The online gambling sector involves playing casino games and placing bets on sports-based activities over the internet. When compared to traditional gambling, online betting doesn’t involve the physical interaction of gamblers, and all sessions are moderated by computer programs. Gamers can play various types of games virtually, including sports betting, poker, blackjack, highest RTP slots, progressive jackpots, roulette, and live dealers, to mention just a few of them.
To play these games online, players need to download gambling software and install it on their computers or mobile devices. Alternatively, they can play instantly through web-browsers. Online gambling provides various benefits like real-time gambling experience, customizable budget, accessibility through any device, and cashless transactions.
The Global Online Gambling Market Size
The global online gambling market size has been increasing steadily over the past few years. It reached a value of approximately $77,000 million in 2021. Since 2015, it has managed to increase its compound annual growth rate up to 13.7%. The online gambling industry is expected to grow from $77,000 million in 2021 to $128,451 million in 2025 at a compound annual growth rate of 10.7%. It is then expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate of 8.6% from 2025 and reach $190 260 million in 2030.
The growth results from strong emerging trends, a rise in disposable income, the increasing popularity of digital methods of payment, the growing adoption of mobile devices, and improved internet accessibility. Going forward, increasing player involvement during COVID-19, increasing gamer acceptance for fintech, legalization of online gambling, changing consumer betting habits, and technically advanced platforms will continue to drive the growth.
On the other hand, factors that could hold back the growth of the virtual gambling market in the coming years include security challenges, demographic changes, restrictions to control gambling addiction, and global recession.
Market Growth Drivers
There are some key drivers of the online gambling market, which include the following:
Growth in the Internet Organization and Accessibility
The online gambling industry is massively motivated by the increasing growth in internet organizations. Currently, players can play at any time and from anywhere without limitations as long as their devices are connected to stable internet. This accessibility is not achievable when it comes to physical gambling venues.
On top of that, the speed of the internet has become more effective and faster these days. The establishment of 4G and 5G networks has made the online gambling sector to grow massively in popularity. These networks are perfect as they connect everything and everyone virtually, including objects, devices, and people. Also, these networks allow users to securely transfer huge packets of data, resulting in a state-of-the-art gaming environment.
Increasing Player Involvement During COVID-19
Worldwide, there has been an increase in the number of virtual gambling sites during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. As a result of social distancing restrictions, all brick-and-mortar gambling venues remained closed. And since players wanted something to keep them busy and continue placing bets, online platforms were the only options available.
People were forced to remain indoors during the lockdown, increasing internet traffic on all fronts. Many individuals frequently visited gambling sites and millions of new gamblers opened accounts each day.
Some countries across the world, including Armenia and Belarus, saw it as a perfect opportunity to modify their gambling laws so that they can accommodate online gamblers. On the other side, an increasing number of gambling sites enhanced their promotional and marketing activities in the form of extra bonuses and tournaments to attract more punters.
Blockchain and Digital Currencies
If you have not heard of blockchain and cryptocurrency technologies, then you’re living in another world. The internet is currently full of information breaches, and people want to be sure that their sensitive data is safe. Almost all cryptocurrencies utilize blockchain technology that makes transactions faster, safer and lower-cost without any third-party interference.
Currently, many online gambling sites are offering different digital currencies as payment options due to the many benefits that they offer. The popularity of blockchain and digital currencies has also massively influenced the growth of online gambling. Of course, what cryptocurrencies and blockchain have done is that they have managed to push even the most apprehensive gamers to get immersed in virtual casinos and sportsbooks.
Availability of Sportsbook and Casino Bonuses
Many players get attracted to online gambling platforms since they offer lucrative bonuses and promotions. These incentives are usually available from the moment players create a new account Sportsbook and casino bonuses have not only different values but also terms and conditions.
The most common bonuses and promotions that gambling sites offer are welcome packages, VIP rewards, reload bonuses and free games/free spins. What these bonuses and promotions do is that they attract gamblers to sites that offer them. As a result, this has led to increased figures of gamblers and existing players referring their friends, leading to incredible popularity and the growth of virtual sportsbooks and casinos.
Online Gambling Market Trends
Artificial Intelligence is one of the major trends influencing the growth of the online gambling market. Companies in the online gambling business are increasingly investing in AI to enhance the overall betting experience for their customers. Thanks to Artificial Intelligence, personalization for every user is possible since this technology can help analyze the preference of different users in terms of game selections and provide a customized landing page accordingly.
This allows players to save time spent in terms of finding the right games. Also, AI helps in providing state-of-the-art customer support through the use of chat-bots for resolving questions. Through Artificial Intelligence, behaviour patterns, and betting frauds can be checked, helping in preventing frauds while at the same time locking out scammers.
Online Gambling Market Segmentation
Game type and device are two major online gambling market segmentations. In terms of game types, the market is segmented into casino games, sports betting, poker, online bingo, lottery, and live dealers, among others. When it comes to segmentation by device, the market includes desktop and mobile.
