Nearly 20% of U.S. Adults Bet On Sports This Past Year
Contents
With sports betting available in so much of the U.S., it may come as no surprise that a good amount of adults in the country have engaged in placing wagers on sports in one form or another. According to a new study from Pew Research Center, approximately a fifth of eligible citizens have placed a bet on sports within the past year.
Considering each calendar year sees some major events that draw viewers and bets alike, such as the Super Bowl, March Madness, and the World Series, it’s expected that a good amount of the population would place bets either casually or consistently. It will be especially interesting to check out these numbers in roughly a year due to a number of possible growth factors. Let’s break down the results of the recent study and what it could mean for the sports betting market.
New Study Reveals 19% of U.S. Adults Have Placed Sports Bets
Sports betting has become big business in recent years, and the word is getting out due to the increased amount of advertisements and the amount of states that have recently legalized sports betting. Well, the numbers appear to back it up, as new data from the Pew Research Center has revealed that 19% of U.S. residents of legal age have placed real money wagers on sports in the past year.
This research reflects both online sports betting through a mobile app and retail sports betting at a physical casino. While some states offer both mobile betting and in-person betting, such as New York and Colorado, others only offer one or the other, such as North Carolina’s retail-only betting laws. Wagering with family and friends is fairly popular with respondents, with 15% of those surveyed saying they’ve done so through more friendly bets, fantasy sports leagues, or betting pools.
% of U.S. adults who say they have bet money on sports in the following ways in the past 12 months:
▪️ With friends or family: 15%
▪️ In person at a casino, racetrack or betting kiosk: 8%
▪️ Online with a betting app: 6% https://t.co/qLV42CmcwF pic.twitter.com/nftJNHTj05— Pew Research Center (@pewresearch) September 14, 2022
A Look At The Public Awareness Of Legal Sports Betting
The study also revealed the amount of people that are aware of the legality of sports wagering. While 44% said that they have heard or read a bit about legal sports betting, 12% would say they have heard or read a lot. Interestingly, a total of 44% of people said they had no awareness of the sports betting legal landscape.
Obviously, the demographics with more awareness of legal sports wagering were likely to have placed a bet in the last twelve months, with 46% of those aware confirming they’ve placed bets. To put that in perspective, 9% of those with no awareness of sports wagering legality have placed a bet in that time.
For the week ending Sept. 11, New York reported $329.98 million in online sports bets, an increase of more than $86 million in online handle from the previous week.
The state also reported $32.56 million in gross gaming revenue.
— RLinnehanXL (@RLinnehanXl) September 15, 2022
What Will These Numbers Look Like In a Year?
Nearly 20% of adults placing bets is definitely significant, and you shouldn’t be surprised if that number increases the next time a similar study is conducted. The data on awareness will also be interesting to see, with some sports betting platforms changing their advertising strategies throughout the year.
Plus, the Maryland and Massasachusetts sports betting markets are expected to launch in 2023, which will also mark the one-year anniversary of the massive New York betting landscape.
