While some gambling verticals have seen a significant drop in uptake during the Coronavirus pandemic, esports betting has shown substantial year-on-year growth that has blown away industry analysts.
If the term “esports” is unfamiliar to you, all you need to know is that it refers to electronic sporting events that take place online. So, rather than watching or participating in a live match, the game is played on a computer.
New Kid on the Block
Your friendly neighbourhood teenager will be able to tell you all about it. Simply ask them about Tyler Blevins and many will launch into a description of his signature Ninja moves when he plays Fortnite. You’ll hear all about his kill ratios and stats and how they want to emulate his awesome tactics.
Over 70,000 people will watch Blevins compete in tournaments and his streams rake in around $300,000 per month in revenue. Who would have thought that being a professional computer gamer could be a profitable career choice a few years ago?
While this concept may be fairly new, research consultancy, Activate, in their Think Again: Tech & Media Outlook 2017, suggests that the popularity of esports may even eclipse the NBA by 2021.
Grow, Gaming, Grow
The latest stats released by the Gambling Commission show how much esports betting has grown over the last year. If anything, the pandemic has done this particular vertical, the world of good.
Just look at the year-on-year esports betting growth!
March 2019 - £50,223
March 2020 - £1,517,548
That’s a 2922% growth since last year. To put it another way, UK betting operators made a pitiful £50,000 on esports betting last year. This year, they had cashed in around £4,600,000,000 by May 2020. That made up 4% of all sports betting revenues for the year!
Will It Last?
Even without the massive change from last year, esports betting has seen further growth in the last few months, when the novel Coronavirus started taking hold in Europe.
The figures say it all:
With live sporting events are starting up again, esports betting may see a drop in their figures as people return to more familiar territories. However, with options like the High School Esports League, that claims to have 1500 schools involved, there is room in the market for a newer, younger audience.
The pandemic has already made many people reconsider how to live their lives in a world where an ever-changing virus remains a threat. People who exclusively played in brick and mortar venues have now had to learn how to play online and get more familiar with technology.
Right now, there is very little way to accurately predict what will happen in a few months or years from now. Only time will tell but the future seems bright for esports and it’s upcoming stars.
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