UAE Gambling Market Expands as Play971 Adds Horse Racing Bets

Half a year after the UAE launched its first online casino, Play971, the region has expanded to online horse race betting. This is a significant development for a country that has very much become the epicenter of Middle Eastern racing, with some of the biggest purse races in the world. It is also a major step for the region, as while horse racing has deep cultural roots in the Middle East, it is still mostly illegal across most countries in the area. You can go to events such as the Saudi Cup, or Dubai Racing Cup, and you won’t be able to place a single bet at the venues.

The Saudi Cup will remain one of those no-betting zones, but the events in Dubai and the rest of the UAE will now have access to horse racing bets through the country’s official casino and sportsbook, Play971.

Play971 Adds Horse Racing

Play971 launched at the end of 2025, a historic first online casino and sportsbook in the United Arab Emirates. The site originally offered sports betting and casino games, with wide sports coverage and a modest collection of casino games. The games selection has not improved since then, but the site has now rolled out horse racing bets, covering greyhound and horse races for both local and international events. A quick run through the site and the platform still feels pretty basic, there are race winner, various place bets, and each way but no forecasts or other more complex horse racing bets.

But considering this is the very first regulated horse race betting site in the country, it is a good initial offering and one that won’t be short of customers. The UAE is something of a pioneer in the region, as all the other Gulf countries like Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Kuwait, explicitly ban all forms of gambling.

Cultural Significance of Horse Racing in the Region

Horse racing is not something new to the Middle East, or brought in from the West. It is an ancient heritage for that part of the world, rooted in Bedouin culture. Much can be the same of Central Asia, all the way far East as Mongolia, from games like Buzkashi, all the way to the horsemanship and training involved in the Nadaam Festival. Horse racing has deep roots, as do other animal racing contests, and these are not completely devoid of gambling. But any gambling cultures or rituals around horse racing in the Middle East would mainly have revolved around social wagers, or prizes set up for competitions. Potentially including livestock, favors or land as part of the deal.

Skip forward to the present day, under Sharia Law, and pretty much all forms of gambling are illegal in these countries. Horse racing has thrived in the region, with well-publicised meetings and among the highest purse horse races, but gambling is not officially part of that. Sure, there may be offshore sites or unregulated bookmakers that cater to punters in the region, even some that cover the highly popular camel race betting, but none are officially sanctioned. That is, apart from Play971, which looks set to dominate the scene as the sole provider of horse racing bets in the UAE.

Current iGaming Legislation in the UAE

Play971 is operated by Coin Technology Projects LLC, a company that is owned by the Momentum Group Company, which also supplies the solutions for the state lottery. Gambling in the UAE is regulated by the General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority, or GCGRA, and under the regulations, the following products are recognized.

• Lotteries
• Internet Gaming (including bingo, slots, table games, poker, eSports, fantasy games, peer to peer games and skill-based games)
• Sports betting
• Land-based gambling (including slot machines, roulette, blackjack, baccarat and craps tables, and more)

The GCGRA has the exclusive right to issue casino licenses, and there are 5 main types of UAE iGaming licenses:

• Entity Licenses
  • Gaming Operators
  • Gaming-Related Vendors
  • Key Person Corporate
• Individual Licenses
  • Key Person Individual
  • Gaming Employee (level 1 and 2)

Though as of right now, there are only a handful of operators licensed in the region. The Game LLC holds the only lottery license, the Wynn Al Marjan landbased casino project holds the only land-based facilities license, and Coin Technology Projects LLC holds the only Internet Gaming and Sports Wagering licenses. These positions are all held by sole providers, so there is virtually no competition. But in the game vendor department, there are many license holders. There are over 20 game vendors license in the UAE, including big names such as Aristocrat, Novomatic, Scientific Games, Konami Gaming, Endorphina, and the Finnish Veikkaus-owned Fennica Gaming.

UAE Stands Out Among Gambling Monopoly Decline

In recent weeks, a lot of the iGaming regulatory news has revolved around dismantling gambling monopolies, or launching new iGaming markets with open (or partially open) licensing frameworks. Looking at Europe first, we have covered recent developments in Finland’s proposed iGaming launch in 2027, and how the government is deciding what to do about the state-run Veikkaus gambling provider, with some commentators arguing Veikkaus should be sold or privatized. In Austria, there has been a leak of a proposed iGaming draft that would break up the Casinos Austria monopoly. We now know, after the previously leaked draft indicated the monopoly might be continued, that Austria wants to dismantle it, but the exact terms are still in the works.

Across the Atlantic Ocean, gamers are lining up for the big Alberta iGaming launch, which has already confirmed 35 operators, and it looks set to catch up quickly with Ontario. And then, there is the ongoing New Zealand iGaming launch. New Zealand did not have an outright monopoly on gambling, but instead left a window open for the gray market, something which authorities are looking to curb now. The timeline for the license applications and launch has been revealed, and New Zealand could become a major market.

So it is quite a contrast seeing the UAE set up a licensed gambling market, but sticking to a sole provider for the time being. There has been no indication that they will allow competition to enter the market, but there isn’t any regulation to oppose it at the present time.

Developing UAE Gambling Framework

But the UAE is a special case. The country is run by a Federal Absolute Monarchy, a federation of 7 self-governing states (Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al-Quwain, Fujairah, Dubai, and Ras Al-Khaimah). Though the laws are not universally accepted in all seven emirates. In Dubai, Play971 is completely restricted. The only emirates that fully recognize Play971 and the GCGRA are Abu Dhabi and Ras Al Khaimah.

It is not too dissimilar from the situation in the US. Sports betting was legalized at a federal level, yet at the present time, only 39 states have fully legalized and launched official sports betting markets. Or the situation with online casinos. These are only legal in 8 states since Maine legalized online casinos.

Though the UAE also has the ethical dilemma of Sharia Law and the conflicts with a predominantly Muslim population. The online casinos and sports betting products are not aimed at these people, but rather at tourist and expat circles in the UAE. Emirati citizens only make up around 10 to 15% of the population, and the rest are expats from India, the UK, Russia, Bangladesh, Pakistan, the Philippines, and various European countries. The sports betting products are primarily aimed at these circles, with cricket betting, soccer, UFC, boxing, and other popular sports.

How It Impacts Neighboring Countries

The addition of horse racing bets to Play971 is one that will attract many customers, and one that could boost tourism in the area. Abu Dhabi is among the more progressive Emirates, and recently, the Abu Dhabi Royal family, through their firm ADI Chain, released a prediction market called PredictStreet. This prediction market is the official exchange of the FIFA World Cup, and holding a Gibraltar license, it is the first prediction market that is officially licensed in Europe.

Other Gulf countries will no doubt be following the success of Play971, and the ongoing Wynn Al Marjan project in the area, and see how Abu Dhabi fares with the gamble into gambling. It is a highly contentious subject, and on religious grounds most neighbors won’t go near gambling, but if the project can build a consistent revenue channel and boost tourism, then they may be tempted to make plans of their own. The UAE iGaming scene is not going away, and as it continues to grow, so too will attention from more game vendors, operators, investors, and customers.