The Evolution of Esports Betting
Esports Betting is an industry that is reported to be worth over $2.5 Billion Dollars in 2024 and is projected to grow up to $3.2 Billion by 2028. However, the story of the esports betting industry is not simple. There is a history of shady unregulated bookmakers and even record-breaking sponsorship deals. The world of esports betting has seen it all.
Today, we have tournaments such as the Esports World Cup which has a $60 million prize pool, tens of thousands of fans watching in person, and millions watching online. In traditional sports, everyone would be placing a bet, but these are pro athletes too, so why isn’t that happening in esports?
While esports betting may seem like a new phenomenon, it has actually been around for years. In this piece, we’ll look at the history of esports betting, and explain some of the most common bets.
Early Esports Betting
Early esports betting was almost entirely unregulated — and so were many tournaments. Match fixing and other illicit activity were all too common. This meant that at the start, most esports betting was only available on CS:GO Skin websites, where gamers used the cosmetics marketplace within the popular shooter as a proxy for cash gambling. This brought up issues around legality and underage gambling.
In 2010, Pinnacle was the first bookmaker to offer esports markets, growing steadily over time before skyrocketing in popularity around 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. From here, more endemic esports bookmakers started to launch and other non-endemic operators got involved too.
Modern Esports Betting
Esports betting was forced to evolve around 2015 when Valve effectively banned skin betting, and real bookmakers started getting more involved. At the start, players could only bet on the winner of the match, but platforms would soon add additional ways to play including betting on individual maps, player performance, and more.
In 2024, esports betting is extremely similar to sports betting. Not only do they share the same bookmakers such as DraftKings, Bet365, and more, but they also share similar markets to bet on.
For example, if you’re looking to bet on a Major Counter-Stike 2 match, you have Moneyline options, Handicaps, Over/Under on Maps, Kills, Rounds, etc. You can bet on almost every facet of the game, even how many times the bomb will be defused.
How are Lines Created?
It’s a common question for new bettors coming into the industry — how are the odds actually decided? Usually, it’s done by an external company, and not the bookmaker themselves. Oddin.gg is one such esports odds service providers, and they use “a combination of proprietary statistical models, machine learning, and advanced data science, along with the human expertise of our traders, many of whom are former esports players themselves.” to create the odds that you can bet on. Oddin.gg also states that their lines can react in 1-2 seconds to the action happening in the game, making esports betting more engaging.
The platform also has differing levels of connection with the game publishers or tournament operators depending on the tournament. Vlastimil Venlik, CEO of Oddin.gg said, “The level of our connection differs, from direct cooperation that goes even beyond data partnerships. In some cases, there are companies between us and the game publishers. We are usually partnering with tournament or league organizers rather than with publishers. In addition, in order to maintain the integrity of esports competitions, our trading team cooperates with organizers to avoid and detect any fraudulent actions.”
Oddin.gg is also a part of the Esports Integrity Commission, which is effectively a must-have for any company involved in esports betting. This allows them to look to the future, and focus on building a “sustainable revenue stream while contributing to a fair and transparent esports environment.”
Common Esports Betting Sites
Many of the most popular betting platforms offer bets on the biggest esports, including:
- Bet365
- Betway
- DraftKings
- FanDuel
- PrizePicks
What Games are Most Popular?
Generally, the most popular esports will also be the most popular for betting. This includes Counter-Stike 2, League of Legends, Call of Duty, DOTA 2, and Valorant.
Cody Luongo, Head of Communications at Rivalry said: “We often refer to it as the big three, which is Counter-Strike, Dota 2, League of Legends; those three titles make up anywhere from 80 to 90 percent of the betting handle.
We’re also seeing Valorant grow really fast in that regard. So we had put out a report at the end of 2022 and Valorant had become the fourth most bet on esport, on our sportsbook last year.”
However, the rise of Prop Betting has made these even more popular.
While the popularity of games continues to grow and change over the years, different forms of betting on esports have risen up as well. For example, Prop Betting has become a massive section within the esports betting industry, and it differs from a traditional moneyline bet.
What is Prop Betting?
Prop Betting has been around for years and has taken over the esports market.
A Prop Bet is a speculative wager that is placed on a specific event happening during the match. A typical Prop Bet would look like this:
- Over/Under Scump to get 6.5 Kills in Map 2.
To win this bet, Scump would have to get seven kills. However, if he only managed to get six, you would lose.
Players can also participate in a variety of daily fantasy games on sites such as PrizePicks. Check out our article on the future of esports betting for more on daily fantasy.
What do Newcomers Need to Know?
Newcomers to esports betting should always look to bet on a regulated site. Unregulated esports betting websites are much more uncommon today, but it is always safer to gamble on a website that features a Know Your Customer (KYC) check.
A KYC check is a legal requirement for all regulated betting websites which will cross-reference the information you give with the information the government holds on you. For example, when you sign up and enter your address, this will be checked against your Bank Account billing address to ensure that you are the person you’re trying to sign up as.
This is an effective way to stop any opportunity for underage betting and thus reduces the opportunity for problem gambling in the future.
Eric Weiss, Former Regulator at Jersey Gaming Enforcement explained how “there's a lot of controls in the online space to help someone and to reach people that have a problem.”
Related Article: The Biggest Challenges Facing Esports Betting
For example, players can self-exclude, meaning they won't be able to sign up or log in to any betting site for a set period of time. Additionally, you can add a time-out which will suspend your account for a number of months, a deposit limit, loss limit, and much more.
So esports betting has a lot of advice and proactive protection against problem gambling, and this is something that every newcomer should know. There is help out there, and you should use the tools such as Deposit Limits, or Self Exclusion if needed.
Final Thoughts
Esports betting has grown rapidly since the early days of skin gambling. However, it still faces a number of unique challenges as an industry still in its infancy. In our second piece on esports betting we’ll be diving into the challenges that the industry faces, from legality to problem gambling and security issues.
Related Article: What is RMVG? Regulated Money Video Games Explained
Trent has covered esports since the birth of the LCS. He also led content strategy and served as Senior Writer for The Esports Observer and Sports Business Journal, and worked on the development team for Rushdown Revolt.