Paysafe research: Half of Super Bowl fans to bet in regulated North American markets

Payment speed and brand reputation remain crucial for bettors’ selection of online sportsbooks for Super Bowl LX, with 27% expecting to wager more than usual

In the countdown to this Sunday’s Super Bowl LX in Santa Clara, California, 51% of fans who’ll follow the football game in U.S. states and Canadian provinces with regulated sports-betting plan to bet online, according to research issued today by leading payments platform Paysafe. The company’s All the Ways Players Pay: Super Bowl report also indicates strong interest in legal betting from fans in this year’s host state, if California were to regulate sports-betting, as well as in Texas and Canada’s Alberta.

Appetite to legally wager in California, Texas, and Alberta – with the Canadian province expected to launch its jurisdiction before year-end – rivals the regulated market, with 52% of fans keen to wager on future Super Bowls. Across these currently unregulated jurisdictions and regulated sports-betting markets alike, fans consider payments crucial for online sports betting.

Surveying fans intending to bet in the regulated markets of Florida, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Canada’s Ontario, the report reveals that 59% of them plan to place bets on game-day and 27% expect to wager more than usual. Their top criteria when choosing an online sportsbook are brand trust (prioritized by 43%) and streamlined payouts (37%). Cashing out a Super Bowl bet seamlessly is considered more important than every other non-payment factor, including good odds (30%), UX (22%), promos (21%), and sports events (14%).

Other payment factors are also instrumental in how fans in regulated markets choose sportsbooks, especially rapid deposits (prioritized by 25%) and range of payment methods (24%).

With bettors prioritizing their go-to payment methods’ availability, the battle for Super Bowl customers will likely be won in part by sportsbooks with diverse cashiers.

Across the regulated market, players’ preference for debit cards (43%) is today rivalled by digital wallets (42%). And while states like Massachusetts ban credit cards for wagering, they remain a preference for 33% overall, rising as high as 51% in New York and 47% in Ontario, the top choice in the province.

With established local payment methods (LPMs) like Venmo in the U.S. and Interac e-Transfer in Canada, it’s no surprise that 20% of bettors expect to see their favorite LPM at the cashier. And with 17% of players preferring to wager with pay-by-bank solutions and 10% favoring eCash, sportsbooks with these options will likely gain a competitive edge.

With over a quarter of bettors expecting to wager more than normal, the game offers an important short-term revenue opportunity, but the real value for operators is retaining customers for the long-haul – and here payments are also key. If the payment experience goes awry for the game, 84% of bettors would switch brands.

While California, Texas and Alberta are yet to launch regulated sports-betting markets, Super Bowl fans there are already aware of payments’ importance. If wagering were legal, fans would prioritize payment factors – fast payouts (29%) and rapid deposits (26%) – above everything but brand reputation (36%) when selecting a sportsbook.

Zak Cutler, President of Global Gaming at Paysafe, commented: “Super Bowl LX is expected to generate a record $1.71bn in legal wagers from the U.S. market alone, with an unprecedented betting volume also likely in Canada’s Ontario. The game represents a massive growth opportunity for North American online sportsbooks, and our research indicates that operators that are laser-focused on their cashiers and streamlining the payment experience will give themselves an edge in a highly competitive market.”