After an explosion in popularity over the last year, esports betting isn’t likely to cool down anytime soon. International YouGov gambling data shows how prevalent gambling on esports has become in key global markets.
Looking at six key global markets, esports betting is most popular in Australia, with 16% of gamblers reporting to have bet on esports online in the last 12 months. Aussies are marginally ahead of American gamblers, 15% of who say they’ve placed a bet on an esports event in the last year, and Indian adults (14%).
Rounding off our list are gamblers in Canada (6%), Germany (6%), and the United Kingdom (3%).
Online betting services widely reported a dramatic increase in esports bets when traditional sporting events were canceled because of the pandemic. Several industry insiders have suggested this momentum is likely to continue.
Not only are there expectations of growth in the sector, but the current consumer base is also wealthy. Looking at esports gamblers in all the markets together, we see they are more likely to be middle income (meaning between 75% and 200% of the median) and higher income (more than 200% of the median) compared with gamblers in general.
What platforms are esports gamblers using? In Australia, the most popular services among esports gamblers are SportsBet (43% have an account), Bet365 (40%), TAB (35%), PointsBet (29%) and Ladbrokes (21%). In the United States, Bet365 (29%), SBG Global (29%), BetMGM (29%), PointsBet (28%) and BetStars (28%) are most popular among esports gamblers. Among esports bettors in India, the most popular services are Dream11 (62%), MyTeam 11 (51%), My11 Circle (50%), Bet365 (42%) and Spin Casino (35%), though many of these don’t themselves offer esports betting.
In the United States, we also track the popularity of various esports leagues among gamblers, who don’t stray too far from the general population. The most popular leagues or events are the “Call of Duty Championships” organized by Activision (18% of esports gamblers follow), “Blizzcon” organized by Blizzard (15%) and “Halo Championship Series” organized by Microsoft (13%).
As more traditional sports return to normal, the gambling space will become more competitive, but the esports sector is primed for growth in the future.
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Methodology: YouGov Global Gambling Profiles, which includes data from six countries, is based on continuously collected data from several sources, rather than from a single limited questionnaire. Data referenced is based on a sample size of between 6,082 to 6,534 adults. Online interviews were conducted between April 2021 and July 2021.
