Esports has come a long way from Space Invaders tournaments in the 80s to ESPN's recent foray into the market. In only a few decades, the industry has grown into a multi-billion pound market. As far back as the 70s, competitive esports captured the imagination of players. From tennis to space wars, the earlier games attracted significant interest from tournament entrants. In 1981, the first world record gaming body, Twin Galaxies, was formed to track players' scores in popular video games.
By the 90s, console games were the rage among enthusiasts who were immersed in fighting and first-person shooter video entertainment. Evolving technology revolutionized gameplay, opening up remote group play via local area networks (LAN).
In 1997, organizers launched a professional cyberathletic league, and esports players enjoyed increasing popularity, with some making significant amounts of money from gameplay and promotions. Johnathan "Fatal1ty" Wendel is one pioneer who reportedly pulled in more than half a million during his gaming career.
Early successes set the stage for UK esports betting popularity to skyrocket in the coming years. In 1999, Counter-Strike launched and went on to enjoy popularity across the globe. By 2000, Xbox gamers played against each other on Halo 2, the precursor to other popular first-person shooter video games, like Call of Duty.
Recent
With gamers playing remotely with friends and strangers online, the industry continues to grow. In fact, universities across the UK are integrating esports into the curriculum. Esports evolution into education has seen the launch of college-level courses, career training, and team competitions.
Recently, esports betting UK's massive growth has spilled over into traditional media, and prominent publications cover competitions and airing esports programming on major networks. The esports betting sites UK market has crossed over into mainstream life.
Throughout the last few years, the UK esports betting industry has grown massively and is continuing to flourish. With more coverage across major publications being aired on massive networks like ESPN, esports has made its impact and is crossing over into the mainstream. With an anticipated revenue of nearly $6 billion by 2027 from only $776 million a decade ago, the global growth indicates how influential the market is becoming for future generations.
Future
As the UK esports betting industry continues to attract fans, the future is looking promising. In fact, 2021's Legends World Championships attracted nearly as many viewers as the Superbowl. By 2023, experts anticipate the market shall enjoy a 15 percent yearly growth rate. In the UK, esports betting sites UK will spark exponential growth in the creative and digital industries, accounting for 8 percent of the global esports betting UK market.
For betting establishments, the extreme growth brings substantial revenue from fans who are eager to add even more excitement to gameplay and viewership. Global brands are bringing legitimacy to the market. For instance, Levi, Marvel Entertainment, and Red Bull invest millions in sponsoring teams and tournaments.
With a nearly 460 million global and an anticipated increase to almost 650 million by 2023, popular esports gamers are attracting fan bases eager to wager money on frequent individual and team winners.
Bettors have an array of wagering options. From simple match betting to more complex wagers, gamblers may choose to combine many bets or wager on an accumulator coupon, a riskier proposition. More specific betting options allow players to wager on which team player registers the highest number of kills or wins the map in Counter Strike-Global Offensive. Observing live matches helps bettors to choose wagers for in-play betting.
As the betting market remains in step with esports' wide popularity, regulators are working to ensure safety for millions of Brits who wager on esports gaming.
