Esports is an exponentially growing market, highly popular among a younger demographic who grew up around videogames and whose primary forms of entertainment include consuming videogame-related content, know best sites and tips for betting on them
This last decade there has been an ever-increasing trend of video game-based spectacle and entertainment through competitive gaming, solidified by the COVID-19 quarantine lockdown. Tournaments broadcasted on streaming platforms, like Twitch and a gambling market, focusing more on making use of the conveniences of online services, are a match made in heaven.
They can be mutually beneficial and add a new element of enjoyment to esports. As online casinos are expanding worldwide for an increasingly digitalised market, feel free to try your luck at these new Australian online casinos.
Esports Betting, Tips, Sites And Casinos And The Growing Link Between Them
Plenty of forward-thinking casinos worldwide are taking notice of the potential benefits of the esports market. They have started branching out to include esports betting in their online gambling services catalogue to produce a solid stream of entertainment and benefit. But for those out there who might remain unfamiliar with the meaning of esports and how it relates to gambling, let’s get you up to speed by summarising the nature of esports and how they relate to current casino culture.
What does esports mean?
Esports is the shortened form used for electronic games. Even though the term may include online casino games, it is mainly used to refer to the use of video games in a competitive manner. They serve as a spectacle for an engaged audience interested in the match’s ultimate outcome. These videogames may range from multiplayer online battle arenas (MOBAs), first-person shooters, battle royals and even sports games.
The first country to realise the true potential of esports was South Korea. Their government at the time created the Korean Esport Association, the first governmental body in the world that regulated video games as a national sport. Games from the 2000s such as Starcraft I and II, League of Legends, Counter-Strike, Hearthstone and DOTA 2 became worldwide sensations that attracted millions of players.
A dedicated percentage were willing to master the games’ mechanics and stream their progress on platforms like Twitch for revenue, views, and sponsorships. Just like with any real-life sport, esport players require constant training to hone and develop skills needed to succeed in any game.
Seeing the popularity of professional gaming, tournaments with prizes up to millions of dollars organised by private gaming publishers such as Riot Games, Blizzard Activision, or Valve became recognisable events. They drew in millions of spectators, with professional players and teams becoming household names in the esports scene.
How are casinos and esports interconnected and the best tips for betting
When people reflect upon how betting and esports are connected, they might reflect on how classical casino games have followed esports. Poker games underwent a very similar pattern to the one esports is currently experiencing. Esports is now regarded as a potential source of revenue for mainstream casinos from young adults willing to spend money on esports-related gambling activities.
The results of such an investment in esports gambling were seen during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. In the UK, the gross gambling yield from esports increased from 250,233 pounds in 2019 to 4,616,610 pounds in May 2020.
The first efforts to incorporate competitive esports into legalised gambling started in 2017 in Las Vegas. The first esports arena, the Hyper X Esports Arena, opened at the Luxor Hotel & Casino. Blockchain-based bookmaker Unikrn partnered with MGM Resorts International to provide esports tournaments to the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino that same year.
GameCo’s collaboration with data and analytics firm GRID in 2020 is another prime example of esports and legalised gambling symbiotic relations. GRID’s esports data and streaming services were integrated into GameCo’s Video Game Gambling Machines for a more responsive experience.
Certain casinos and gambling organisms have also successfully collaborated with esports organisations through sponsorships. One of the very first examples of this was when North American esports organisation Complexity Gaming was officially sponsored by WinStar World Casino and Resort in 2018.
When it comes to placing wagers with esports betting sites, the process is not unlike regular online sports gambling systems. It is necessary to register, move to the required export betting section and select your preferred betting option. Some of the most commonly found options available in esports betting are the following:
- Match Winner: Bettors bet on the ultimate winner of a single match.
- Tournament Winner: Players bet on the winner of a particular team or player in a tournament.
- First Map: Players decide which player or team will win the first played map or round. These types of bets are quite popular for first-person shooters.
- First Kill: Certain esports bookmakers will allow players to bet on which team or player will get the first kill of the game.
- Odd or even bets: Bet on whether a specific stat or gaming feature-kills, rounds, games or won maps will end in an even or odd number.
- Under or over: Bookmaker provides odds on whether certain results will conclude over or under a set number.
Esports is a growing and evolving market in the world of gambling, and we are excited to see its evolution in the coming future.