Malta's Labour Party unveils iGaming proposals ahead of election
Prime Minister of Malta and Leader of the Labour Party (PL) Robert Abela announced some proposals related to the local iGaming sector ahead of the upcoming general election set to take place on 30 May.
Strength of the local iGaming sector
The iGaming industry has, over the years, proven to be one of Malta’s most important economic sectors.
In an interview with SiGMA in 2025, the National Statistics Office’s (NSO) Director of Economic Statistics, Keith Borg, described the gaming sector’s contribution to the Maltese economy as “significant”.
Borg had said that the gaming and programming or software industries together had contributed more than 15 per cent of Malta’s gross value added, highlighting their importance to the local economy. Furthermore, Malta is generally considered to be an industry hub in the wider iGaming world, especially as an entry point into Europe.
With that in mind, one would expect that such a relevant sector for the country and its population would attract some attention in the run-up to the looming general election.
iGaming proposals ahead of the election
While addressing a press conference, Prime Minister Abela declared that a re-elected PL government would establish over 1,300 new jobs in the esports and iGaming industry.
This increase would be in addition to the 14,000 individuals that the sector already employs, Abela commented. He added that this would mean a 10 per cent increase in careers for Gozitan and Maltese workers in the sector.
Abela said that the government’s goal is to continue strengthening this sector’s future in Malta. He continued that, within the next two years, the PL aims to enact a number of projects with an investment of €60 million in Malta’s gaming industry.
Additionally, he proposed a new esports centre, which he said would provide further facilities for gaming tournaments and competitions in Malta. He added that this would also serve to provide more opportunities in esports for local talent. “This is the natural evolution for our country,” he remarked.
Economy Minister Silvio Schembri, who also spoke at the press conference alongside Abela, said that the PL intends to reform business laws so that foreign entrepreneurs would effectively be able to digitally set up a business registered in Malta without having to be in the country themselves.
Considering Malta’s standing in the wider industry as an iGaming hub, this could prove to be an especially notable policy.
MGA licensing prediction markets
Abela also briefly mentioned prediction markets, as he indicated that giving the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) the capability to grant licences to companies operating in the prediction market space is among the PL’s plans.
It is currently unclear what this entails exactly. A criticism often levied towards prediction markets is that they effectively fulfil the same role as gambling sites without requiring gambling licences to operate in certain regulated markets.
Minister Schembri has previously indicated that the government has been looking closely at the field of prediction markets.
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