Fortunately for those living and working in Australia, the country hasn’t been impacted nearly as severely as other countries like the USA, Italy, Spain, and the UK. The government has taken quite a serious approach to the outbreak, as they should do, but the sports betting industry in Australia hasn’t exactly escaped unscathed. We’ve seen quite a few knock-on effects of this virus for both sporting competitions and the subsequent wagers placed on them.
This is why we’ve put this article together, to highlight the major concerns and identify how the coronavirus has transformed the sports betting landscape in Australia. Without further ado, let’s take a closer look at the threat and impact COVID-19 has had in this market.
Canceled sporting events
With all of the chaos throughout the world with canceled sporting events, it’s no real surprise that popular sports in Australia have also suffered at the hands of COVID-19. Some of Australia’s most popular sports have now been canceled until further notice, with leagues like the NRL, AFL, A-League, and all cricket games now off the cards. It would be fair to say that Australia has had a rather tough year so far, with the tragic bush fires just a few months ago and now the coronavirus destroying sporting events.
One thing is certain about the Aussies however, they are resilient and better times will come in the future. Interestingly, there are still some horse races taking place in Australia, although these are being held in a ‘closed doors’ style, which basically means that no sports fans are allowed to attend.
Change in sports betting behaviors
Due to all of these canceled events and further cancelations possible, the sports betting industry has been impacted in a major way. Bookmaker’s in Australia have already lost millions in potential revenue from events such as the Grand National, NBA League, and European soccer-leagues being canceled. It’s definitely not a great time to be in the sports betting business, but there have been reports of sports bettors changing their online behaviors due to coronavirus.
Rather than bet on these leagues that they usually would do; players have started to seek out virtual sports in order to still get the enjoyment of sports betting. There has already been a series of betting markets for virtual horse races and even virtual soccer games, however, the figures just don’t even come close to those of real sports betting.
There has been another more prominent change as well. Due to the restriction of sporting events and therefore the reduction in the number of betting markets, players have started to participate in online casino gaming. Some sites in Australia have already combined products on their platform to allow for sports and casino betting to be done in the same place, and it would seem that these are the sites with the greatest chance of survival right now. Players have started to play slot games, table games, and live casino games at leading sites already, and this may continue until sports betting returns in full flow.
How this could all play out
As is the case with any tough times in life, it’s always important to know that there will always be light at the end of the tunnel. This is true for the sports betting industry in Australia too. While it may be a little early to say when the lockdown restrictions could be lifted, there is still one guarantee, even though we do not know the time scale as of yet – sports and sports betting will return. It may be weeks or it may be months, but our favorite sports like cricket, rugby, and Aussie rules will all come back.
When they do come back, we expect a whole bunch of things to happen. We expect to see a surge in sports betting after people manage to come out of this hibernation style lockdown. We also expect that online sportsbooks will start to offer plenty of promotions to stimulate players interests in sports betting again. Let’s face it, they will need to since so much money will have already been lost due to canceled competitions.
Another factor to consider is whether the leagues will actually be resumed or just canceled entirely, then launched again for the start of next season. This is still up for debate with the relevant authorities, and it is something that sports bettors will be watching incredibly closely.
With the government now restricting travel and sports competitions being canceled until further notice, these are obviously rough times. However, we can all sit with the knowledge that our beloved sports will return – it’s just a matter of time
