Esports gambling operators also benefit from its digital nature as it allows for instantaneous data collection from official rights-holders compared with traditional sports, where data may take several seconds longer for collection.
As esports appeals to younger audiences, this has catalyzed an exciting renaissance in casino gaming industry – though with that comes some concerns regarding its moral repercussions.
How esports betting works
There are various bets you can make on esports. The easiest of these is a match winner bet, which involves placing a wager on which team will win the game and can be made simply by clicking on its odds – adding it directly to your betting slip!
Alternately, you could make a bet on the exact score of the game; although this may be harder to predict accurately than usual. Another method for betting on esports involves placing bets on specific player performances based on kills, objective time or any other metrics available for that game.
Studies have also investigated the motivations for esports cash and skin betting. Greer et al. (2023b) discovered that esports gamblers were drawn in by financial, enhancement and competition/challenge factors; additionally they tended to be younger than sports gambling enthusiasts.
Benefits
Esports betting provides some unique advantages over traditional sports. For instance, matchups of esports tournaments are often streamed for free on various websites, making them more accessible to average punters than most top-level traditional sporting events.
Esports gambling operators also benefit from the digital nature of esports because gambling operators have instantaneous access to game data. This enables them to update in-play odds instantly; for instance, in CS: GO matches built-in algorithms take into account factors like player health, map difficulty and equipment value that would otherwise be difficult for bookmakers to track manually and report upon in the past.
Research conducted to date has demonstrated that esports gamblers tend to be younger than traditional gamblers and score higher on measures of problematic gambling behavior (Gainsbury & Greer 2021; Hing et al 2021-2022). Based on this evidence, governments and gambling regulators should prioritize developing and implementing strategies designed to prevent underage individuals from engaging in esports gambling activities.
Challenges
Esports betting is an emerging form of gambling and needs innovative strategies in order to ensure its growth responsibly. Measures must be put in place in order to prevent match-fixing or other potential problems such as setting limits for player losses, monitoring player activity and increasing awareness about responsible gambling.
Another difficulty inherent to esports betting is its two distinct currencies: cash and skins from video games. Of the two, skins tend to be easier for underage gamblers as they do not require identity verification or credit cards for use; however, cash requires identification verification or credit cards and may prevent access.
Popular teams can have an effect on betting patterns as well. Studies have demonstrated that when one team is heavily favored in a match, an inefficiency known as sentiment bias occurs where bettors place more bets on underdog teams than expected – making it harder to predict game outcomes and create profitable betting strategies. But research also shows ways of combatting sentiment bias such as placing bets on less popular teams with high win probabilities.
Conclusions
Esports and betting have joined forces in an exciting journey that is seeing rapid expansion. This union between two passionate communities presents businesses and fans alike with limitless opportunities. COVID-19 spurred its rapid spread, when traditional sporting events had to be cancelled and audiences sought out esports as a means to satisfy their gambling urges.
Regulators and ethical stakeholders are also actively exploring regulatory challenges and ethical considerations, with particular attention given to responsible gambling initiatives to combat match-fixing, underage betting and addiction. Furthermore, technological advances like virtual reality and blockchain will continue to enhance both players and viewers gaming experience.
With an increasing and diverse audience, esports betting is poised to take the next step and become an integral part of gaming ecosystem. While its future looks bright, its path ahead may prove more challenging. We can only wait and watch to see how the combination of esports and betting will shape gaming industry over the coming years.
