{"id":179162,"date":"2021-10-12T10:01:38","date_gmt":"2021-10-12T14:01:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/armchairarcade.com\/perspectives\/?p=179162"},"modified":"2021-10-12T10:01:43","modified_gmt":"2021-10-12T14:01:43","slug":"what-does-the-future-hold-for-the-sports-betting-industry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/armchairarcade.com\/perspectives\/2021\/10\/12\/what-does-the-future-hold-for-the-sports-betting-industry\/","title":{"rendered":"What Does the Future Hold for the Sports Betting Industry?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The sports betting industry has skyrocketed in popularity in recent years. While the practice was outlawed in many countries around the globe not more than a decade ago \u2013 and something of a niche hobby even in those in which it was permitted \u2013 it has now become commonplace across the western world. Indeed, the latest estimates<\/a> value the sector at a whopping $218 billion in 2021.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How has it achieved this runaway success? Through constant innovation. The global marketplace has allowed sportsbooks from all over the world to access new audiences, while the technological advances they offer (such as in-play betting and up-to-the-minute stats, to name but two) enhance the overall experience. So what next for this constantly evolving industry?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

E-sports<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of course, e-sports themselves are hardly a new invention. The first video games appeared in the 1940s, while tournaments were being held to crown the best player in them in the 70s. However, it wasn\u2019t until the 21st<\/sup> century that e-sports began to enter the mainstream consciousness. In 2011, the first platforms dedicated to streaming e-sports battles began to spring up and shortly thereafter, e-sports betting<\/a> was born. Nowadays, people tune into their favourite e-sports to watch their preferred players and lay money on the outcome of their endeavours, all online. That practice is only set to grow in popularity going forwards as the games grow bigger, the tournaments more prestigious and the prize funds more lucrative.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Micro-betting<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The term \u201cmicro-betting\u201d refers to the practice of laying a wager on small events within a sports match itself, rather than the amount of money being staked. For example, in a tennis match, it\u2019s possible to predict whether a player will double fault in any given game and place a bet upon it. In football, you can guess the number of interceptions in a quarter; in baseball, whether a batter will walk; in basketball, whether a star player will score a certain number of free throws. It\u2019s in-play betting at a level of minute detail and, according to one industry insider<\/a>, it\u2019s likely to comprise over 50% of the overall spend in the industry within five years. As such, it\u2019s a trend that\u2019s going to command an increasingly important share of the sector.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

VR and AR<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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