Decorative Indian flag design Independence day background vector Recent statistics show a rise in online gambling and sports betting worldwide; it’s a fast-growing industry worth millions of dollars, generating profits for both gamblers and betting companies. India is a country where cricket and football are most famous, with the former being a “religion” in the country. Its population of close to 1.4 billion people gives for a good online and sports betting market. The popularity of players on and off the field and their association with select betting companies also muscle the growth of gambling and sports betting in India.
In some cases, online gambling is considered illegal, and in others, the different Indian states are permitted to formulate and pass laws regulating and allowing sports betting. Widespread admiration of sports like Cricket and Football (Soccer) and the extravagant measures put in place to market and promote continuous sports betting help the different betting companies to capitalize hugely on the massive traffic sent their way due to the former investment. These and many other factors have helped in the growth and rise of sports betting as one of the fastest growing sectors in India.
What are some of these factors that facilitated the rise of online sports betting and gambling to be on a quick rise in India?
Increase Of Access to Mobile Phones
The emergence of the digital age has made it almost impossible to find people without access to a smartphone, either as owners or second parties. Statistics in India show that smartphone usage among people living in India crossed 740 million people in 2020. It is also estimated that nearly a third of an average Indian’s day is spent on their phone especially after the lockdown period. Users can also place their bets on mobile apps created by the different netting firms. They are well-created with accessible user interfaces to make them easy to use.
The popularity of Football and Cricket
Cricket is India’s most played, watched and followed sport. It is like a religion amassing a massive following across the different Indian states. Football comes second, with huge followings for European clubs like Barcelona, Real Madrid, Manchester United, Liverpool, Bayern Munich and Chelsea, keeping fans up to watch the games late at night or early mornings because of the difference in time zones. The two games have been a positive catalyst in increasing the scope and range of matches and odds offered for placing bets. Famous sports personalities who have amassed a massive following in India are also used for advertising these games and betting companies.
Promotion and Marketing
Betting firms make millions of dollars in profit and revenue daily; this money is hugely invested back into the marketing and promotion of these services. Nowadays, advertisements related to betting fill up the many different sports channels, thus increasing traffic to the websites. A strategy employed that also works quite well is continuous promotions of these websites or apps during critical games to attract a huge number of bettors.
Various betting sites also show live games available for betting on their websites and give free betting tips for the different games available.
Sports Betting Is More Likely to Become Legalized
Online betting on sports is not totally illegal in India, but it exists in a sort of grey area. There are no specific laws that prohibit Indians from using online betting sites that are based in countries where online sports betting is legal. India views betting on sports as unlawful; therefore, the betting sites have to be located in countries where online sports betting and gambling are legal. India views betting on sports as unlawful making it impossible for the betting companies and firms to be located in India. For it to be legal for them to operate, they have to be located or based outside of Indian territory.
However, judging from the growing number of citizens currently betting in India, it’s safe to say India might be on the steps to making it legal soon.
Developing Internet infrastructure
The Internet infrastructure in India has mainly advanced over the years to a point where many users prefer to manage their businesses online. This includes online sports betting. Due to the growth of this trend, gambling businesses believe the country has got an extensive betting market. A vast number of players are turning to internet betting because it has the capacity to be rewarding. It is also simpler to look for bets online as it takes less than a minute to go from one betting site to the other. Many gamblers also prefer diversification since they can easily place a variety of bets on a single match and place multi bets with many teams and different sports increasing their odds and potential winnings in the process.
