University of Glasgow Launches Global Gambling Control Scorecard
University of Glasgow researchers have unveiled an international benchmarking tool designed to compare how countries regulate gambling and protect players.
LISTEN TO THIS ARTICLE:The Global Gambling Control Scorecard (GGCS) – developed by academics at the University of Glasgow with support from the World Health Organization and other international partners – aggregates regulatory data to offer the first systematic, cross‑country view of gambling governance. The tool currently covers 34 European jurisdictions and combines more than 40 indicators to score and compare national approaches to licensing, legality, enforcement and harm prevention.
"The GGCS is a vital tool for anyone interested in how gambling is regulated internationally, and learning about what is happening in other countries", said Heather Wardle, professor of gambling research and policy at the University of Glasgow. "By standardising measurement across jurisdictions we can move beyond anecdote and opinion to an evidence base that supports robust policy choices."
Project lead Daria Ukhova said the scorecard is deliberately structured to highlight regulatory choices that go beyond the now‑common industry framing of "responsible gambling", which she argues places disproportionate responsibility on individual players. "Too often policy focuses on individual behaviour-change interventions rather than addressing structural drivers of harm," Ukhova said. "Our aim with the GGCS is to draw attention to the wider regulatory architecture – from licensing standards and market oversight to cross‑sector partnerships with health and financial services – so that reforms can target systemic risk, not only consumer messaging."
Related: Seven European Regulators Agree to Share Data to Fight Illegal Online Gambling
How the Scorecard Works
The GGCS pulls together indicators grouped across several domains: legal status of gambling, regulatory model and licensing regimes, safeguards against illegal or unlicensed activity, harm‑prevention measures, and multi‑agency collaboration such as links with mental health and financial education services. Each jurisdiction receives a composite assessment that allows users to identify strengths, gaps and trends within and across countries.
Researchers say the full dataset and an accompanying codebook are openly available so academics, regulators and civil society can reproduce findings or test alternative weightings and assumptions. The transparency is intended to encourage iterative improvement of the tool and to foster international dialogue about which regulatory measures effectively reduce gambling‑related harm.
Although the initial release concentrates on European nations, the team has signalled plans to expand coverage globally as further funding and partnerships are secured. The project’s open approach is designed to make it straightforward for national regulators, public health bodies and advocacy organisations to contribute data and to use the GGCS as a benchmark when assessing reforms or monitoring policy outcomes over time.
Industry observers say the scorecard could be important at a moment when national responses to the rapid growth of online gambling remain highly divergent. Regulators such as the UK Gambling Commission, Spelinspektionen in Sweden and the Malta Gaming Authority have all taken different regulatory paths in recent years, reflecting varying balances between consumer protection, market liberalisation and enforcement against illegal operators.
By mapping regulatory design choices and outcomes, the GGCS aims to support evidence‑led policymaking rather than reactive interventions. "We hope this resource will help shift debate from punitive or purely educational responses to policies that change the environment around gambling," Ukhova added.
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Data Access and Next Steps
Beyond immediate scoring, the team views the GGCS as a living resource: an expandable database that can accommodate new indicators, incorporate longitudinal tracking, and support comparative evaluations of reform efforts. With WHO backing and interest from international partners, the project’s next phase will focus on securing funding to extend geographic scope, refine indicators and build tools for policymakers to simulate the likely effects of proposed regulatory changes.
For regulators and researchers wrestling with how to curb gambling harm while managing market realities, the GGCS represents both a diagnostic instrument and a platform for cross‑national learning. Its creators say the open dataset is intended to lower barriers to comparative research and to accelerate the adoption of regulatory measures that demonstrably reduce risk for vulnerable populations.
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