The UAE’s only legal lottery is said to have started two online betting sites where users may wager on sports and play casino games. Given how rigorous the gambling laws are in this Arab country, this is quite a big deal.
In a move signaling a potential turning point for digital gambling in the Gulf, Momentum — the operator behind the UAE’s only licensed lottery — has quietly gone live with two online betting platforms: TrueWin and Dream Island. According to local reporting, both platforms are currently accepting wagers on sportsbook offerings (such as football, cricket, tennis, and basketball) as well as traditional casino games, including live dealer tables, poker, roulette, and slots.
Significantly, the domain for TrueWin (truewin.ae) was registered in March 2023 — roughly six months before the creation of the national regulator General Commercial Gaming Regulatory Authority (GCGRA). Dream Island’s domain dates even earlier, to 2020.
Until now, the UAE’s gambling landscape has been extremely limited. While lotteries were permitted under a regulated scheme, broader forms of online gambling remained largely out of reach due to cultural, legal, and regulatory restrictions. Momentum’s dual launch marks the first time a UAE-based operator has extended into full-scale online casino and sports betting, offering expats and permitted users access to digital betting from within the Emirates.
Although there is still no published law explicitly legalizing gambling, GCGRA has in recent years been slowly issuing operator and supplier licences — including a massive land-based casino project by Wynn Resorts in Ras Al Khaimah.
By launching TrueWin and Dream Island, Momentum — as the existing licensed lottery operator — effectively becomes the only entity offering any form of “legal” gambling in the UAE for now. This could be seen as a testbed for wider acceptance of iGaming, potentially laying the groundwork for future regulatory reforms.
Momentum isn’t the only player making moves in UAE gaming. Recently, another platform — Play 971 — has also emerged on the radar as a licensed iGaming operator under the GCGRA framework.
GCGRA seems to be embracing a controlled expansion: current reports suggest it may allow only one B2C online gaming license per emirate — meaning up to seven operators nationwide, with each allowed a limited number of sub-brands.
Momentum’s move may thus be as much strategic and symbolic as commercial: by establishing first-mover status, the company could secure a dominant position if regulation expands further.
The launch of TrueWin and Dream Island by Momentum signals a quiet but significant shift in the UAE’s digital entertainment and gambling landscape. As regulators slowly build legal and infrastructural frameworks, the Gulf state could be standing on the cusp of its first regulated online gaming ecosystem — one that may reshape its tourism, entertainment, and economic outlook.
