The UAE has recently welcomed its first fully GCGRA-licensed online gambling site, Play 971, marking a significant step in local regulation of the gambling market. The site is currently in trial operation in Abu Dhabi and Ras Al Khaimah, with an official launch expected in the first quarter of 2026. More comprehensive background reports are available on the PASA official website.
Website Launch and Operational Background
Play 971 is operated by Coin Technology Projects LLC, which shares the same address as The Game LLC, the company that previously launched the UAE lottery, indicating the same group of people are behind it. Currently, the site is only accessible in some emirates, not yet in Dubai, essentially a regional test, and the exact official launch date is still not fully determined.
Game Content and Supplier Information
The games on the site mainly come from supplier OneTouch, which is under the Yolo Group; the live casino also features Speed Dragon Tiger provided by Evolution, although Evolution itself has not yet appeared on the official license list. Besides OneTouch, other licensed suppliers are mostly concentrated in the physical casino and lottery sectors, with online being relatively new.
Regulatory Policies and Market Opportunities
According to regulations, each emirate can have at most one online operator, theoretically up to seven, but it depends on the support of each emirate. Although local citizens are not allowed to participate, foreign residents make up about 88% of the population, providing a significant market space for operators. Additionally, there have been recent personnel changes at GCGRA, with the founding CEO stepping down and the chairman acting temporarily, which are also dynamics worth paying attention to.
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This article is from "PASA-Global iGaming Leaders," a gambling industry news channel:https://t.me/pasa_news
Original in-depth gambling channel:https://t.me/gamblingdeep
Free data reports: @pasa_research
PASA Matrix: @pasa002_bot
PASA official website: https://www.pasa.news
