The twin trends: Why Esports is growing synonymous with Online Gambling?
With the impact of COVID-19, many feel they have lost touch with physical activity. However, to keep people occupied and entertained, the pandemic saw the rise of a new type of sports.
Professional Esports teams are now widespread with competitions offering astonishing cash prizes.
In opposition to what people believe, Esports have been on the rise for the past decade, and they’re starting to influence gambling industry too. Now you can place bets on many Esports events at both land and online casinos.
At first, Esports are virtual sports that imitate real life in gameplay. Today, the gamer community participates in the Esports arena because online gaming and tournaments have become a new stream of entertainment, and it’s quickly becoming a highly organized component of entertainment. Professional Esports teams are now widespread with competitions offering astonishing cash prizes.
Since we have concerns about physical sports currently, even international sports bodies have begun recognizing Esports. What makes Esports a step ahead of other segments is the participation of active gamers. People are now turning to virtual arenas to experience augmented reality sports, both as gamers and as spectators.
According to reports, the AR gaming sector reached $4.7 billion dollars in 2020, and expected to continue growing over the next few years. The need for AR games arose from the fact that people stay at home and experience one reality in a loop.
The popularity of AR also reflects on how there is a complete technical infrastructure around the Esports fields. Apart from tournaments and augmented reality arenas, there are also streaming platforms and online casinos that stream Esports and allow people to bet on the outcomes.
The streaming industry grew 91.8% in the past year and included billions of streamers worldwide according to sources. Today, people of all age groups engage with streaming platforms to watch and participate in the game streams. The live watching industry creates a digital audience who are the modern spectators of today.
For the online gaming industry, the growth is correspond with the growth of Esports. As people start recognizing the potential of Esports as a gaming segment, they will also incline towards the online wagering scenario.
Although people think that betting, especially online gaming is illegal, it is legal within a framework and more states in the US and countries worldwide are opening their doors to regulated online betting as operators look to take advantage of emerging markets.
Whether this trend or not continues as people begin to feel more comfortable leaving their homes and the world starts to look beyond the pandemic, it will be interesting to see if land-based sportsbooks start properly focusing on the potential of Esports.
Editing by Rachel Hu
