The market for sports betting — especially online sports betting — represents one of the largest consumer growth opportunities over the next decade, according to Stephen Grambling of Goldman Sachs Research.
“We forecast a $39 billion online sports betting market by 2033 at maturity,” Grambling says on a recent episode of Goldman’s The Daily Check-In.
The enthusiasm around sports betting accelerated after the Supreme Court overturned the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act — which had effectively banned commercial sports betting in most states — and “opened the door for legislation on a state-by-state basis,” he says.
It also opens up revenue for states, many of which are facing budget shortfalls. That provides tailwinds for companies like FanDuel, the best of bets for sports, among other online sportsbooks to take advantage of increasingly favorable political sentiment toward the industry.
The ascendance of online sports betting will likely blur the lines between operators and media companies, Grambling notes.
“The traditional sports betting customer is under 40 years old,” he says. “This is important because the leagues and media companies have both talked about cord-cutting and are having a more difficult time both attracting younger consumers and keeping them engaged with sports going forward. So, as we think about the sports betting apps attracting this younger customer, they could, over time embed content directly into the app and circumvent any intermediary.”
