The popularity of esports has increased in just the last few years, with annual revenue topping the $1 billion mark. It is now beginning to compete with popular games like baseball and soccer.
Even bettors looking to bet on basketball after checking the March Madness Bracket can benefit by wagering on eSports. Just as with any other popular sport, the competition involved in esports has opened up many new opportunities to bet on the activity.
Most online sportsbooks offer wagering on popular games competitions such as League of Legends, Fortnite, and Dota2. Although the market doesn’t support as many games as other more traditional sports, the industry is constantly growing.
The games in the Esports sector are based on the popularity of the tournaments and the payouts. Last year, Dota 2 paid up the highest prize of more than $42 million, with Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS: GO) at more than $20 million.
Bigger Betting Markets
Whether looking to wager on a live event or pre-game, there are other markets available such as picking the winner of the match, player props, and game props. It’s also expected that more markets will emerge in the future. There are currently so many genres of games that there are always great tournaments to wager on.
Odds when betting on Esports are generally better than prices available for more popular sports. Additionally, the use of cryptocurrency has impacted the digitization of the activity to include crypto gaming, which has many advantages as opposed to regular online gaming.
Esports Games and Tournaments
MOBA games: There are several types of games to wager for esports betting fans. One of the most popular is betting on Multiplayer Online Battle Arena (MOBA) games such as League of Legends and Dota 2. Watching online streams of the tournaments, such as the League of Legends World Championship, will show why these games are perfect for wagering.
There is an extensive selection of battle arena games available to bet on. Although the gameplay itself could take some time to get used to, many people have made decent earnings by wagering on these games, such as Warcraft and Smite.
FPS games: First-person shooters like CS: GO or Call of Duty are a couple of the great FPS games to wager have found a lot of success in the esports sector. Tournaments such as the Intel Extreme Masters will demonstrate how fun it is to bet on this gaming genre.
Sports simulation games: Many people like to bet on esports in some of the top sports simulator games. If you’ve ever bet on traditional sports, then these games should be easy to wager. These games have gained popularity since the FIFA eWorld Cup tournament made its first appearance, with many online sportsbooks looking to make this event as popular as the real thing. Other popular titles available are the NBA 2K series and Rocket League football.
There seem to be more games that become popular in esports every year, so there is always something new to bet on. In addition, there are titles available that appeal to anyone, which means players should never have a shortage of options to place a winning wager.
Where to Bet on Esports
A growing number of online sportsbooks have included esports betting in their selection of markets to wager. Some betting sites will only feature the biggest competitions, while others that are more dedicated to esports offer an ongoing range of pre-match and live betting odds. Bettors should have no problem finding a site that caters to their favorite esports game with a bit of research.
Nearly all popular and trustworthy sportsbooks online now provide esports betting odds as part of their offering. Once a site has been found, bettors only need to scroll through the esports odds and find a match that is most likely to offer a decent payout. Most importantly, don’t forget to gamble responsibly.
