eSports
EURO 2020 boosted efootball commercial tournaments
The world of esports is expanding dramatically. More people join streaming platforms to both watch and show the world their esports battles. According to Newzoo, experts expect the global games’ live-streaming audience to reach 728.8 million this 2021, signifying a 10% growth compared to 2020.
And the betting industry couldn’t just ignore that snowballing trend. Sportsbooks have added esports betting to their offers, so fans of PC and console games won an opportunity to make money on the content they’re keen on. Moreover, esports betting has become a ‘plan B’ for traditional sports enthusiasts and bettors during COVID-19 lockdowns and postponed sports events.
The fact is, efootball is one of the most popular sports video games today. Betting operators have increased the number of esports events on their websites. For instance, the number of ESportsBattle efootball matches streamed by one of the leading betting operators has increased x3 from December 2020 to June 2021.
But does all of that mean that if sports events come back, esports betting will slow down?
Someone might think that yes, it will. However, it is not that obvious. The 2020 UEFA European Football Championship caused a boost in betting on efootball events.
According to Statista, during May 2021, 26% would rather be on a gambling website to check odds, bet, or cash out while watching EURO 2020. The number of people placing bets on ESportsBattle’s efootball events before the EURO 2020 matches was the highest in 2021.
ESportsBattle analysts had witnessed a boom in views and odds placing on efootball matches between 6 AM to 12 PM UTС. So right before watching UEFA’s EURO 2020, viewers were placing bets on ESportsBattle’s events. The key reason: efootball betting gives bettors a chance to feel more involved in the whole process, just like they participate in the real championship every day.
The main difference between football and efootball is that football has seasons. In contrast, efootball is quite the opposite, it is 24/7 tournaments, constantly updated match formats, favorite players, and gripping competitions featuring well-matched teams.
Of course, during EURO 2020, the interest in efootball has increased, which shows the correlation between major sporting events and esports tournaments. Traditional sports will always drive the esports industry.
The sports industry is one of the entertaining and recreational types of content that can still draw the attention of millions of viewers concurrently. And indeed, the esports industry appears to be entering an exciting period of its development. But still, traditional sports accumulate more views boosting esports as well .
However, it’s just a matter of time.
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BETBY, the premium sportsbook supplier, has expanded its proprietary esports feed, BETBY Games, with the launch of two new e-sims inspired by some of the most popular titles in global gaming: FIFA’s Penalty Shootout and Mortal Kombat 11. With these additions, the BETBY Games portfolio now includes 16 titles, offering expanded betting opportunities for operators and players.
The latest releases further reinforce BETBY’s two core esports verticals — eSoccer and eFighting — and reflect the company’s ongoing commitment to delivering diverse and engaging betting content. The football-themed title introduces fast-paced gameplay, with each match lasting less than 3 minutes, and includes three leagues based on the World Cup, Spanish La Liga, and Brazilian Série A. Featuring over 15 betting markets in a classic format of 5 shots for each team, this addition brings 30,000 matches per month to the BETBY Games feed, all designed to run with low margins and high engagement.
The second release draws from the iconic world of arcade-style fighting games, offering dynamic player-versus-player action in a Best-of-3 (BO3) format with each match also taking less than 3 minutes. Featuring more than 15 markets and three ongoing tournaments — Elements and Forces, Power and Royalty, and Technology and Chaos — this title equals the football counterpart delivering another 30,000 monthly matches to the platform.
With these new launches, BETBY Games now boasts 70+ tournaments, 350+ betting markets, and supports over 300,000 live matches every month, cementing its position as one of the most comprehensive and high-frequency esports betting solutions in the industry.
Kirill Nekrasov, Head of Sportsbook Product at BETBY, commented: “The launch of these new titles showcases our commitment to evolving the BETBY Games offering and delivering esports content that resonates with players worldwide. By drawing inspiration from globally recognized franchises, we create products that are both familiar and optimized for high-frequency betting environments. This approach enables operators to expand their portfolios and gives players even more excitement and engagement.”
This launch follows the recent success of BETBY Games, which was awarded Best Esports Product 2025 at the SiGMA Americas Awards. This achievement underscores BETBY’s strategic focus on redefining the esports betting experience through unmatched flexibility, deep customization, and exceptional engagement for both operators and players.
The post BETBY EXPANDS E-SIM GAME PORTFOLIO WITH NEW eSOCCER AND eFIGHTING TITLES appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Global esports organisation GIANTX has come away from Madrid with a landmark victory, outstanding performances, and the affection of thousands of fans, after the Spanish capital turned into the European hub for esports over the weekend. The LEC Roadtrip, hosted by Movistar KOI — the organisation led by Ibai Llanos — proved to be a resounding success in terms of attendance and organisation. GIANTX, with roots in London and Málaga, played a starring role. Only a narrow defeat against the hosts prevented a perfect weekend. Now, the focus shifts back to Berlin, where GIANTX will fight for a place in the playoffs of the League of Legends EMEA Championship (LEC), the continent’s premier esports league.
For the first time, the LEC temporarily moved its competition from Berlin to Madrid. The Spanish capital once again demonstrated the strength and passion of its esports community, particularly in League of Legends. Around 10,000 spectators filled the Madrid Arena over two days, witnessing four thrilling matches — all decided on the final map — alongside fan activities and community events. The success of the Roadtrip has reignited calls for more international esports events to be hosted in Spain.
GIANTX approached the weekend with two objectives: to improve their standings by securing key victories and to reaffirm their status as one of Europe’s most historic esports organisations, with more than 15 years of tradition and success. The support for GIANTX was immense, with fans travelling from across the country to gather in Madrid. While the team fell just short of a perfect weekend, they earned the respect and affection of the entire arena.
On the competitive front, GIANTX made a strong start by defeating G2 Esports, the historic powerhouse of European League of Legends. It was GIANTX’s first-ever victory over G2, following a tense three-map series that also played out heavily on social media. In the first game, Lot and Jackies led the charge with standout performances on Jax and Yone. Although GIANTX faltered in the second map after a promising early game, they pulled off an unforgettable comeback in the decisive third map, overcoming a formidable performance from G2’s superstar Caps.
Later on Sunday, GIANTX faced KOI in another fiercely contested series. After a standout performance with Tristana in the second game, GIANTX forced a third map but could not maintain their momentum. KOI, who had defeated Fnatic the day before, emerged victorious and closed out the weekend as Roadtrip champions. Fnatic, meanwhile, secured a win over G2 to salvage their weekend.
GIANTX proved itself a top-level contender at the Madrid Arena, but earlier inconsistencies during the Spring Split now weigh heavily in the standings. To qualify for the LEC playoffs, GIANTX must defeat Team BDS next weekend and Team Heretics the following one. The team currently holds a 2-5 record — results that do not fully reflect the positive performances seen in Madrid.
The post GIANTX wins Madrid’s heart during a historic weekend for European esports appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Oliver Niner, Head of B2B says that DFS remains a compelling vertical with huge growth potential especially if operators expand their offering into esports
The roll out of legal online and mobile sports betting across US states has presented a significant opportunity for operators, but the market has proved harder to crack than many anticipated.
The cost of customer acquisition is skyrocketing, building brand equity is taking much longer than expected, and there’s been a slowdown in new states embracing regulation and licensing.
This has led to a run of operators exiting the market as the numbers simply don’t add up.
But while this is happening, the daily fantasy sports space continues to thrive and remains a compelling opportunity for operators.
DFS has a unique legal standing in many states where sports betting is still restricted, allowing operators to reach audiences they otherwise couldn’t.
It also fosters deeper engagement with those who play – players aren’t just betting on outcomes; they’re actively managing lineups and pitting their knowledge and skills against others.
This is the perfect combination for retention and loyalty – something sportsbooks struggle to achieve with players easily swayed to join another brand simply because of a generous free bets offer.
There’s also an untapped opportunity in bringing the worlds of esports and daily fantasy sports together, allowing operators to connect with an entirely new audience.
Until now, traditional DFS brands have focused on the major sports, but the younger, digital-native audiences are more interested in esports such as CS2 and LoL than the NFL.
Why the DFS model works:
Before discussing how operators can get in on the esports DFS action, it’s important to understand why the DFS model works so well in the US, especially for those looking to diversify their offering.
The first is regulatory accessibility. DFS is legal in more states than traditional sports betting, allowing operators to enter markets where sportsbook licensing is unavailable or complex.
DFS has much lower acquisition costs while serving as a gateway to paid gaming. It often attracts a younger, more engaged audience at a lower CPA compared to traditional sports betting.
Strong user retention is another upside. Unlike one-off bets, DFS players return regularly to manage lineups, track stats and compete in contests, driving retention rates way beyond sports betting.
It’s also esports ready. Esports fans are highly engaged with player performance stats, making DFS a natural fit. It can then serve as an introduction to real-money esports betting when regulations allow.
The esports DFS opportunity to be explored:
DFS is an established and thriving vertical and while some operators offer esports within their proposition, it often lacks depth, innovation and mainstream adoption.
Esports fans are naturally engaged with stats, player performance metrics and in-game analytics, so easily segue into the DFS format.
Titles like LoL, CS2, Dota 2 and Valorant offer rich data sets that allow for creative and competitive fantasy formats, but most operators are yet to really get into it.
This leaves a major gap in the market and a huge opportunity for those who put together a compelling esports DFS product, especially as the popularity of esports betting grows.
What a compelling esports DFS product looks like:
The foundation of any esports DFS product is reliable, real-time data and the ability to provide a range of engaging contest formats.
This is where companies such as PandaScore come in. We provide operators with comprehensive esports data including player and team stats across all the major disciplines.
We supplement this with accurate odds and DFS pricing models, helping operators to set accurate and competitive odds – both our data and odds feeds are integrated seamlessly via API.
We also provide unrivalled market expertise; the team has years of experience powering esports betting which we leverage to ensure our partners can succeed with esports DFS.
In addition to markets and odds, players need to be able to access deep performance metrics so they can make informed decisions.
It’s also important for the operator to provide a smooth and intuitive experience via a seamless UX and mobile first approach to site and app navigation.
The diversity of the contests offered needs to be considered, too. This includes classic salary cap formats as well as pick’em games and more.
It goes without saying that social interaction needs to be baked into the experience through features such as leaderboards, private leagues and head-to-head challenges.
Operators need to get ahead in a rapidly evolving market:
The US sports betting and iCasino market is fast moving with the landscape constantly changing – just look at the conversation around sweepstakes casinos.
For me, DFS and especially esports DFS remain an underutilised growth channel that operators need to take advantage of.
As esports betting gains traction – PandaScore recently surpassed €1bn in bets through its platform – DFS serves as a vital entry point through which operators can build brand recognition and engage a digital-first audience primed and ready to play.
This audience might not be familiar with real-money betting today, but by providing them with an experience they are familiar and comfortable with, they can become the bettors of tomorrow.
At PandaScore, we are here to help operators capitalise on this opportunity with best-in-class data, pricing models and strategic support.
For operators, this means the numbers will always add up when it comes to esports daily fantasy sports.
The post Assessing the esports DFS opportunity in the US appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.
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