Sports betting is among the most popular gambling activities today for sports fans. If you are among them, you can predict all kinds of outcomes on a single sport as you cheer on your favorite teams. Thanks to internet accessibility and advanced technology, sports fans can easily place bets on their favorite sports teams and players on online sports betting sites like the GG Bet sportsbook.
The Novel Coronavirus Challenge
For years, the sports betting world continued to thrive in both online and land-based betting avenues, but come 2020, the Coronavirus pandemic introduced a unique challenge. For one, due to social distancing rules, retail sportsbooks were shut down completely to curb the spread of the virus for some months. Similarly, sports events were also canceled for the better part of the year.
Fortunately, online sportsbooks swooped in to fill the gap and offer players alternative betting solutions. With the option of online betting, GG Bet, for example, and other online sportsbooks kept fans busy with options such as virtual sports and esports as the traditional sporting world waited for normalcy to return.
While 2020 came with uncertainties for bookmakers and punters alike, a new revolution in the seemingly unstable sports betting world was born. Despite the pandemic-induced challenges, the sports betting sector is one of the few industries that has seen partnerships continue to be formed. Broadcasters, bookmakers, sports leagues and affiliated companies have forged new deals and strengthened existing ones to get a bigger piece of the ever-growing pie.
Regional Stats
With 2020 behind us, even though we are still fighting the pandemic tooth and nail, here’s a look at the sports betting market size statistic and trends so far in 2021:
United States of America
The Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) has, for years, put up a hard fight against the legalization of sports betting. However, since it was repealed in May 2018, more states immediately moved to legalize sports gambling. As a result, as of May 2021, 21 states legalized sports betting with live services, six legalized but had no live services, whereas 14 pre-filed for sports gambling legislation. However, the remaining nine did not have any legislation plans underway.
With New Jersey leading the way in this sector, it’s estimated that 2021 will see the revenues from sports betting reach $2.1 billion. And the number is expected to exponentially grow to $7.9 billion by 2025, according to Gabelli Securities and the US Census Bureau. Morgan Stanley has an even higher projection of $15 billion of revenue by 2025. Whatever the case, what we can infer from the stats is that the figures in 2021 are just the beginning of a game-changing market trend in the economy. The Super Bowl LV alone saw an approximated $4.3 billion wagered by gamblers.
Asia Pacific Region (APAC)
The Asia-Pacific region has been making waves in the gambling world as it has been experiencing astonishing growth, which is projected to keep going up. Additional revenue generated from sports betting activities in this region is estimated to increase by $98.23 billion between 2020 and 2024.
Unlike in the US, where sports betting has only recently started enjoying recognition in most states, the Asia-Pacific region has been more liberal with its regulations. As such, the industry experienced a huge demand even amid the global pandemic. China’s Macau region is the source of the highest number of placed bets, with favorite sports being basketball and soccer.
Europe
The European sports betting market makes a significant contribution (41% in 2019) to the overall online gambling revenue in the region. By 2024, it’s projected that the entire online gambling market will hit the $94 billion mark. Legislation has not been a big problem for Europe as entities such as the Malta Gaming Authority and Curacao eGaming help with tight regulation to allow the multi-billion-dollar industry to thrive.
Sports Betting Platforms
Currently, brick-and-mortar sports betting establishments are still operating, albeit at a limited capacity due to the pandemic. However, it’s the online sports betting platforms that have increasingly been cashing in big as their offline counterparts faced restrictions due to multiple lockdowns. In addition, the convenience provided by online sports betting is incomparable to offline casinos. And in online sports betting, it comes as no surprise that mobile devices are the most preferred sports betting platforms because we carry them everywhere we go.
What the Future Holds
Sports betting, which is now valued at about $211 billion in 2021, has not always been an acceptable practice globally. Nevertheless, the market is growing at lightning speed, and not even the pandemic has managed to slow things down. This market has survived all attempts to thwart it for fears that it would ruin the way sports are played.
Interestingly, recent research has even shown that sports fans find the matches they watch more exciting when betting is involved. And, with the amount of revenue flowing in, investors are rushing in to tap into the industry’s potential. Between now and 2025, the market is expected to grow by over $106 billion, with a projected Continuous Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of about 10%.
