The First Online Casino: Created by Microgaming?

The first online casino is usually credited to Microgaming. Its software powered The Gaming Club, which launched in South Africa in 1994 under the domain casino.co.za. A rival claim belongs to InterCasino, which opened on 17 November 1996 with CryptoLogic software and is credited with taking the first real-money wager online. Which one counts as “first” depends on what you count: the first casino site, or the first real-money bet.

Updated October 2026. We corrected the end of the story: the old version said Microgaming was still growing as a billion-dollar game supplier, but it sold its games, distribution business and jackpot network to Games Global in 2022. We also added a dated timeline, the Antigua licensing law of 1994 and how the industry reached state-licensed US casinos and live dealer tables.

Online Casino Timeline: 1994 to Today

Exact launch dates from the mid-1990s are hard to pin down, because few early operators kept public records. The table lists the milestones that most histories agree on; the sources are listed at the end of the page.

The Founders: An Innovator in Search of an Investor

Martin Moshal, born in Durban in 1970 and a graduate of the University of Cape Town, had the idea for casino software in the early 1990s. What he lacked was money. He approached Roger Raatgever, then a young merchant banker, for a loan. Moshal’s credit record was not strong enough on its own, so Raatgever co-signed the loan in exchange for a 50% stake in the new company. That company was Microgaming.

Raatgever later described himself as someone who knew little about the sector at the time but liked its sense of excitement. Moshal went on to co-found the venture capital firm Entrée Capital and, in 2009, set up the Moshal Scholarship Program, which funds university students in South Africa and Israel. He rarely gives interviews about his gaming career, which is one reason the early history of online casinos is so patchy.

What Was the First Online Casino?

Two casinos claim the title, and both claims rest on a different definition.

Claim one: The Gaming Club (1994)

The Gaming Club launched in 1994, first in South Africa under casino.co.za, running on the software Microgaming had just built. Microgaming itself, now trading as Apricot, describes launching “the world’s first genuine online casino software in 1994”. If the test is the first casino you could play on the internet, The Gaming Club is the usual answer, and it is the one this site has always given.

Claim two: InterCasino (1996)

InterCasino opened on 17 November 1996 from Antigua, using software from the Canadian firm CryptoLogic, whose secure payment technology let players deposit and bet real money online. It is widely credited with taking the first genuine real-money wager over the internet. Early accounts of The Gaming Club suggest its first payments were handled by hand rather than through an online cashier, which is why some historians call InterCasino the first fully functioning online casino.

Our view

Both claims hold, because they answer different questions. The Gaming Club was the first online casino to launch. InterCasino was the first to take a real-money bet through an online payment system. Neither date comes from a regulator’s launch record, so treat both as the industry’s best consensus rather than settled fact.

Why Antigua Mattered

An online casino needed somewhere to be licensed. In 1994 Antigua and Barbuda passed the Free Trade and Processing Zone Act, a broad law that set up free trade zones and let the government license businesses operating in them. It was not written as an online casino law, but early internet gambling firms used it to obtain licences, and Antigua became the first well-known home for online casinos and sportsbooks. InterCasino launched from there in 1996.

Other jurisdictions followed, including the Kahnawake Gaming Commission in Canada, which began online licensing in 1999, and later Malta and the Isle of Man, where Microgaming made its home. Licensing has changed a great deal since, and our guide on how to obtain a casino licence explains how it works today.

Online Gaming Pioneers

Whichever side of the debate you take, Microgaming was a pioneer. In the late 1990s, offshore sportsbooks were growing fast, and online payment processing replaced the wire transfers they had relied on. Adding casino games was an easy next step. Rather than build software themselves, operators licensed it from suppliers such as Microgaming and CryptoLogic, and could offer blackjack, roulette and slots within weeks.

Cash Splash and the progressive jackpot

Microgaming’s best-known early innovation came in 1998 with Cash Splash, widely cited as the internet’s first progressive jackpot slot. Until then, developers had mostly copied real casino games and concentrated on random number generation, security and payments. Cash Splash linked one jackpot across every casino that carried the game, so the prize pool grew far faster than any single site could manage.

The idea scaled. Mega Moolah, Microgaming’s African-safari progressive, went on to set world records for online slot payouts. A Betway player, Jonathan Heywood, won €17.9 million on it in 2015, and on 27 April 2021 a Belgian player at Napoleon Sports & Casino won about €19.4 million on Absolootly Mad: Mega Moolah from a €15 stake, reported at the time as the largest online slot jackpot ever paid. Our list of the biggest online slot jackpot wins has more.

What Happened to Microgaming?

The old version of this page ended by saying Microgaming showed no signs of slowing down. That is no longer accurate. Over three years the company sold or closed the businesses that made its name:

• 2020: the Microgaming Poker Network, one of the longest-running online poker networks, closed in May 2020.
• November 2021: Microgaming announced it would sell its Quickfire distribution business, including its game portfolio and jackpot network, to Games Global, a new supplier led by former IGT executive Walter Bugno and backed by private capital. iGaming Business reported the deal on 15 November 2021.
• 3 May 2022: Games Global completed the purchase of Microgaming’s distribution business, game IP and progressive jackpot network, plus interests in a range of game studios, and began operating that day. It took over a customer network of more than 900 brands.

Microgaming the company did not close. After the sale it said it would focus on platform systems and services, including for Games Global, and keep licensing its sports betting software to Betway. Today it trades as Apricot (Apricot Investments) and marked its 30th anniversary in 2024. Nor has the Microgaming name disappeared: microgaming.io presents Microgaming in October 2026 as a game provider with slots, live casino tables and a Playboy-branded range.

Games Global and US players

Mega Moolah and the rest of the classic Microgaming catalogue now belong to Games Global. In the US, the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board lists Games Global USA Inc. as approved for licensure as an iGaming manufacturer from 24 January 2024 to 23 January 2029. In 2024 Games Global filed to list on the New York Stock Exchange, then withdrew the offering in May 2024, so it remains privately owned.

From the First Online Casino to Live Dealer Tables

The 1990s casinos were software only: a random number generator dealt every card and spun every wheel. Live dealer games came later, when internet speeds could carry video. Evolution was founded in 2006 and now streams from studios serving New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Connecticut and West Virginia. Our Evolution Gaming review covers that side of the story, and our guide to the top live casino software providers compares the main studios.

The legal map has changed too. Online casinos were offshore-only for US players until November 2013, when New Jersey and Delaware launched state-licensed sites. As of October 2026, eight states have legalised online casinos; seven markets are live (New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Michigan, West Virginia, Connecticut, Delaware and Rhode Island), and Maine legalised a tribal-only market (LD 1164: became law without the governor’s signature in January 2026, effective 29 July 2026) that has not launched. Our best live casinos USA page covers where you can play today, and the live dealer games hub explains the games and their house edges.

For more on how gambling developed before the internet, read our history of casino games and culture.

Responsible Gambling

Thirty years of online casinos have also produced better player protection: deposit limits, time-outs and self-exclusion are standard at state-licensed sites. If gambling stops being fun, call, text or chat with the National Problem Gambling Helpline on 1-800-MY-RESET (1-800-697-3738), 24 hours a day. Our responsible gambling page lists more support.

Frequently Asked Questions

What was the first online casino?

There are two accepted answers. The Gaming Club, built on Microgaming software, is usually credited as the first online casino, with a 1994 launch in South Africa under the domain casino.co.za. InterCasino, which used CryptoLogic software and opened on 17 November 1996, is usually credited with taking the first real-money wager online.

Who founded Microgaming?

Martin Moshal, a Durban-born entrepreneur, and Roger Raatgever, a merchant banker who co-signed Moshal’s start-up loan in exchange for a 50% stake. Microgaming dates its founding to 1994.

Does Microgaming still exist?

Not in its old form. Microgaming sold its Quickfire distribution business, game catalogue and progressive jackpot network to Games Global, a deal announced in November 2021 and completed on 3 May 2022. The remaining company kept its platform and sports betting technology, and the Microgaming name is still used today on microgaming.io for a games brand.

What was the first online progressive jackpot slot?

Cash Splash, which Microgaming released in 1998, is widely cited as the first online slot with a progressive jackpot linked across casinos.

Which country first licensed online casinos?

Antigua and Barbuda is usually named. Its Free Trade and Processing Zone Act (No. 12 of 1994) set up the licensing framework that early online gambling companies used, and InterCasino launched from Antigua in 1996.

When did online casinos become legal in the United States?

New Jersey and Delaware launched the first state-licensed online casinos in November 2013. As of October 2026, eight states have legalised online casinos; seven markets are live (NJ, PA, MI, WV, CT, DE, RI), and Maine’s tribal-only market has not launched.