Online gambling is an enormous, multi-billion-dollar global industry, and these days it is transforming into a major growth avenue for crypto as it marches along the road to mass adoption.
Data shows that the online sports betting industry was worth over $231 billion in 2021 alone, and it’s believed that crypto gambling platforms such as Duelbits.com, Stake.com, and Sportsbet.io have managed to grab a significant slice of that market in the last few years.
This theory is supported by a range of data. Although comprehensive numbers on the size of the crypto gambling market are difficult to obtain, the AuralCrave blog reports that there were almost 3 billion crypto bets placed globally in 2021. Moreover, almost 36% of all bets placed at online casinos in the first quarter of 2022 were made with crypto. Other data shows that 50% of all Bitcoin transactions are related to online gambling.
How Crypto Gives Punters An Edge?
There are good reasons why crypto gambling is becoming more popular. As cryptocurrencies become more mainstream, bettors are aware of the unique advantages they provide. The first advantage is the transparency of blockchain, which is decentralized, transparent and traceable. These factors mean that crypto gambling platforms are more open and fair, as everyone can view the blockchain and ensure that they’re conducting transactions in a responsible way.
A second major advantage of cryptocurrency is its anonymity. To sign up to most crypto betting platforms, users simply create a user name and fund their account with their crypto wallet. Very few crypto casinos insist upon their players undergoing Know Your Customer checks, so it’s much easier to get started. Players can also create multiple accounts anonymously. This can be beneficial to profitable bettors, as it means they can’t be limited by a crypto platform so easily – something that is a big problem for winning players on traditional gambling sites. Using multiple accounts also makes it difficult for anyone to identify just how much an individual is betting.
Raising The Profile Of Crypto Casinos
Crypto gambling platforms initially had a limited audience when they first emerged at the end of the last decade, and were mainly used by fans of cryptocurrencies only. However, as awareness of crypto has grown, many of these platforms have begun targeting traditional gamblers, who may or may not be crypto users.
One of the primary ways they’re doing this is by forging partnerships with established sports teams and personalities, in areas such as football, cricket, rugby, boxing, and mixed martial arts.
Few platforms have been as active in this sphere as Duelbits, which has notably partnered with English Premier League outfit Aston Villa FC and the Argentina national football team, which famously won the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
These partnerships have brought a lot of exposure to Duelbits, with Argentina’s national team having 13 million Instagram followers, and Aston Villa boasting another 3 million. However, it’s not only football fans that Duelbits is targeting. It’s also making its presence felt in MMA and boxing, where it recently teamed up with Dillon Danis ahead of his titanic tussle with YouTuber Logan Paul. Danis invited his followers to sign up via a special link and receive a free $100 bet to place on the outcome of the fight, demonstrating the ways in which sports personalities can help crypto betting platforms to entice more users.
Duelbits’ outreach through sports personalities and teams is being matched by its rivals in the crypto casino industry. One of the best-known platforms, Sportsbet.io, has become the official sponsor of prestigious clubs including Sao Paulo of Brazil and Newcastle United and Southampton FC in England. In addition, Sportsbet.io has enlisted the help of the Australian cricketer Brett Lee, plus former footballers such as Brazil’s Denilson and Nigerian star Nwanko Kanu, who all serve as brand ambassadors.
Not to be outdone, Stake.com has likely spent millions to secure sponsorships with some of the world’s biggest sports teams and stars. It has become one of the chief sponsors of Everton FC, and it has created numerous promotions aimed at the team’s fans, such as its guaranteed payout in the event the team scores twice in any of its matches.
Stake.com’s logo is also emblazoned on the shirt of English Championship club Watford FC, while the retired former Argentina international and Manchester City star Sergio Aguero is another partner. In other sports, Stake.com was named as the official betting partner of the UFC championship in Latin America, a shirt sponsor for Brazil’s international rugby team, and most recently, it has become a sponsor of the Alfa Romeo Formula One racing team and the European Cricket Network.
Gambling Pushes Crypto Into The Mainstream
Sport is an enormous cultural phenomenon, while gambling has appealed to millions of people since the dawn of money itself, so it’s no wonder that crypto is leveraging these industries on its path to wider adoption. Crypto offers significant advantages to betting thanks to its utility, and a growing number of bettors see it as a more preferable medium of exchange than traditional fiat.
This is the reality that platforms like Duelbits, Sportsbet.io, and Stake have embraced, using the promise of crypto to transform the betting industry and bring more users into the world of Web3 for the first time. By partnering with some of the biggest names in sport, crypto betting platforms are accelerating the adoption of decentralized money.
