New forecasts from Carry1st and Newzoo show Africa’s games market growing nearly twice as fast as the global industry, adding a net 36.6 million players in 2026 alone.

The latest figures, released by South African games publisher and digital commerce company Carry1st in partnership with games market intelligence firm Newzoo, suggest that Africa is continuing to grow substantially faster than the global games market.

Africa’s games revenue is forecast to increase 11.9% year-on-year in 2026, rising from $1.77 billion in 2025 to $1.98 billion. At the same time, the continent’s player population is expected to grow by 9.9%, increasing from 369.66 million players in 2025 to 406.25 million. That represents an estimated 36.6 million additional players in a single year.

The figures provide another indication that Africa is moving beyond the traditional description of an “emerging” games market and becoming an increasingly important source of global player growth.

In 2021, a Newzoo and Carry1st report estimated that the number of gamers in Sub-Saharan Africa had more than doubled from 77 million in 2015 to 186 million, with 95% playing on mobile devices. At the time, the region was projected to be the fastest-growing globally for both mobile players and paying gamers. GIA subsequently highlighted the significance of those numbers in its coverage of the African games industry, noting the considerable gap between Africa’s growing player audience and its comparatively small share of global games revenue.

According to the organisations’ 2025 analysis, the entire African games market reached $1.8 billion in 2024, representing 12.4% year-on-year growth. The continent added approximately 32 million gamers during the year, taking the total player base from 317 million to 349 million. GIA reported on those figures at the time, highlighting that Africa’s games market was growing approximately six times faster than the global market in 2024.

The latest forecast therefore suggests that the acceleration has not slowed. Instead, Africa is expected to add another 57 million players between 2024 and 2026, while revenue approaches the $2 billion threshold.

Mobile adoption remains the driver

Perhaps the most significant characteristic of the African market remains its overwhelming reliance on mobile gaming. Newzoo forecasts that mobile will account for $1.62 billion, or 81.8%, of Africa’s total games revenue in 2026. That dominance has remained remarkably consistent throughout the Carry1st and Newzoo datasets.

In 2024, mobile generated approximately $1.6 billion, accounting for almost 90% of Africa’s $1.8 billion games market. Of the continent’s 349 million gamers that year, 304 million were mobile players.

The continuing dominance of smartphones is significant because it allows Africa to bypass some of the hardware barriers that have historically constrained games adoption. Rather than following the development path of mature markets where console and PC hardware ownership played a central role in expanding the audience many African players are entering gaming through devices they already own.

Egypt is forecast to lead Africa’s revenue table with $458.1 million, followed by South Africa ($263.0 million) and Nigeria ($226.6 million).

Cordel Robbin-Coker, CEO and Co-founder of Carry1st, commented: “Our latest data with Newzoo highlights what we have long believed: Africa and the Middle East are the primary growth engines of the global video games industry. Watching Africa’s gaming population grow to a forecasted 406 million demonstrates the immense velocity of this market. As the industry points to a structural plateau in mature markets, Africa’s sustained expansion proves where the next billion players will come from.”

Newzoo is also opening pre-registration for its free 2026 Global Games Market Report, due to launch on 10 September, which will place these African figures within a fuller global picture, including platform outlooks and forecasts through 2029.