The popularity of sports betting worldwide started from the most popular sports betting to watch. After the big lockdowns since early 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, sports betting regained its popularity, especially in the United States.
After the bars lifted from strict lockdowns and major sports events being cancelled for months, the sports betting scene exploded in numbers as almost eight million people put their money on the line through the top online betting sites. This means there's a total of 63% increase from 2020 to 2021.
As sports betting is getting legalized throughout the US and other countries in the last few years, this activity has many potentials for everyone to enjoy.
Conditions of The Worldwide Betting Market
The pandemic caused the sports betting market to hold back for almost a year. However, the stats for sports betting in the US shows a whopping growth of over $378 million in revenue in January. This means that there's a 174% year-over-year rise in revenue compared to 2020. These numbers include 11 states from the US along with two new legal ones, which are in Virginia and Michigan, which also contributed to those stats.
A report from Technavio suggests that the worldwide sports betting market size can grow by over $140 billion by 2025.
The European Gross Gambling Revenue (GGR) was expected to reach 25 billion Euros in 2020. This includes online casinos, lottery, and sports betting. The countries with the highest GGRs respectively include Italy, Germany, the UK, France, and Spain.
Indeed, Europe has always led the international online betting space. More than 40% of online gambling revenue in the EU came from sports betting in 2019. And their wagering market is expected to value at $90 billion by 2024.
The country that bets the most is surprisingly China. Especially in their particular administrative province, Macau. You can access all the international online sportsbooks in Macau, with European football betting and basketball being the two favourite sports to bet in Macau.
The Legality of Sports Betting
People started to legalize sports betting back in 1949 in Nevada with the UK then followed in 1960. Unfortunately, it was made illegal in the US on a federal level in the early 1990s. Then, over 25 years later, the US Supreme Court division lifted the bans on sports betting in 2018. This allows almost half of the country to legalize sports betting, with more states expected to legalize the activity in the future.
Many countries across Europe also legalize sports betting. Land-based sportsbooks and casinos dominate some regions in the betting industry and cater to both locals and tourists alike.
Sports betting is also legal in Australia, Canada, and New Zealand with their regulatory environments supporting online betting. In addition, online sports betting sites have changed how we bet on sports forever. Anyone from around the world can now access many sites and digital platforms for their betting pleasure.
The Technology Behind Online Sports Betting
Technology has clearly dominated the sports betting scene. Sportsbooks that turn into online sportsbooks have become some of the best betting companies in the world today.
Forbes magazine claimed that if all of the USA's 50 states legalize sports betting, it could make over $20 billion yearly revenue. Legalized sports betting can open doors for tech startups to expand their markets into a multi-billion-dollar business. More competition in the marketplace can trigger constant technological innovations for online sports betting.
We can see the changes in Alphabet Inc. (Google) who have changed their policies to allow real money for betting and betting apps in the Play Store in the US and 15 other countries.
The International Game Technology PLC, based in the UK with affiliates in Latin America, Europe, and Asia, announced their collaboration with Maverick Gaming's subsidiary in Colorado. This provides a sports betting app as an addition to self-service kiosks within the three land-based casinos in the US.
As mobile technology's availability increases and plays a significant role in international online sports betting, the industry will grow just as quickly.
Sports Betting in The Future
Although the pandemic has paused every sporting event imaginable to even the 2020 Olympics at a halt, there's always a fast recovery after a crisis.
Sports betting future looks bright in a post-pandemic world as it's a better option compared to land-based casinos that are forced to shut their doors. It's part of the cultural aspect, especially in the UK and the US, where sports betting has been part of how their governments finance their municipalities.
The smartphone has also revolutionized sports betting with tradable commodities paired with active internet will lead societies further into the 21st century. For some, betting is a bad addiction, for others, it's a hobby, a kind of entertainment, and even a profession. But for Westerners, it's part of their DNA.
Online betting is expected to grow in Europe exponentially. While in the US, the newer generation will most likely be placing their bets on their favourite football team right from their smartphones as they're waiting in line to get a piece of Sativa from the local weed shop.
