The global gambling industry is on the rise, with sports betting and casino gambling becoming more popular and widespread. From the FanDuel online casino in Michigan to the meccas of Las Vegas and Macau and online casinos in Europe, it’s a sector that generates hundreds of billions of dollars.
But what’s behind this rise? Why is the gambling industry growing at such a rapid rate?
Major Mergers are Happening Every Few Months
We mentioned FanDuel at the outset of this guide. It’s a brand known for its fantasy sports, but it’s also one that was acquired by Flutter Entertainment, a company that has a stake in everything from Paddy Power and Betfair to PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker.
It’s a global gaming powerhouse and it has access to gambling markets all over the world and in every single niche. But that’s not the only major brand with its fingers in many pies.
William Hill acquired Caesars Palace for £2.9 billion in 2020, and a year before, the UK betting brand also purchased Mr. Green and CG Technology. In 2020, we also saw SBTech become a part of DraftKings while Bet.pt was purchased by GVC and Eldorado Resorts was picked up by Caesars Entertainment (making it part of William Hill).
These acquisitions put more power into the hands of brands that have the money and reputation to force a change, thus spreading their message far and wide. More importantly, they have a lot of influence and have been impacting law changes across many regions that have previously frowned upon gambling.
Online Gambling is More Acceptable
Not only are online casinos and sportsbooks more common than ever, but they’re also being embraced by a greater number of players.
The pandemic forced a lot of people to work and chat over Zoom and shop online. Believe it or not, there was a large number of people who were still reluctant to tap into the digital ecosystem and 2020 and 2021 changed all of that.
These days, everyone understands how safe online shopping, gaming, and gambling are and they don’t think twice about participating.
Sporting events like the Summer and Winter Olympics have still suffered from the effects of restrictions and limited interest from gamblers, but online casinos have boomed and experts are predicting big things for major events in 2022, including the Super Bowl and FIFA World Cup.
Esports is on the Rise
The rise of esports has helped to turn a new generation of gamers into gamblers. 20-somethings that don’t have much of an interest in traditional sports have been turning to esports, with games like League of Legends, Counter-Strike, FIFA, and StarCraft taking center stage.
As little as 10 years ago, esports betting was obscure and very poorly regulated. Today, thanks to those 20-something gamers and gamblers, it’s one of the biggest events in the betting world. In fact, in some regions, it’s surpassed only by soccer betting, and some believe that it will one day be the biggest spectator sport and gambling sport in the world.
