Best Online Casinos in Malta for 2024

History of Gambling in Malta

It is believed that the development of gambling in Malta began in 2000 when the Malta Gambling Authority (MGA) was established. But in fact, the history of the Maltese casino began in the 15th century.

However, in Malta, it was in the 15th century that horseback riding races began to be held without a saddle. What connects horse racing and modern gambling? The answer is simple, already at that time the participants made bets, and the winner took away the money of the losers. At that time, this kind of racing and competition was illegal. The first legitimate competition in Malta took place back in 1869.

Meanwhile, in Malta in the 16th century, the very first board game called Ic-Cippitatu appeared. It was a bit like a modern roulette. Only it had 4 sides and on each of them was written the numbers which meant how much the player wins. This game costs an average of 1 penny. Ic-Cippitatu still a bit like a lottery where players relied only on their luck.

A lottery that looked more like a modern lottery appeared in Malta in the 17th century. But until the 20th century, such games remained unregulated and illegal in Malta. In 1922, in Malta, the “Open Lottery Law” was passed, which was able to resolve all controversial issues related to gambling entertainment. Moreover, on October 31, 1922, the Lotto Rules came into force, and since then, the lotto has become a nationwide game. The whole country was spending time doing this, and you won’t believe, even during both World Wars, Maltese residents were given time to play lotto. After the end of the war in Malta, the first lotto branch was created, the director of which was the famous entrepreneur John Mifsud. Already in 1948, John introduced the Maltese National Lottery to the inhabitants of the country. The national lottery has gained crazy popularity not only among the residents of Malta but also abroad. This in the future entailed a large influx of money to Malta. The game itself was broadcast live on the radio.

Despite the adopted regulations governing Malta, illegal gambling still existed. Most often it concerned sports betting, such as football or horses. And in 1964, the first ground-based casino called Dragonara Casino Limited was built in Malta.

Since 1922, the Law on the open lottery has been repeatedly changed and supplemented, and by the 2000s included several new interesting gambling games. The number of new casinos in Malta also grew and referring to the popularity of gambling entertainment, the Maltese government decided to create a regulatory body. So in 2001, the Lottery and Gambling Authority appeared. At the beginning of the year 2000, the management issued casino licenses. At that time, Malta became the first country in Europe to license casino activities. In January 2015, we had the opportunity to observe the full rebranding of the “Lottery and Gambling Administration” and is now called the “Maltese Gambling Management”. The Maltese Department controls and licenses the activities of all casinos in the world, and this license is considered very well known and respectful.

At the moment in Malta, there are many types of casinos, hundreds of interesting and exciting games and many other interesting entertainments.

Types of Online Casino in Malta

If we talk about the role of the life of modern man is occupied by gambling, then the statistics show that every second inhabitant of the planet at least once played in an online casino. In Malta, online casinos have reached unusual popularity and heights. This is primarily evidenced by its legalization and statutory regulations. No one will deny that the casino in Malta is one of the most luxurious and diverse casinos in Europe. Since the time of the first online casino, much has changed in Malta, and now every player will be able to find something unusual and exciting in the virtual world of gambling. Online casinos in Malta are divided into several types:

• Games through the browser. This type of casino is the most popular in Malta. To play such games you do not need to download additional files for a long time. At the same time, the quality and diversity of the games offered are no different from downloadable online casinos. Pay attention to your plugin (Java or Flash), it must be downloaded and updated to the latest version.
• Downloadable online casinos. This type of online casino speaks for itself. You will get access to games only after you download additional software to your device. Most often, such resources offer high graphics and are characterized by beautiful design and plot. To play in such a casino, before downloading a file, check whether you have enough memory on your hard disk, and do not forget to make sure the site is reliable (for this, check that all necessary licenses are available).
• Mobile casino. A modern person is simply impossible to imagine without a mobile device. With the help of a smartphone, you can do absolutely everything. He replaces your notebook, fitness trainer, teacher, and it would be very strange if gambling would bypass this progress. Already, almost every institution offers a mobile version of its site. There are several ways to play mobile casinos: download the mobile version of the site through a browser or download the application that was developed specifically for the owners of IOS, Android, Windows. The mobile casino is not a simplified version of the usual. You get all the same features only on your smartphone or tablet.
• Live online casino. It is important to note also this type of gambling entertainment. The live casino has become very popular in Malta due to its ability to live chat. As a player, you have the opportunity to plunge into the world of excitement and visit a real casino without leaving your home. In the course of such a game, you will have the opportunity to communicate with a live dealer and other players. Most often, live casinos are separate sections that exist in both downloadable and mobile or browser-based online casinos.

Types of Casino Games for Maltese Gamblers

The list of people who want to play games after a busy day is very long. Each player is unique and therefore the entertainment on the site should also be as diverse as possible. In the modern casino, you can find hundreds of unique and exciting games. For the convenience of users, casino operators try to divide all games into categories. The most common categories of games in Malta:

• Board games;
• Slot machines;
• Video poker;
• Live games.

But this is probably not the whole list of categories that the game resource will offer you. Also, in each of these categories, there will be dozens or hundreds of types of games. Such a variety of entertainment allows absolutely any category of users to play in gambling. Beginners often prefer “games for good luck.” That is how people call games that do not require the study of additional rules, such as slot machines. Pay attention to whether the casino site indicates the use of a random number generator. Only in this way can you fully protect yourself from fraud. Regular players who for a long time playing in a casino have developed their strategy to choose more complex games, which focus not on luck but their knowledge.

As you may have noticed, gambling in Malta is as diverse and unique as the people who play them. It doesn’t matter if you choose dice or lotto, or more complex video poker. The main goal of this game is to give you pleasure from the process itself. But here it is worth noting that there are games that will play for you. Does this sound unrealistic? In fact, some casinos offer players to set certain conditions of the game (possible bets, number of moves) and the program will make such bets for you from time to time. Such a unique opportunity also found its fans, most often it is fans of big winnings or just wanting to make money in a casino.

Online Gambling Laws and Regulations in Malta

As you may have noticed, based on the history of casino development in Malta, it was one of the first countries in Europe where gambling became regulated at the legislative level. Gambling entertainment in Malta began to develop more intensively in the 21st century. In 2004, Malta became a part of the European Union and at that time already had several standards that regulated gambling.

At that time, the Maltese state placed great emphasis on attracting tourists. Tourism in Malta has been and remains the main source of profit. Over time, not only locals but also tourists fell in love with the Maltese casino. At the moment, gambling makes up a huge proportion, namely 12% of the state economy. This is the reason why the parliament pays special attention to the development of the gambling business in Malta and regularly issues new laws, rules and regulations. If you still have doubts about the legality of gambling in Malta, then do not worry, because both land and online gambling are allowed in the country.

If we talk about the regulatory body, then in Malta it is a well-known MGA (Malta Gambling Authority). The activities of the MGA are in turn controlled by the Ministry of Economy of Malta. The Gambling Administration has a large legislative base based on which regulates all aspects of the gambling business. The authority of the MGA includes licensing and regulating the activities of land and virtual casinos, betting shops, lotteries.

• Maltese gaming legislation is based on a three-tier structure:
• Permissive” or “Parent” level. At this level is the main regulatory act “Gambling Law”.
• The second level is called “Rules”. This level includes bylaws that were also adopted by the Maltese parliament and contain requirements for obtaining a license, or detailed requirements for certain sectors of the gambling business.
• The third level contains the recommendations that are issued by the regulatory authority (MGA). These directives are very often changed and published on the main website of the Office of Gambling.

Important Malta legislative changes were last made in 2018. On July 1, 2018, the new “Gambling Law” entered into force, which could replace several previous regulations at once in Malta. The law prescribed stricter controls on illegal (unlicensed) casinos. This measure was necessary because, despite the government’s attitude to gambling, some gambling houses do not want to receive a license or are created for fraud. MGA makes maximum efforts to calculate such resources and notifies players by creating lists of adverse online casinos. Of course, the control is carried out not only for gambling establishments but also for the players.

The “Gambling Law” dated July 1, 2018, introduced its amendments regarding licensing. Now online casinos in Malta can get licenses for a period not for 5, but 10 years. There are licenses of 4 classes:

• Class 1 license, permits remote gaming activities;
• Class 2 license, permits the activity of the bookmakers;
• The license of class 3, allows advertising and promoting remote online casinos;
• Class 4 license, permits foreign resources for Maltese players.

Online casinos that have received MGA licenses can operate in other European countries. Gambling in Malta is permitted to persons over the age of 18.

Best Deposit Methods for Maltese Gamblers

As we wrote above online casino in Malta is very popular and also legal. This means that players do not need to look for alternative anonymous deposit options to get around the restrictions. A huge arsenal of payment systems is available for Maltese players:

• Malta Bank transfers. You can pay a deposit by having an account at any bank in the country, and besides, bank transfers are distinguished by a high level of security.
• Debit or Visa / MasterCard credit cards. This payment method is very popular among residents of Malta due to a number of advantages, such as security guarantee and speed of payments.
• E-wallets. Modern players often prefer this method of payment of deposits. E-wallets are completely different and can store funds in both the national currency (Skrill) and e-currency (Bitcoin).
• Prepaid cards. This deposit option is suitable for those players who do not trust online payments. Prepaid cards can be purchased at land-based points of sale, thus not transferring your bank details to an online casino.

Malta has a large number of alternative payment systems and payment gateways, each of which provides additional benefits, such as anonymity, security, speed of payment. You can view all the advantages and disadvantages of payment methods on our website.

Accepted Currencies in Malta

For a long time, Malta was a colony of Great Britain and adopted several features from the British, one of which is left-hand traffic. But besides this, Malta also enjoyed the British currency (pounds) until 1983. After the expulsion of the last British colonists from the peninsula, the Maltese state issued a new currency called the Maltese liras. Very interesting is the fact that the lira was recognized as almost the most expensive currency in the world (2 place after the Kuwaiti dinar). The cost of 1 Maltese lira in 2007 was equal to 3.5 euros. Even though Malta became a member of the European Union back in 2004, the Euro was recognized as the national currency much later, in 2008. Until that time, in Malta tourists and residents used lira in all spheres of life, including in online casinos.

At the moment, the euro is quoted in all countries in Europe. Maltese people use euros of different denominations. But you rarely find big bills in Malta, for example, 100 euros. The banknote itself is no different from other European countries, but Malta issues coins with original drawings. On the coins of 1 and 2 euros, the Maltese cross is depicted, and on the cents, there is a coat of arms or an image of temples. Of course, you can only pay in euros at online casinos and in any store or gas station, but currency exchange is common in Malta so you can always convert currencies at your discretion. The inhabitants of the Maltese island still keep at home and in museums issues of previous money (lira and pounds).

Customer Support

One of the important criteria for choosing an online casino in Malta is a quality support service. This is very important because players often have difficulties or they can not understand the work of the site. All Maltese casinos offer their users the opportunity to contact qualified staff. Of course, there may be several options for solving your questions. The most popular support contact options are:

• E-mail;
• Call the number listed on the site;
• Online chat.

Maltese casinos offer one of the options for communication or all three at once.

A great advantage of the Maltese casino is the fact that users can contact the regulator (MGA) directly. Therefore, if your rights have been violated or you have found an unlicensed casino, you can contact the support service of the Malta Gambling Authority. The official site lists all possible communication options for individuals or legal entities:

• Send an e-mail to info.mga@mga.org.mt;
• Write a letter and send it to the main office at Building SCM 02-03, level 4, SmartCity, Ricasoli SCM1001, Malta;
• Call the phone number +356 2546 9000 at any time from Monday to Friday from 9.00 to 17.00.

Predictions About the Future of Online Gambling in Malta

The modern gaming business has occupied a significant niche not only in the economy in Malta but also in the lives of many Internet users. Every day in the gaming industry market there are many different gambling and online casinos. Already, a large percentage of fans of gambling entertainment prefer online casinos instead of land. This suggests that the development of online games will be even more intense.

Malta is considered one of the first countries in Europe where online casinos have reached such a scale and development. This is indicated by the data that a significant part of the country’s budget is replenished precisely because of gambling entertainment. Recently, there have been many accusations towards the MGA from the EU community. But despite this, the Parliamentary Secretary of Malta, Silvio Schembri, made an official statement to the EU Parliament. He denied all the evidence that the Gambling Authority is engaged in money laundering, as well as evading taxes. Besides, Schembri intends to prove to the European Union that the activities of the MGA comply not only with the laws of Malta but also with all EU regulations.

Currently, Malta is working hard to develop not only the legislative framework but also the improvement of conditions for the players. The government welcomes new ideas and creates a solid foundation for startups. Players just have to choose an online casino to their liking and enjoy the game.

Based on the foregoing, we concluded that online casinos in Malta will flourish and develop and it is possible that gambling in Malta will be the best not only in the EU but throughout the world.

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