As the country with the second largest population in the world (a stunning 1.40 billion), India is an enormous market for basically anything. Esports betting and gambling over the internet is certainly not an exception. But it hasn’t always been like this.
While the gambling boom hit European countries in the early 2000 – starting with poker, followed by casino and betting – online gambling in India didn’t take off until 2015. As a matter of fact, it is not until recent times that the industry has started to bloom with internet usage and smartphones being much more widespread, and a new generation of youngsters coming to age.
The truth is, we are actually in the middle of tremendous growth right now. In 2019 the Indian gambling industry had an expected value of 62 billion and by 2024 it is forecasted that this will reach 250 billion. Much thanks to an internet usage that is continuously increasing and more youths coming to age.
In just a few years, several new online casinos that are purely focused on the Indian market have opened up and a heap more is definitely to come. One of the most recent is Raj.bet. Already established gambling sites have also put a lot of effort into targeting Indian players with various marketing campaigns, Indian friendly payment methods and a support for rupees as a currency.
Esports Betting Is Not Left Out of the Equation
Indian gamblers are unquestionably fonder of live casino games and cricket betting than anything else. But eSports betting is also growing in the country – especially since the pandemic hit.
A recent survey was conducted by the two research agencies 2CV and ProdegeMR. In this 756 gamblers were asked about their online gambling habits. About 5% said that they just started to bet on eSports after the pandemic and another 31% were considering to get started with it.
To many it was a lack of games that held them back from betting already. However, as the eSport industry grows (which it continuously is) we can expect new games that are focusing in on the competitive vertical and gambling sites to offer betting on them.
Other research shows that the interest in eSports is rapidly growing with 4 million occasional viewers and eSport enthusiasts in 2017. A number that is projected to hit 20 million by 2021. By this time it is also expected that 61% of India’s population will be under the age of 35. In other words, the country will be filled with tech-savvy people that have money to spend.
The Legal Status Makes Online Gambling Widely Available
What do we mean by this? Well, as of now there are no laws covering online gambling in India or any entity regulating the industry. It’s a grey area where Indian residents aren’t breaking any laws playing over the internet and gambling sites are able to offer their services without any hassle. This is why you can find countless of casinos and eSport betting sites that allow Indians to play with them.
Should you be one of our many Indian visitors reading, we would like to throw in a word about the safety of gambling online. It’s generally very safe and nothing you have to worry about. However, there are in fact bad apples to be found so to make sure that you’re protected we highly suggest choosing a gambling site that has been reviewed by a trusted platform such as ours here at eBetFinder.
