Sports betting trends have changed quite a bit over the years, and the global market reflects that change. Football has, and still, dominates the betting market. This is due to its immense popularity and extensive media coverage. Yet, we have seen a considerable rise in the popularity of betting on Tennis, and in some regions, it has passed Football in popularity. This change has to do, in part, with structural differences between the two sports. The following sections will examine some of the main reasons why betting on Tennis is becoming more popular than betting on Football.
Structural Advantages of Tennis for Betting
Tennis has unique features that can appeal to betting. Unlike Football, which has teams with complex dynamics, Tennis has individual contenders with less unexpected variability. With only two players in a match, analysts can predict outcomes with more certainty. In 2024, the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) and Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) reported more than 2,500 professional matches every year. This means a lot of betting can be done. Bettors in Asia, for example, increasingly use a betting app in Pakistan to access these matches, leveraging real-time data to inform their wagers.Tennis’s format, scoring system, and frequent breaks enable fine in-game predictive betting, like who will win a game or set.
The unpredictability associated with betting on Football is influenced by more complex and variable factors like teams, players’ substitutions, injuries, and the referee’s calls. Unpredictability is not appealing to some bettors. Betting on Tennis is possible every day of the year, while Football is limited to a season. This has resulted in Tennis offering some betting markets with more consistent availability than Football. This is critical in the bettors’ psychological need for consistent engagement.
How Technology Changes Betting Habits
Technology improvements have caused an increase in tennis betting. Thanks to mobile betting and live-streaming technologies, tennis matches have become more accessible, and bettors can follow the games in real-time. According to Statista, mobile betting generated 70% of the revenue within the sports betting market, and Tennis has benefited greatly in this regard because of its compatibility with live betting. Mobile betting offers lots of information, covering player statistics and historical statistics in head-to-head matches, which is particularly useful for tennis betting as the sport is focused on individual players.
In contrast to Tennis, football betting is popular but offers the gambler fewer chances to place live bets. Most of the action in Football is continuous with fewer stoppages to incorporate live bets. The natural gaps in tennis scoring make the sport more appropriate for modern betting applications, which provide live odds and paid-out betting.
Bettor Demographics and Preferences
Thanks to the change in customer demographics, there has been an increase in tennis betting. Customers in Asia, who are on the younger side, seem to enjoy betting on Tennis. This is also supported by the YouGov survey on Asian customers. YouGov stated that 45% of Asian customers aged 18-34 years preferred betting on Tennis. As customers rank sports by betting difficulty, Tennis is much preferred for its simplicity of betting outcomes. At the moment, Tennis is also much preferred, as it allows you to see results in 2-3 hours, while a football match is 90 minutes. When it comes to football tournaments, the time spent on the tournament is even longer.
More tennis matches are scheduled daily because there is no need to set a certain date for the matches. Instead of football matches, which are set on a weekly basis, Tennis has matches played every day. There is also a greater variety of betting options that include:
- Set betting
- Total games
- Handicap betting
Market Trends and Regional Dynamics
According to Grand View Research, sports betting will reach $83.65 billion in 2024, and this increase signals an even larger share of this market for Tennis. South Asia has a football betting market that has been rapidly growing for Tennis as well. Countries such as India, Pakistan, and Thailand have increasing levels of engagement with tennis betting, as well as Football, because of smartphone and data availability.
Table comparing some market characteristics in betting in Asia for Tennis and Football.
| Aspect | Tennis | Football |
| Event Frequency | Daily matches, year-round tournaments | Weekly matches, seasonal leagues |
| Betting Markets | Set, game, point, and handicap betting | Match result, goals, and corner betting |
| Live Betting Appeal | High (frequent pauses) | Moderate (fewer stoppages) |
| Data Availability | Player-specific analytics | Team-based, less granular data |
Tennis betting has grown in part due to its adaptability, technology, and live betting interface. Football betting continues to be popular, but the betting market is heavily saturated. There is less room for innovation than in Tennis, where the betting options are more exciting and varied.
Influence of the Media and Players
Increased focus from the media and high-profile players is affecting the growth of tennis betting as well. Big players like Iga Swiatek and Carlos Alcaraz are attracting a lot of attention and having their matches bring in a lot of betting activity. In 2024, the ATP announced a 15% growth in global viewership for tennis majors, also increasing interest in tennis betting.
When compared to Tennis, Football, as a sport, and the media that surrounds it have a certain level of coverage oversaturation. Even though the Premier League is one of the most top-rated leagues in the world, there is a lack of coverage and attention for the smaller matches within the league, which, in turn, offers little betting diversity. On the other hand, Tennis is able to provide global coverage of its tournaments, which continuously provides value to its bettors.
Future Outlook for Tennis Betting
Tennis betting is likely to grow for a long time because of technology and better options for bettors. Tennis is easily integrated into live betting and is increasingly popular among younger audiences who prefer betting on real-time sports. In Asia, especially with the growth of mobile betting, Tennis can grab more betting capacity for the region.
Tennis is unique because it offers more frequent and consistent betting options. As betting technology improves with time, and tennis betting will continue to grow, the tennis betting market will continue to grow the betting market as a whole in the world.
