Tsogo Sun to part with Welkom casino as betting dominates South Africa's gambling revenue
2026-07-31
Source: Global Gaming Insider
Tsogo Sun plans to sell its small Goldfields Casino in Welkom after impairment cut its carrying value, as South Africa's gambling market shifts toward betting, which now generates nearly 70% of revenue.
South Africa's gambling market has tilted heavily toward betting, and operators are responding. National Gambling Board figures show that betting pulled in R51.9bn, or 69.8% of all gambling revenue, in 2024-25, while casinos generated R16.6bn, or 22%. In 2018-19 those positions were nearly reversed: betting had a 23.5% share and casinos 60.5%.
That shift has now reached Tsogo Sun's property decisions. The group's annual financial statements for the 12 months to 31 March 2026 reveal a commitment by the board to shed its interest in Goldfields Casino and Entertainment Centre Proprietary Limited, operator of the Goldfields Casino in Welkom. The deal had not closed by the reporting date, so the property was moved into a held-for-sale classification.
Goldfields is among the company's tiniest venues, offering 250 slot machines and only a handful of table games. Its carrying value collapsed under impairment testing from R31m ($1.87m) to R2m year over year. Yet the site's full asset base is still pegged at roughly R81m, with R69m attributable to property, plant and equipment.
Casino operators around the country are pursuing similar adjustments. Sun International, for instance, is building a 22,000-square-metre retail complex at the GrandWest precinct in Cape Town, targeted for a 2027 opening, as a way to diversify beyond gaming floors. Meanwhile, Western Cape properties are facing a proposed relocation tax, and the South African Bookmakers Association has renewed pressure on regulators to crack down on illegal offshore betting platforms, which it believes capture most of the country's online gambling spend.