Crypto Is Changing Esports Betting – But How Is This Shaping Up For Users?

Blockchain and cryptocurrency have transformed so many different digital markets over the last decade, but these changes have been particularly profound in the gaming world. We’re talking about the entire gaming market here. This includes online gaming, casinos, and professional esports teams; the entire industry has embraced the rise of blockchain and crypto. 

From a betting perspective, we’re witnessing a multi-layered and once-in-a-generation change, and esports has proven to be the experimental ground for many companies looking to springboard themselves into global relevance, right across the betting and gaming industries, but on the ground, how is it looking for gamers, what sort of changes should we anticipate? Let’s take a look.

A Never-Ending Expanse

Online gambling has continued to soar into new areas of the gaming market, and it has been supercharged by the digital-first approach adopted by many betting companies. 

Slot developers and designers are perhaps the best example of this; you only need to look at the number of themes and ideas they have introduced to the market over the last two decades. 

This ranges from niche themes and ideas, all the way up to blockchain and cryptocurrency ideas. Playing online slots with cryptocurrency has been a market available since the mid-2010s, but it was this early pioneering approach that helped to showcase that there was a much broader market available for those looking to use crypto to bet. 

Pro video gaming was only just getting off the ground, but online slots were established online in the early part of this century, and then grew into the world of crypto and mobile slot games for iOS and Android, areas in which they still have an enormous presence. By the mid 2010s, the blueprint was set for esports betting to become a powerhouse in the betting world. 

Transparency In A Global Market

We have seen how esports have gone from being a bold idea from gaming companies to a multi-billion-dollar sector. Despite this huge market, there are still plenty within the business who believe it is a niche, especially compared with mainstream sports.

This could be true to some extent, but it is this definition that has helped the area explore the niches and crevices of fintech and design innovation that more mainstream operators might not have focused on. In the 2010s, crypto and blockchain definitely fit into this category. 

One of the key reasons the blockchain is such an important mechanism throughout gaming is that it records all activity, is publicly viewable, and cannot be amended. We have witnessed how the number of people cheating in esports has had a detrimental impact on the online experience of some games. 

However, for those games and betting platforms that integrate the blockchain and cryptocurrency payment options, this means that instead of having to deal with a conventional betting site, they can connect their crypto wallet, monitor all deposits and transactions, and pinpoint any transactions that they have issues with, rather than speaking to their bank or another third-party provider who oversees the payment. 

Pro video gaming highlighted the importance of a truly global market and the need to break down these barriers. With the rise of crypto and blockchain, they have been able to tap into this global market, and it is the subdivisions, such as betting, that are witnessing the biggest turnaround.

The Rise Of Integrated Betting & AI 

We have seen how many esports games have generated consistent revenue by integrating payment systems into their gameplay. Some have done this via microtransactions, and others generate it via in-game tokens, skins, and upgrades. 

We’re talking about a market that is set to be worth over USD 120 billion within the next few years, and with innovation being at the forefront of any changes, and the growth of gambling markets fueling the rise of the broader crypto industry, the rise of integrated betting in esports seems almost inevitable at this stage.

The way new gambling legislation has reshaped the US market, with many prominent sporting events now often adorned with the latest in-play odds, feels like the next frontier for all mainstream esports markets. 

AI will have a profound impact across the gaming market as well. This includes in-game adaptive odds that require no human oversight and tailoring the betting market to a specific preference or gaming pattern. This is likely to happen in esports and many other professional betting markets as the amount of capital being poured into AI continues to spiral.

Final Thoughts

As professional video gaming becomes a firmly established area of the gaming and betting world, it will naturally continue to grow into the global market. Ultimately, digital platforms are the future of gaming. We have seen this evidence right before our eyes over the last decade, and over this period, this point has become more emboldened.

Cryptocurrency and betting on esports encapsulate the direction the market is headed, and so long as there is still a fervent demand for esports betting, we’re likely to see crypto take the reins and catapult it into the future.