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Senegal has lowered its gambling tax forecast for 2026, reducing the figure from 300 billion FCFA to 120 billion FCFA in its revised finance bill.
Gambling isn’t the only line item that came in short in the revised September bill, but it’s one of the sharper cuts on the list, grouped together with disappointing returns from gold export taxes, telecom licensing fees and land regularisation efforts.
The adjustment comes only months after officials celebrated strong early collections. In May, Finance Minister Cheikh Diba had told industry leaders at the African Lotteries Association seminar in Dakar that CFA40.9 billion had already been collected in the first quarter of 2026.
Heavy tax year for Senegalese bettors
The government had already introduced heavy measures before 2026 began. From November 2025, LONASE withheld 20% of every player’s winnings under Law No. 17/2025, first in betting shops and later on digital platforms.
Officials called it a civic contribution, but many players saw it as a direct cut to their earnings. A 0.5% levy on mobile money transactions followed in December. Because most betting in Senegal runs through mobile wallets, the charge landed squarely on deposits and withdrawals that fuel everyday play.
Bettors reacted to both tax hikes with a three‑day boycott, and some branded the winnings tax “outright theft.” Despite the protests, both measures stayed in place.
A tougher collection problem than expected
Alongside taxation, Senegal launched LPbet in July 2026, a state‑backed online sportsbook promoted as “by Senegalese, for Senegalese.” The platform was designed to keep betting money inside the country and away from offshore operators.
Officials stressed that the aim was not to expand gambling but to redirect existing players into a channel the state could monitor and tax.
LPbet symbolised the government’s attempt to build its own infrastructure while squeezing private and foreign platforms, but the downgrade in gambling tax receipts suggests that the strategy has not delivered as planned.
After layering new levies onto the sector and celebrating early quarterly numbers, the government has now admitted that the full‑year outcome will be far below target.
The budget does not explain whether the shortfall comes from players shifting to unlicensed offshore sites, weaker uptake of LPbet, or simply an overly ambitious forecast. What is clear is that collecting more money from Senegalese gamblers has proven far tougher in practice than it looked when officials pointed to early gains in May.
