TLDR A new study estimates Chile’s online gambling market generated CLP 431.5 billion in 2025, close to $450 million. Land-based casinos still make up about 70% of Chile’s regulated gambling market. Illegal online betting could cost the country an estimated CLP 86.3 billion in lost tax revenue. Researchers say Chile’s gambling laws were built for physical casinos and haven’t kept pace with online platforms. The report’s authors caution that the figures are estimates, not exact measurements.
A new study says Chile’s online gambling market generated an estimated CLP 431.5 billion in 2025. That figure is close to $450 million in U.S. dollars.
The research comes from the Center for Public Studies, known as CEP. The group looked at how much money moved through online gambling sites operating outside Chile’s regulated system.
According to the report, Chile’s gambling laws were designed for land-based casinos. Online betting sites work differently, and the rules haven’t kept up.
The study says these platforms can operate across borders. They also advertise heavily and reach customers directly, which makes them hard to track under current law.
How the Estimate Was Calculated
CEP used an indirect method to reach its numbers. Researchers looked at how Chile’s regulated gambling market grew between 2013 and 2018.
They used that historical trend as a baseline. Any gap between that expected growth and actual recent numbers was treated as a sign of activity moving to unregulated online sites.
The report estimates Chile’s regulated gambling market brought in CLP 787.281 billion in gross revenue during 2025. That regulated sector paid CLP 148.712 billion in gambling-specific taxes, not counting VAT or corporate income tax.
Land-based casinos still account for about 70% of that regulated market. The estimated online gambling total is roughly 35% of what the regulated sector earned.
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