Eighteen months since Nigeria’s Supreme Court handed down its landmark ruling devolving gambling regulation from federal to state control, the nation’s 36 states are going their own separate ways. Each is charting its own path toward regulatory frameworks, creating both real opportunity and fragmentation across Africa’s most populous gambling market.

The Constitutional Turning Point

November 2024 was the watershed moment. The Supreme Court voided the National Lottery Act, finally settling a constitutional question that Lagos state had fought through the courts for 16 years: which tier of government should actually oversee gambling? The court determined that lotteries and games of chance qualify as “residual” matters under Nigerian law. They fall outside the federal parliament’s exclusive legislative remit and therefore default to state jurisdiction instead.

“The Supreme Court’s decision was constitutionally seismic,” according to Adewumi Salami, legal director at DLA Piper Africa. In a single judgment, the ruling effectively dismantled a decades-old federal monopoly.

States Move at Different Speeds

The regulatory response has been decidedly uneven. Ten states, notably Lagos, Delta, Imo, Rivers and Cross River, already maintained their own gambling frameworks before the ruling. They simply accelerated their independent authority instead. Lagos, through its Lotteries and Gaming Authority (LSLGA), was immediately positioned to assume exclusive regulatory control.

Others reacted swiftly after the ruling. Osun state passed its Lotteries and Gaming Bill in November 2024, establishing the Osun State Lotteries and Gaming Board. Anambra tabled gaming legislation. But roughly 22 of Nigeria’s 36 states remain in various stages of legislative development, with some maintaining outright prohibitions and others operating in regulatory grey zones.

The Federation Framework and Universal Licensing

Recognising the fragmentation risk, 22 states established the Federation of State Gaming Regulators of Nigeria (FSGRN). In May 2025, the body introduced a Subnational Reciprocity Licensing Framework. The innovation allows operators to obtain a single Universal Reciprocity Certificate valid across all member states. The FSGRN currently issues licences for online gaming and waived 2025 fees for operators transitioning from the defunct National Lottery Regulatory Commission.

It’s a coordinated approach that may prevent the chaotic patchwork unchecked state-by-state regulation could create. Questions remain, though, about non-member states and interstate enforcement.

Market Dynamics Shifting

Nigeria’s gambling market reached $1.6 billion in gross win during 2025, with football betting dominating through brands like Bet9ja and SportyBet. The landscape is shifting, though. Online casinos, crash games and live dealer products are increasingly bundled alongside traditional sportsbooks as operators expand entertainment offerings. Improving mobile connectivity and payment infrastructure have accelerated this convergence.

The regulatory clarity emerging from state-level frameworks could accelerate market evolution further, though operators will need to navigate compliance across multiple jurisdictions until the FSGRN model achieves broader adoption.