U.S. sports fans likely to gamble if betting is legalized in 2021, by sport

In 2021, sports fans in the United States expressed an interest in sports betting if gambling were legalized. The interest in sports betting varied by professional sports fan base. Fans of Major League Soccer (MLS) expressed the most interest in sports betting with 53 percent of respondents stating that they were very interested in the practice. In contrast, only 37 percent of fans who follow the National Football League (NFL) stated that they were very interested in sports betting.

What is the total sports betting revenue in the U.S.?

After the Supreme Court's decision to strike down the federal ban on sports betting in the United States in May 2018, various states have legalized, or introduced legislation to legalize, the sports betting industry. The total sports betting revenue in the U.S. amounted to 1.55 billion U.S. dollars in 2020. More states are in the process of legalizing sports betting, and the industry is growing as a result. By 2025, the forecast revenue for sports betting in the U.S. is expected to reach eight billion U.S. dollars.

How big is the global sports betting and lottery market?

The global market size of the sports betting and lottery sector was valued at 218.49 billion U.S. dollars in 2019. After a sharp decline in 2015, the market grew over the following four years. However, massive reductions in global operations and decreasing demand in the sports betting and lottery sector was forecast to negatively impact the industry's market value by as much as seven percent in 2020.