Search Console, Bing and ChatGPT data: what the new AI reports show iGaming sites
Since 2026, Google and Bing both report some AI visibility data, and ChatGPT tags its referrals. None of it shows the whole picture. Here is what each source can and cannot tell a casino or sportsbook.
Three first-party sources now show part of your AI search visibility. Google Search Console has generative AI performance reports showing impressions from AI Overviews and AI Mode. Bing Webmaster Tools has an AI Performance report showing citations in Copilot. And ChatGPT adds utm_source=chatgpt.com to most links it sends. None of them report clicks from AI answers in a clean, separate way, so treat them as evidence of visibility, not traffic.
For an iGaming team this is still the most reliable data you have, because it comes from the platforms rather than from a sample.
Google Search Console: AI impressions, no clicks
Search Console's generative AI performance reports, available to all eligible sites since 31 August 2026, show how often your pages appeared in Google's AI features, broken down by page, country and date. They show impressions only. Clicks from AI Overviews and AI Mode are still mixed into the normal Performance report under "Web".
Google started testing these reports with some sites on 3 June 2026 and rolled them out worldwide at the end of August. Sites with low volume may not get a report at all, which will affect smaller affiliates and newly launched market sites.
Two details matter for reading the main Performance report too. Google counts AI Mode and AI Overview data inside the standard "Web" search type. In AI Mode, a click on an external link counts as a click, and each follow-up question counts as a new query. So a rise in impressions with flat clicks may simply mean you are showing up in more AI answers that users read without clicking.
For a casino, the useful cut is by page. If your licence page or payments help page collects AI impressions, assistants are using it as a source. If your promotions hub collects none, that may be fine, since many markets restrict how bonuses can be promoted anyway.
Bing Webmaster Tools: Copilot citations
Bing launched its AI Performance report as a public preview on 10 February 2026. It shows total citations, cited pages per day, sample grounding queries and trends across Copilot, Bing's AI summaries and some partner integrations. Like Google's, it shows no clicks.
The grounding queries are the interesting part. They are the background searches Bing ran to build an answer, and they often reveal how the assistant interpreted a question. A grounding query like "[brand] withdrawal limits" tells you exactly which help page needs to be clearer.
Bing has also rewritten its webmaster guidelines to name generative engine optimization directly, advising sites to state facts plainly, use consistent entity names, and keep one topic per URL. That is a short, sensible checklist for any operator.
ChatGPT referrals in analytics
OpenAI says ChatGPT "automatically includes the UTM parameter utm_source=chatgpt.com in referral URLs." In Google Analytics 4 or any other tool, you can segment those sessions and see which pages ChatGPT users land on.
There is a recent caveat. Between roughly 8 and 15 October 2026, links in ChatGPT's answer text reached sites without the UTM tag or a referrer, so visits were recorded as Direct. One analysis across around 500 pages measured a drop of about 31,000 ChatGPT visits a day and a matching rise in Direct. Observers reported it as a bug fixed from 15 October; OpenAI has not commented. If your October report shows ChatGPT traffic falling and Direct rising, this is the likely reason.
Perplexity and Copilot visits often arrive with a recognisable referrer, so create a channel group in analytics for AI assistants rather than leaving them inside "Referral".
Reading the three together
None of these sources stands alone. A sensible monthly view puts them side by side with your own prompt-panel results, as described in our guide to measuring AI visibility.
| Source | Shows | Does not show |
|---|---|---|
| Search Console generative AI reports | AI impressions by page, country, date | Clicks, the questions asked, competitors |
| Bing AI Performance | Citations, cited pages, sample grounding queries | Clicks, non-Microsoft assistants |
| ChatGPT referrals (UTM) | Sessions and landing pages from ChatGPT links | Answers that mention you without a link; untagged visits |
| Your prompt panel | Mentions, accuracy, competitors, cited domains | Real user volume; it is a sample |
One privacy note for regulated brands
If you add AI referral tracking, make sure it sits inside your existing consent setup. Regulators and data protection authorities treat gambling marketing data with extra care, and an analytics change made for SEO reasons still needs your privacy team's sign-off.
The first practical step is simple: open Search Console, check whether your property has the generative AI report, and note which five pages collect the most AI impressions. Those pages are your AI front door. If you want help reading the data, it is part of every iGeoWager plan.
Sources
- Search Engine Journal: Search Console AI reports rolled out worldwide (31 August 2026)
- Search Engine Land: AI Mode traffic data in Search Console (June 2025)
- Bing Webmaster Blog: AI Performance in Bing Webmaster Tools (10 February 2026)
- Search Engine Journal: Bing adds GEO to its guidelines (27 February 2026)
- OpenAI Help: publishers and developers FAQ
- Search Engine Roundtable: UTM parameters missing from ChatGPT links (14 October 2026)