As a country, Spain has always had many national traditions for which it’s famous the world over. But in a fast-changing world that is very different from the one that we knew as recently as a decade ago, the popularity of many of these has started to change. It’s partly a question of fashion and partly of changing attitudes. Technology is also playing its role too.
One particular activity that is gaining an ever more-established foothold in Spanish culture and daily life is the online casino. This isn’t so surprising, of course. Today’s online casinos offer a huge range of games to play from slots to roulette and from blackjack to baccarat. There are also very generous welcome bonuses to attract new players and frequent promotions and other offers to encourage brand loyalty.
Spain is also a nation that has been shown to participate in gambling and that’s why huge numbers of people enter the legendary El Gordo lottery every festive season. And, while this generally raises at least €3 billion in ticket sales, hugely outdoing online casinos, they are gradually catching up in terms of revenue raised.
For example, in 2020 Spain’s online casino sector generated over €350 million in revenue, which is a significant increase of almost 24% over the 2019 figure. It’s also projected to continue rising in popularity along very similar lines in the next few years.
In some ways, this represents the country embracing the future. This could mean that it is not such good news for a couple of other Spanish traditions that are undoubtedly finding themselves with waning popularity and possibly under threat of dying out.
Perhaps the highest-profile example of this is bullfighting. For decades this has been an activity inextricably linked with the country and over the years, leading matadors have been accorded the status of movie stars and other A-list celebrities. But times change and there is an undoubted public upswell of feeling that it could be time to consign the activity to the past.
For example, under 6% of the population now attend the ever-diminishing number of bullfights each year and even fewer take part in events like Pamplona’s famous Running of the Bulls. It’s also an activity that has been abandoned altogether in many parts of Spain including Catalonia and Mallorca. As it is also something that requires public money to supplement its existence, there are even questions being asked about whether or not it will survive for another decade.
Another, very different, Spanish tradition that may be under threat is flamenco dancing. Classified as an “intangible cultural heritage” by UNESCO, its popularity has been described as decreasing with more and more of the venues where it is performed closing down. However, it seems likely that there will be more efforts made to keep this particular art form alive than there will be for bullfighting.
But, as for online casinos, it’s a fairly safe bet that they’ll continue going from strength to strength in Spain.
