Cyprus has a long, pragmatic relationship with gambling built on two pillars: the OPAP lottery, a fixture of daily life since 1969, and football betting, which remains the island’s most popular wager. For decades betting was a mostly informal or state-lottery affair; the modern era brought a licensed sports-betting regime under the National Betting Authority and, in 2023, Europe’s first integrated resort casino near Limassol. Attitudes are welcoming toward lottery and sports betting but notably cautious about casino expansion, with public debate weighing tourism and jobs against gambling harm.

A short history

Organised gambling in Cyprus grew from the state lottery tradition. OPAP, the operator rooted in the Greek football-pools system, has had a presence on the island since 1969, and lottery and numerical games became a normalised social habit. For years, casino-style gambling was absent from the government-controlled south, while the north (outside the effective control of the Republic) developed a large casino sector aimed at cross-border and Turkish visitors. The Republic formalised sports betting with its Betting Law in 2012, later consolidated in 2019, creating the NBA and an EU-aligned licensing framework.

The games people actually play

Football is the beating heart of Cypriot betting. Wagers on the local first division and on major European leagues drive most licensed sportsbook turnover, which is one reason the state channels part of the operator levy back into football clubs. Alongside sports, OPAP’s portfolio, Joker/Tzoker, Lotto, Proto, Kino, Super 3 and more, remains popular for casual, low-stakes play across a wide retail network. Casino table games, slots and live poker are newer to the mainstream south, concentrated at the licensed resort.

Casinos and the integrated-resort era

The landmark shift came with City of Dreams Mediterranean, operated by Melco Resorts, which opened on 10 July 2023 in the Zakaki area of Limassol. Billed as Europe’s first integrated resort, it pairs a large casino floor with a hotel, dining, an events centre and family attractions, and is complemented by smaller satellite casinos elsewhere on the island. The project was positioned as a driver of year-round tourism, though its scale has also fuelled debate about gambling harm.

Attitudes and the road ahead

Cypriot attitudes are pragmatic rather than permissive. Lottery play and football betting are woven into everyday social life, but the arrival of a major casino has sharpened public debate over the trade-off between economic benefits and problem gambling. Policy leans toward tight state control: a single exclusive lottery concessionaire, a narrow online-betting licence that excludes casino games, and a levy that funds both sport and gambling-harm programmes. In 2024 the state reinforced this model, renewing OPAP’s exclusive 15-year concession and raising the operator levy that partly funds football and responsible-gambling initiatives.

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