An analysis of online sports betting trends in Australia

Online sports betting is one of the most popular pastime activities for plenty of people around the world, but what about Australians? Is online betting as much as popular as other developed countries in the world?

Online sports betting is one of the most popular pastime activities for plenty of people around the world, but what about Australians? Is online betting as much as popular as other developed countries in the world?
There are certainly stats that show a year-by-year increase in online betting activities among Australian, but let's take a closer look into the betting trends of Australian punters.

Is Online Betting Legal in Australia?

Let's begin with the basics here. All forms of online gambling in Australia are regulated by the IGA – Interactive Gambling Act of 2001.

That is the main legislation in the country regarding gambling, and it states that online sports betting, online wagering and lotteries are legal in Australia. All other forms of gambling, including slots and table games, and other games of skill, chance, or a mix, are not allowed.

With that in mind, the IGA and all its penalties target providers of such illegal online gambling activities, not the customers themselves.

The First Researches

Survey-based statistics conducted by the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey show that in 2015, over 500,000 Australian adults regularly place sports bet.

As you would expect, the vast majority of those are men, and all of them are between 18-49 years old. Around 70% of sports bettors were full-time workers, but there is one worrying stat here. In 2015, around 41% of all regular sports bettors in Australia experienced at least one gambling-related problem.

This 2015 research showed that gamblers in Australia are twice more likely to experience any gambling-related problem. That is why the need for operators to introduce more measures to prevent gambling problems became so big.

A Substantial Increase in Sports Betting Over the Years

Over the years, online sports betting became one of the most popular pastime activities for plenty of Australian people.

With that in mind, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) released a research in 2021 that shows some stunning numbers. Around 11% or 2,850,000 of Australian residents admitted to participate in an online gambling activity.

That was a big increase to the same report from 2020 that showed around 8% or 2,100,000 people gambled online in Australia.

Sports betting seems to be the most popular type of an online gambling activity among Australians. The same study showed that around 8% of Australians wagered on sports in 2021, which is an increase of the 5% the year before.

This should come as no surprise, given that the number of betting sites in Australia increases all the time. With that in mind, when placing wagers on any sports event, make sure to choose only the best sports betting websites in Australia.

Affiliate Marketing Problems

Moving on, the same report from the ACMA took a closer look into affiliate marketing services promoting online gambling in Australia.

According to that research, affiliate marketing sites take much bigger commissions than other industries, which was a bit worrying for the organization.

These affiliate marketing sites often use social media to promote online gambling, so that is something that ACMA needs to pay close attention to in the future.

Mobile Phone Penetration

A very important aspect of online sports betting these days are mobile betting sites. The mobile phone penetration in Australia is on a considerably high level. Stats show that by 2026, around 87% of Australians will own a smartphone, which certainly aids the sports betting industry.

Reputable sports betting sites active in Australia know that the vast majority of their users spend much of their time during the day on their mobile phones.

Therefore, they always make sure to optimize their websites for all mobile devices, or even create fully functional mobile apps for both Android and iOS users.

Mobile betting enthusiasts can also expect some mobile-specific bonuses and promotions. They surely serve as a very useful tool to attract more punters to wager from a mobile phone.

Thanks to these developments, bettors in Australia can now wager on the go Their location does not matter, as long as they have a stable internet connection.

Verdict

With all of the above in mind, we can expect an even more significant rise in Australia's online betting popularity over the next few years.

The country's online gambling market in 2022 reached a stunning $4.5 billion, and it doesn't seem to stop. Some studies show that we can expect that number to rise to $7.2 billion by 2028, which is a stunning number.