The gambling industry rapidly evolves each year. New sports betting trends emerge frequently. Also, governments have passed various regulations to control gambling activities in different parts of the world. The Coronavirus pandemic has disrupted many sporting events. But, sportsbooks are still offering a wide variety of betting markets. In this article, we discuss four sports betting industry predictions for 2021.
1. Digitization
Betting companies have been converging retail and online of late. Some of them have started adopting digital gaming. Still, some investors believe that land-based casinos will always have an upper hand over online casinos. Many gambling stakeholders have changed their perception of modern gambling. Investors from all industries have learned valuable entrepreneurship lessons from the pandemic. Some betting shops and casinos have changed their policies.
Online betting has continued to gain popularity worldwide. Online games including bingo, casino, and poker don't follow a specific sporting calendar. A few months ago, there was a heated debate about introducing online betting laws in Macau. Some American states have consistently generated revenue from online gambling. Some people thought that online gambling would outdo land-based gambling. States like New Jersey have experienced a balance between the two forms of sports betting.
2. Mergers
Peter Nolan from Digitain argued in a recent Guest Interview that M&A will be more important next year. There has been a steady increase in regulatory demands and competition in the sports betting industry in recent years. This has forced some firms to merge to retain their market share. Some popular online bookmakers have increased their market power of late. So, it is likely that there will be more consolidations soon.
3. Sports Betting Procedures
The pandemic has adversely affected the sports calendar. Some international events like the 2020 Summer Olympics were postponed until next year. Even so, betting revenues have started increasing since major leagues such as La Liga and the English Premier League returned. Ebbe Groes, EveryMatrix's CEO, explained to the GI Huddle how affiliates, operators, and suppliers have been forced to adapt of late.
Most sports organizations have strict testing procedures that prevent players and sports officials from contracting the virus. So, bookies will grow at a high rate next year as governments continue curbing the spread of the virus. Jesper Svensson, Betsson Group CEO, and Henrik Tjarnstrom, Kindred Group CEO had high expectations for UEFA Euro 2020. Unfortunately, the event will be held from June 11 to July 11, 2021.
4. Retail
Jim Allen, Hard Rock International Chairman and Seminole Gaming CEO analyzed 2021 and a clear 2020 review on GI Huddle. This included sports betting shops and casinos that have been closed in Europe and the U.S. Jim said that casinos in Macau might take a while to resume normal operations.
Some gambling trends last for a short period while others have existed for more than a decade. Digitization, mergers, sports betting procedures and retail will be the leading gambling trends next year. They will offer pundits thrilling betting and gaming experiences. Some bookies have already started adopting new betting trends.