Give The Sports Betting Audiences What They Want.

It is prime time for sports betting enthusiasts with NFL and college football, NHL, and the NBA all in action. Great news for sports-formatted stations that incorporate sports wagering content into their programming that likely hits the bullseye for the majority of the sports audience (57%) who say they have bet on sports. Additionally, 67% of younger audiences (18-39) say they have wagered on sports currently or in the past, according to Crowd React Media.

Demo-wise, 58% of 40-to-59-year-olds and 38% of those 60-plus have indulged in some type of sports wagering. Additionally, more men (63%) than women (47%) say they have wagered on a sports contest.

“As more states gradually start to legalize sports betting, we expect the audience for sports betting content to grow,” Crowd React Media says. “However, merely talking about sports betting is not enough to make a show successful.”

The firm urges programmers “to be creative in how they integrate sports betting content into their program wheel in a way that is novel and engaging” for the listener. Additionally, content managers should work to create the right balance between traditional sports talk and sports betting programming.

Sports audiences are turning to audio for information with 36% of sports audiences saying they tune into radio or podcasts to gain information about sports betting analysis and odds. Again, the younger demos are more likely to do so, as 53% of 18-to-39-year-olds tune in to, or download, sports-betting audio content. The gender breakdown is similar with 42% of males, and 26% of females listening to radio shows or podcasts on sports betting.

“The ideal sports program seamlessly integrates sports betting content with traditional sports commentary and analysis,” Crowd React Media explains. “In other words, the sharpest programming contains sports-betting adjacent content without drawing attention to the fact that it’s sports-betting content.”