As per a 2023 report by Ukie, esports in the UK are closely aligned with traditional sports. Over the years, esports have become a part of popular culture. COVID-19 was a big opportunity for video games as everyone was shut inside their homes. Video game developers also amped up their efforts to make games more competitive by hosting tournaments and enticing players with huge prize pools.
With all that, the interest in esports betting has also grown by leaps and bounds. It is very natural if you think about it. A UK punter bets on their favourite football team simply because the sport is extremely popular. The growing popularity and seriousness of esports, then, naturally brings about the case of an increase in the popularity of esports betting on major betting platforms as well.
What is Esports Betting
An esports bet is a wager on competitive video game tournaments where teams or individual players compete in popular games such as Counter-Strike, League of Legends, Dota 2, and FIFA.
From niche competitions only followed closely by avid fans to mainstream global events—the growth of the esports industry has been a major driving force behind the normalisation of esports betting on major bookies. These tournaments can draw in millions of viewers and generate billions in revenue.
The UK is one of the fastest-growing markets for esports with many betting operators integrating esports markets into their platforms. The betting format is very standard to traditional sports betting. You have match betting (which team will win), handicap betting, outright betting, prop pets, and more.
Growth of Esports in the UK
Esports betting is, on the surface, indistinguishable from traditional sports betting. You have teams, prize pools, sponsors, and all types of betting markets. You need to pay attention to a team’s form and have a record of their past performance, for example.
The popularity of esports betting is built on top of the popularity of esports themselves.
Over the years, the UK has become a key hub for esports competitions, with major events like the ESL UK Premiership and the British Esports Championships. The British Esports Federation was established in 2016 to manage, promote, and cater to the needs of esports talent.
A driving force for all this has been the growing esports community with increasing visibility in universities and grassroots gaming clubs. The main reason behind the growth of casino esports, however, has been the popularity of betting. A country’s next generation often brings about structural changes and the focus on esports betting by the younger demographics is an excellent example of that. Competitive gaming for today’s young adults is as serious as football for the previous generation.
Of course, as bookies and gambling operators started seeing esports getting mainstream recognition, they started offering betting markets for these. Before them, esports betting was a niche and shady practice, often highly unregulated and insecure.
Just like sports betting, esports betting is also regulated by the UKGC in the UK. There are strict measures for protecting players and enforcing responsible gambling, for example, making casino esports betting a trusted, fair, and safe way to bet on your favourite teams and players. Today, the majority of the best bookies we have covered at Gambling Zone have scores of esports betting markets.
Online Games
Popular Esports for Betting in the UK
What are British esports enthusiasts betting on? As it turns out, things are not very different from the rest of the world. The world’s most popular competitive video games or esports are the ones UK bettors also focus on.
Counter-Strike
Popularly called CS, it is a tactical first-person shooter that has been popular among gamers for years. There are still tournaments for its older versions, but the latest title by the developer (Valve) is Counter-Strike 2. The ESL Pro League and DreamHack attract significant betting interest in the UK.
League of Legends
It is one of the largest esports with millions of fans globally. UK bettors can wager on the LEC, World Championship, and a slew of regional championships in this MOBA-style game where one team faces another. A major hit in casino esports markets, LoL has consistently proven to be one of the biggest world events when it comes to video games and its top players are nothing less than internet celebrities and inspirational heroes.
Dota 2
This is Valve’s take on the MOBA genre. Until a few years ago, the official tournament called The International carried the biggest prize pool out of all esports. That practice was shut down by Valve because they wanted to focus on the players and not the money. In 2021, this tournament had a prize pool of a whopping £30,674, 200+. To put things in perspective, in the same year, the Wimbledon prize money was £35,016,000. Apart from The International, players can also bet on a host of regional tournaments.
Final Thoughts
Casino esports betting is growing in the UK at a remarkable speed. Millennials and Gen Z are more engaged with digital platforms and video games. Live-streaming platforms like Twitch and YouTube have made viewing more accessible and free of cost. Also, esports by design offer a lot of scope for different betting markets, making it worthwhile to integrate them into existing sportsbooks.
The best uk casino sites today have dozens of esports ranging from CS, Dota 2, LoL, and FIFA to StarCraft, World of Warcraft, Valorant, Fortnite, and more.
