UAE lottery operator launches two online gambling platforms

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2025/11/06: Kevin Mullally steps down as Chief Executive of UAE’s General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority 2025/04/23: Timor-Leste licenses first offshore online gambling operator 2025/06/25: The UAE Lottery to join the World Lottery Association 2025/05/05: New Jersey and UAE regulators establish partnership for regulatory collaboration

The Backstory

Why this launch matters now

The debut of two full-service gambling sites by the operator behind the UAE’s federal lottery lands at a pivotal moment for the country’s nascent gaming framework. The platforms’ arrival suggests market participants expect policy to keep evolving beyond land-based casinos into regulated online wagering, even as the legal architecture is still being built. It also signals that lottery-linked brands may become early movers in digital gaming because they already operate under federal oversight and consumer-protection protocols.

Over the past year, the UAE has stitched together the building blocks of a modern gaming regime while keeping a tight grip on sequencing. The country established a national regulator, issued a single land-based casino license tied to a marquee integrated resort, and began granting vendor approvals to business-to-business suppliers. In that context, a lottery operator stepping into online casino and sportsbook services is less an outlier than the next test of how online gambling might ultimately be licensed and supervised — and by whom.

The stakes are considerable. Analysts have estimated that regulated gaming could generate several billion dollars in annual revenue once fully scaled, with knock-on effects for tourism, payments, cybersecurity and jobs. The policy question is how to capture that upside while maintaining social safeguards and international credibility.

A regulator in motion

The General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority (GCGRA) has been the locus of that balancing act, progressing from standing up core rules to managing leadership change. Earlier this month, Chief Executive Kevin Mullally stepped down and Chairman Jim Murren moved in as interim CEO, with the authority emphasizing continuity in licensing and stakeholder engagement. The transition, detailed in our coverage of Mullally’s departure from the GCGRA, underscores how the regulator is evolving from design phase to operational maturity. Mullally framed his exit as a personal decision after helping lay the groundwork for a predictable, forward-looking regime, a message he echoed in a public note on LinkedIn.

Leadership shifts can introduce uncertainty, but they can also clarify priorities. Under Murren’s interim stewardship, the focus has stayed on “regulatory excellence” and responsible gaming while the pipeline of vendor permissions continues. Last month, the authority granted vendor licenses to two Yolo Group subsidiaries, signaling progress on the business-to-business layer that supports any future consumer-facing market.

Policy pilots and cross-border know-how

The UAE has paired institution-building with targeted partnerships to import best practices. In April, the GCGRA signed a memorandum of understanding with New Jersey’s Division of Gaming Enforcement to collaborate on cybersecurity, consumer protection and other regulatory priorities. New Jersey brings more than a decade of online casino supervision, data on responsible gaming controls and lessons from integrating land-based and igaming ecosystems. For the UAE, which only introduced its initial legal gaming framework last year, that institutional exchange reduces implementation risk as the market broadens.

At the same time, the country has leveraged a high-profile anchor for land-based gaming. Wynn Resorts secured a Ras Al Khaimah license as it builds a multibillion-dollar integrated resort, cementing the government’s intent to develop tourism-led gaming under a controlled model. That milestone, reported by Bloomberg’s newsletter coverage of the UAE casino rollout, is part of the deliberate sequencing that online operators are now reading as a green light to prepare.

These steps reflect a “learn, partner, then scale” playbook: start with a single flagship license, stand up a federal regulator, open the vendor lane, then pursue selective bilateral cooperation to fill expertise gaps. The apparent goal is to mature the system before broad consumer rollout, which helps explain why sophisticated domestic operators are launching in a way that can be brought under licensure as rules finalize.

The license map taking shape

Where online gambling fits next has been the subject of steady signaling. In October, our reporting outlined a plan under consideration to allow up to seven online gaming licenses — one business-to-consumer permit per emirate — mirroring the brick-and-mortar model. Not all emirates are expected to participate at launch, suggesting a staggered rollout driven by local appetite and infrastructure readiness. Inside Asian Gaming also reported on a similar approach, noting the UAE could offer up to one online license for each emirate as the market opens, which would align governance with the land-based template.

Such a map would have practical advantages. It could concentrate supervisory responsibilities, create clear points of accountability for consumer protection and allow each emirate to calibrate the pace of entry. It would also set up a competitive but contained landscape for early licensees, putting a premium on compliance, player safeguards and investment in local operations.

For operators, that means timing and positioning matter. Vendor approvals indicate the plumbing is being installed. A lottery-affiliated brand with federal exposure may carry credibility with both regulators and payment partners. If the one-license-per-emirate model advances, first movers with demonstrable controls and recognizable brands would be well placed to compete for scarce slots.

Lottery credentials as a launch pad

The lottery’s role is more than symbolic. Earlier this year, the UAE’s federal lottery announced it would join the World Lottery Association, gaining access to global standards and peer networks across security, responsible gaming and risk management. For a local operator, WLA participation reinforces governance and audit disciplines that translate directly to online casino and sportsbook operations.

That institutional pedigree matters because online gambling brings different risk vectors than traditional lottery draws: live dealer integrity, game math verification, geolocation, anti-money laundering controls and data security across mobile channels. Integrating those elements into a lottery-born compliance culture can help the regulator and financial partners vet models faster, which in turn can accelerate consumer confidence as formal licensing catches up.

What comes next

The policy trajectory points to measured expansion, not a free-for-all. With cross-border cooperation underway, vendor licensing active and a potential emirate-by-emirate scheme on the table, the UAE appears to be testing operational readiness ahead of awarding consumer licenses. Leadership continuity at the GCGRA will be watched closely, but the framework’s core direction — tighten governance, import expertise, stage the rollout — has remained consistent through personnel changes.

For the industry, the message is clear. Build to high standards now, assume rigorous oversight later, and expect scarcity in early license rounds. For policymakers, the challenge will be pacing growth to capture economic gains while maintaining social safeguards. And for consumers, the immediate effect is likely to be incremental: more choice and sophistication in offerings, but within a system designed to formalize, supervise and, ultimately, tax what had previously existed in legal gray zones.

If the UAE proceeds with a limited-license online regime aligned to its land-based model, lottery-linked operators and early vendor partners could define the market’s first chapter. The two new platforms are best viewed through that lens — not as an end state, but as opening moves in a tightly controlled game the regulator intends to referee.