gamble here without putting your personal data and cyber security under the risk. In 21 Dukes, you can play jackpots and many other cool games by the top-tier software providers that include IGT, Rival, Pariplay, Visionary iGaming, Vivo Gaming, Betsoft Gaming, Habanero, Pragmatic Play, Microgaming. 21 Dukes accepts South African rand as well as the following currencises: United States dollar, Bitcoin, Canadian dollar, Argentine peso, Brazilian real, Australian dollar, Tunisian dinar, European euro with 0-24 withdrawal time frame and cool VIP rewards casino bonus list. 

Spinit Casino

Spinit is undoubtedly a reliable gambling website which is proven by its two licenses issued by the Malta Gambling Authority as well as the UK Gambling Commission. Spinit is a good 10 dollar minimum deposit gambling website where you can operate with South African rand as well as the following currencies: United States dollar, Canadian dollar, Mexican peso, Croatian kuna, Venezuelan bolívar, Danish krone, New Zealand dollar, Peruvian sol, Israeli new shekel, Russian ruble, British pound, Chinese yuan, Swiss franc, Romanian leu, Norwegian krone, Polish zloty, Swedish krona, Czech koruna, and European euro. What is also advantageous about Spinit is that it’s approved by eCOGRA, accepts PayPal, and can offer you a truly huge selection of games!

Red Stag 

Red Stag is a fast payout and instant play South African online casino where your first deposit can be as low as $ 1, which is a really great way to try real money gambling without even looking for a no deposit bonus or any other cool gambling perks. Red Stag all casino games list includes 3 reel slots, Video Slots, Progressive Jackpots, Video Poker, Table Games, and Other Games. In addition, there are lots of cool online gambling South Africa bonuses that include a great welcome bonus, daily promotions, cashback bonus, and a VIP club with exclusive gambling perks for the most enthusiastic gamblers who play regularly in Red Stag South Africa casino online.

Moons 

Moons is a trustworthy no deposit bonuses online casino that uses 128-bit SSL encryption, so it’s absolutely safe to play with. In Moons, you can use South African rand as well as operate with quite a wide range of other popular currencies such as the United States dollar, Australian dollar, Brazilian real, Canadian dollar, Argentine peso, British pound, Tunisian dinar, European euro, and even Bitcoin. Also, Moons has 300 games by the following developers: Vivo Gaming, Betsoft Gaming, Octopus Gaming, and Pragmatic Play.

Top 10 Online Casino Real Money South Africa

As it comes right from South Africa online casino real money name, these are those South African casino sites where you can play for real cash. Check out our most recommended South African gambling sites to play for real money right in the table below. 

Popular Types Of Online Casinos South Africa

Even if you are new to gambling, you surely understand that there are different types of South African online casinos. The most popular types of South Africa casinos include new, mobile, and live ones. In the following section below, you can check out our exclusive list of new online casinos as well as live and mobile ones.

Top 10 Online Casinos South Africa By Category 2020

Recommended Offline Casinos For Gambling In South Africa

If you are interested not only in online gaming South Africa but also in land based gambling houses, you can check out our top 10 offline gambling venues right in the table below. 

Problem Gambling In South Africa

The issue with problem gambling is really grave in South Africa. That’s basically the reason for its being so very restricted these days. According to The National Prevalence Study 2006, as many as 96.9% of South African gamblers love the National Lottery, 22.7% — scratch cards games, 11.6% — charity jackpot competitions, 11.5% — horse racing betting. In contrast, 8.3% claimed they have never been involved in any kind of gambling activities, while 5.5% have been involved exceptionally in occasional gaming and haven’t dealt with any kind of regular gambling activities.

Sum Up

In conclusion, even despite quite an immense popularity of online casinos in SA, they are still illegal. The same situation is with offshore South African casino online sites where you also can’t legally play provided that you are from South Africa. To discourage you from playing on South Africa online casino sites, the North Gauteng High Court judgement imposed quite a strict punishment of 10 years of imprisonment or a fine of R 10 million. That’s why if you still decide to play on South African online casino sites, be aware that you are putting yourself in quite a high risk. Nevertheless, there’s statistic evidence that gambling substantially enriches the state’s budget. That’s why let’s hope for the positive changes in the South African gambling legislation soon!