Growth of sports betting in the US

The U.S States legalised sports betting in 2018, three years on we look at the state of sports betting in the country’s billion-dollar betting market. Last year the world of sports appeared to be coming to a halt due to the pandemic, with further blows to the gambling industry as casinos and betting shops were closed. This led to a growth for online gaming on many platforms, like these slots here, which have continued to see great success.

In spite of these challenges, the growth of the legal sports betting has exceeded stakeholder and market expectations. More than US$20 billion has been bet since the legalisation of sports betting, which until 2018 had been restricted to Nevada for the past 26 years. According to industry analysts, 80 per cent of all U.S are predicted as having some form of legal sports betting product on offer within the next few years. Ibis World in their 2018 reports estimated that fully legal sports betting could be worth roughly US$55 billion.

This growth has been largely driven by the innovation of the betting industry through the provision of mobile betting industry. Twelve states have now approved full-scale online sports betting.  As U.S States were restricting in-person gatherings and many businesses were being closed due to COVID-19, introduction of mobile apps, such as DraftKings and FanDuel, continued to open the doors to the betting industry. DraftKings and FanDuel are now full-fledged bookmarkers and online casino operators and are earning massive shares of the New Jersey market, well ahead of traditional gambling casinos like Caesars Entertainment. You can still find some slots here.

As the market continues to boom, the concerns from the experts is the potential harm caused by addition. Brianne Doura, legislative director for the National Council on Problem Gambling (NCPG) told ESPN that “Research indicates that anytime we introduce a new form of gambling we will simultaneously bring additional problems and concerns, thus requiring additional dollars.” Thus, highlighting the need for states authorizing sports betting to dedicate new funding to problem gambling services, as she continued “It is our stance that all stakeholders bear the responsibility to contribute to the research, prevention, treatment, and recovery of gambling addiction. If you profit from legalized gambling, you share the responsibility to pay for the negative consequences that come from it.”

The predictions remain that sports betting, and most notably online sports betting, is projected to continue growing. The onus is therefore on the platform developers, sportsbook providers and payment service providers to continue developing innovative ways for consumers, clients and bettors to enjoy their products. With so many products on the market, the differentiating factor is quality.

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