As US sports betting grows, so does the interest in the sporting events that present gambling opportunities. It’s not a secret that women’s sports are still far behind the men’s but will an expanded betting presence help create a bigger buzz around it? There are a lot of experts out there saying we are heading that way, which is great news.
Individual Sports Leading the Charge
Women’s sports may not get the same level of exposure as the men’s but it is still a big part of today’s entertainment options. Individual sports such as tennis, figure skating and gymnastics are the ones getting the most attention. Let’s not forget about the Team USA soccer team that’s always popular, especially during the World Cup which is taking place right now.
College Athlete SuperStars
A lot of the attention building comes from social media where female athletes have found a way to market themselves outside of their respective sports. As an example, with the new NIL (Name, Image, Likeness) rules in college sports, they are now able to make a ton of money on the side. There’s no better example at the moment than 20-year old Louisiana State University gymnast, Olivia Dunne.
More Than 11.5 Million Followers
Dunne isn’t necessarily a super star gymnast by any means, but she’s the college athlete with the absolute biggest social media following. How’s 4.1 million Instagram followers and 7.4 million followers on TikTok in terms of fans sound? It’s no wonder she’s getting more than $500,000 for a single post.
Being able to market themselves as individuals this way as well as driving attention to their sports has a huge influence in the overall increased interest.
Fastest Growing TV Audience
While the number of people watching television these days continues to get smaller, women’s sports actually has the fastest-growing sector of TV audiences. On top of that, the events themselves are breaking attendance records and getting more media coverage for each year that passes.
Let’s look at this year’s women’s NCAA March Madness tournament as an example. The classic basketball tournament had a lot more broadcast coverage than ever before, which lead to a record number of viewers and an overall increased interest.
As a matter of fact, 41% of sports fans say they watched more women’s sports this year because they’re being broadcast more. This shows that people actually want to watch but there has been a lack of access.
Gathering Interest From Both Men and Women
It’s a common belief that women are the ones watching women’s sports but the truth is that there’s not a lot in terms of a gender gap when it comes to fans. The audience however is more diverse and tends to be a bit younger than those who watch the men
Research is saying that as many as 39% of Gen Z sports fans are watching more women’s sports now than a year ago
Tech-Savvy Fans – The Perfect Sports Bettor
Because the sporting events haven’t historically been available during prime time or on the major channels, true fans have had to become quite tech-savvy in order to find live feeds or online fan communities. This is a huge plus for fans looking to get involved in sports betting.
These people are more likely to easily be able to navigate sportsbooks and find information much easier than those who never have had to learn. Who knows what they can do with better options.
Odds Are Odds, No Matter the Level of Competition
There are two important factors to consider with women’s sports and betting: bringing women’s sports fans into the betting fold, and bringing existing bettors into the world of women’s sports.
Many will continue to say that men’s sports are better and more exciting. Then there’s the debate about equal pay, which won’t happen any time soon. To be honest, all of this doesn’t really matter since betting is all about the odds and the opportunity to make money.
I’m willing to bet (excuse the pun) that if you’re smart, you can probably even find better betting opportunities in women’s sports that most people aren’t aware of.
Also, let’s not forget about the fact that having a bet or two going while watching ANY event makes it a lot more exciting, am I right?
Female Oriented Marketing
Clearly, the history of sports betting has shown us that most, if not all, of the marketing has been aimed towards men. Turning some of the focus towards the female demographics could go a long way way, especially considering it’s basically an untapped market.
Parts of our society have always frowned upon the act of betting on sports but as more and more states are changing their laws, this will also change. Will we see more women in the ads, female brand ambassadors really showing women how to bet on sports?
I think with the right marketing strategy, betting operators can appeal to a whole new market.
Slam Dunk Thursdays
In case you’ve missed it, every Thursday I will present the hottest sports betting opportunities of the week and where to find them.
Some of the hotspots that will give you the odds and bets you are looking for are Stake, JustBit, Vave, Cloudbet, JackBit and Sportsbet.io.
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