The act of wagering has always been a part of sports. Sports fans have had access to betting in early forms of sports, so it’s not surprising to see fans engaging in online betting. It has become more accessible and easier to do, even for new fans.
However, does fan betting affect sports leagues positively? Let’s take a deeper dive into how betting affects sports leagues.
The Connection Between Betting and the Sports Industry
Sports betting has been highlighted for the past few months, especially after the NBA betting abuse scandal. So, has betting been good to the sports industry? Or has it been harming it instead?
A study was released in 2020 by Altman Solon, a consulting firm. The study included opinions from 14,000 sports fans regarding their relationship with sports and sports betting. 88% of US sports bettors are said to regularly tune in to a sports match. On the other hand, only 41% of non-bettors are watching regularly.
Among all the betting options, in-game bets and parlays made bettors more excited as they watch a game. They stated that those bets in particular make them pay more attention to the game.
Variety Intelligence had also done a study in 2022 to see the correlation between higher engagement rates on sports matches and betting. From that study, 52% of millennials said that they’ll keep watching a blowout game if they’ve placed a bet. On the contrary, only 32% would keep watching if they hadn’t placed a bet.
The two studies show that sports betting has made more fans watch the games. The question was, do these bettors solely tune in because they’re trying to make money, or do they genuinely enjoy the game?
Each bettor or non-bettor would have their own reason for watching a sports match. However, Variety Intelligence’s study also showed that a big part of sports watchers became a fan because of sports betting, and not the other way around.
Does the Industry Benefit From Sports Betting?
Legal Sports Report has shown that big sportsbooks can generate up to 40 billion dollars from states that have legalized betting. The states made 1.8 billion dollars in 2023 from sports betting taxes, and the fund went to counseling resources for gambling addictions, infrastructure, and education.
In 2018, AGA (the American Gaming Association) had also projected the earnings received by the four major sports leagues from legal sports wagering. The report stated that the four will collectively earn $4.2 billion, which proves that there’s a benefit to them working with the gaming industry.
MLB was expected to receive $1.1 billion, the NFL would get $2.3 billion, the NBA’s League annual revenue was projected to increase by $585 million, and the NHL would gain $216 million from legal gambling revenue.
The Darker Side
Although gambling revenues have positively benefited multiple parties in the industry, it’s not without downsides.
Player Harassment
Online sports betting and social media platforms may be some of the best innovations that give accessibility and increase fan engagement. However, they’re also double-edged swords that have harmed many athletes.
Since sports betting was legalized, 78% of 133 MLB players (according to The Athletic’s anonymous survey) had received negative messages from sports bettors. Bettors who lost their bets, especially the significant ones, have sent death threats or negative messages to the athlete they’re betting on. These threats have even reached their family and friends.
Multiple NBA stars have also come forward after receiving threatening messages from emotional bettors. These bettors seemed to express their disappointment directly to the athlete, as social media platforms make it easy for them to send messages.
Gambling Addiction
Gambling addiction program resources in the US weren’t ready to face the betting boom. In 2020 alone, 5.7 million Americans were suffering from a gambling disorder (according to the National Association of Administrators for Disordered Gambling Services).
Even before betting became mainstream, the US hadn’t been looking into gambling disorders deeply enough. There’s still some stigma remaining on people suffering from gambling disorders. They’re seen as weak-willed or foolish, which makes it hard for the state to be prepared. Even today, there are no federal funds dedicated to gambling problem research or treatment.
In-Game Betting
For many bettors, the existence of in-game betting contributes positively to their experience. Unfortunately, it can also be a feature that negatively affects a bettor.
In-game betting may accelerate gambling disorders as it reduces the delay between risk and reward. Therefore, it’s increasing the frequency and speed of bets.
A young man with a gambling disorder had spoken up that he developed an addiction mainly due to live betting. He had been betting on sports for several years, but apps made him increase his betting volume. As live betting allows bettors to place multiple wagers throughout the match, he’ll immediately put another bet if he loses his previous one.
Some see sports betting as less about luck and more about skill. The same man also said that he thought he knew where the game was going because of his knowledge. However, in total, he lost $100,000 on betting, which includes his student loans.
