Esports is third most popular betting category in Brazil, new study shows
Sharpr is a weekly newsletter covering the intersection of esports and betting
Hi everyone, Cody here.
I hope everyone enjoyed the Super Bowl (and didn’t bet on the Bengals) this weekend.
So far, nine states have reported on wagers from this past weekend’s big game, and it’s already stacking up with last year’s $486.5 million in handle. One analyst believes this year’s total handle will eclipse $1 billion – more on this below.
What was your best (or worst) bet on the Super Bowl? Let me know in the comments or drop me an email to be featured in next week’s newsletter.
In this week’s edition of Sharpr…
Research shows esports is third most popular betting category in Brazil
Esports Technologies nets $7.1m in Q1 revenue
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Esports is third most popular betting category in Brazil, new study shows
Sportsbook platform provider BtoBet published its ‘Brazil Betting Focus’ industry report on Wednesday, highlighting the market’s dormant potential should its gambling regulations be enacted in 2022.
The report suggests 2022 could be the year Brazil – referenced as the “sleeping giant” – awakens, providing operators a chance to activate the largest consumer base in Latin America where sports fandom, esports included, is often compared to a religion.
In 2018, legislation was drafted that included sports fixed-odds betting, and expectations are that regulation will be enacted this year, in time for the FIFA World Cup.
The report cites a recently published study from Grupo Globo, which indicates that in 2020, the sports betting market in Brazil generated revenues amounting to approximately $1.36B.
In Brazil, esports is the third most popular sport to bet on with 29% of respondents saying they’ve wagered on competitive gaming, next to soccer (81%) and basketball (33%).
Referencing data from Newzoo, the report states that Brazil has the third highest number of esports fans globally, trailing only the U.S. and China in following.
The report reads that “whilst progress has been slow, there is a big expectancy that once regulated the local sports betting industry could develop itself into one of the most lucrative on a global stage. The esports environment, a proxy for gambling, reveals that Brazil already ranks as the third-largest customer base worldwide with more than 30 million players.”
Brazilian customers are currently limited to government-run lotteries, authorized horse race betting, and skill-based games (such as poker and fantasy) – that is if they want to wager domestically. Brazil’s online gambling laws are vague, but residents can access casinos and sports betting sites from offshore operators.
🦈 Sharpr Take: Latin America has become a key area of focus for operators over the last several years, particularly for those with dealings in the esports space. BtoBet’s report helps confirm what early movers have suspected of the region for a long time: Brazil is packed full of passionate bettors and the potential for esports wagering is significant.
Several operators have made an effort to take an early hold of this sector with esports team and influencer sponsorships. Betway for example holds partnerships with two of the most prominent Brazilian Counter-Strike organizations – MIBR and FURIA. This is in lieu of Rivalry’s strategy, which has seen the operator shift its ad spend in favor of individual Latin American gaming streamers and content creators.
Esports Technologies nets $7.1M in Q1 revenue
NASDAQ-listed esports wagering and tech company Esports Technologies has announced revenue for the quarter ending in December 31, 2021 of approximately $7.1M. The company noted in a press release that “substantially all” of its revenue was derived during the month of December, earning a gross profit of approximately $2.5M.
During the quarter, Esports Technologies increased its cash position to $11.8M, up $2.8M from the previous fiscal year end.
The company forecasted a revenue guidance of $70M by September 2022 and reaffirmed it was on track to meet that goal during an earnings call.
Upcoming focuses for the company include investing in new esports products and intellectual property, including the development of its odds-modeling technology and its patent-pending browser extension, allowing live wagering within any streaming environment.
Esports Technologies completed the acquisition of Aspire Global’s B2C business in November for $75.9M, which played a “transformational” role in the company’s December revenue, CFO Jim Purcell said on a recent earnings call.
The deal saw Aspire’s online casino and sportsbook brands – including Karamba, Hopa, Griffon Casino, BetTarget, Dansk777, and GenerationVIP – rolled into Esports Technologies portfolio of assets. More importantly, the company obtained access to a number of gaming licenses in tier-one regulated markets such as the United Kingdom, Germany, Ireland, Malta, and Denmark.
Esports Technologies Founder and CEO Aaron Speach cited research from Entain during the earnings call that gamers are 4.3x more likely to participate in betting, and up to 4.5x more likely to participate in iGaming. Speach added that a younger customer base is incredibly more valuable for any betting platform, noting that this age demographic offers “a far longer consumer lifespan” and are “far cheaper to acquire.”
The company plans to launch its regulated sports betting product ‘Esports Book’ in Q2. The platform will have a focus on esports throughout Europe and other regulated markets. Speach says the company has submitted five patent applications for its technologies in the U.S.
Esports Technologies (NASDAQ: EBET) stock has slid 11% since its earnings report on Feb.9 at the time of writing.
🗞 In the news
Better Collective – owners of Counter-Strike news site HLTV.org – has appointed former Vindex Head of PR Adam Rosenberg as its Head of Marketing and Communications.
Intema Solutions has received an Isle of Man online gaming license, fulfilling the last condition to approve its acquisition of Livestream Gaming, owners of LOOT.BET.
Catena Media’s Head of Esports says “esports is a disruptive force” in a recent interview with iGaming Business.
Esports odds feed provider Oddin has been tapped by Bitcasino and Sportsbet as its iFrame solution provider to help elevate the esports betting experience across its flagship brands.
📈 By the numbers
FanDuel commands 36% of online sports betting GGR in the U.S., the most of any brand, next to DraftKings (24%) and BetMGM (15%), per gambling research firm Eilers & Krejcik.
Gambling industry analyst Chris Grove tells the Wall Street Journal U.S. sportsbooks “will easily eclipse” $1 billion in total wagers on the Super Bowl.
The average age of a professional esports athlete is 24, whereas in the average age is 26.6 in the NFL, according to data from PandaScore’s senior sales manager.
Contact us
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Reach me directly at Cody.Luongo@wagers.com or on Twitter: @Luongo_Pro