World
Betting is one of the most popular activities among sports fans. Whether a small bet among friends, or a high-stake bet, among professional punters, the sports industry sees a huge amount of money from betting. With the popularity of sports being at an all-time high, the question we would like to answer in this article is, what are the top 5 most popular sports to bet on in the world today.
Football
Football, or soccer, is the most popular sport in the world today, with over 3 billion fans around the world. The game dominates the sport scene on five different continents, with the only place where it doesn’t dominate being the United States, Canada, and South Asia (though it is still hugely popular there as well). When it comes to sports betting sites, like the ones found on this page, football is by far the most popular sport to bet on. The same is true for land-based sportsbooks, where football bets dominate.
Cricket
With over 2.5 billion fans the world over, it is no surprise that cricket would make it onto this list. The sport is especially popular in South Asian countries, most notably India, which has one of the best cricket teams in the world. Aside from that, the sport enjoys popularity in Australia and New Zealand, South Africa, and of course, its native country, the United Kingdom. On betting sites, the sport is massively popular to bet on, especially in the countries previously mentioned.
Horse Racing
For most of human history, horse racing was the go-to betting sport. The horse track was the place to be if one wanted to place a bet. In fact, all things considered, it is a fairly recent development that horse racing was replaced as the most popular betting sport. However, this change does not mean that horse racing fell off. Simply that football’s popularity is so dominant, that it eclipses all else. Horse racing is still one of the most popular betting sports, especially in Ireland, the UK, the USA, the UAE, and Japan.
Golf
To many, it might come as a shock that golf has a placement on this list. After all, the sport is not that popular to watch or play. However, there is a reason for the sport’s popularity on the betting scene. Namely, golf, unlike most sports, is not played in seasons. Rather, golf matches/tournaments happen throughout the year, meaning bets can be placed on the sport no matter what time of year it is.
Tennis
The last sport we are taking a look at is tennis. With 1 billion fans globally, tennis is one of the most popular sports. As we’ve established with football and cricket, popularity in viewership, brings popularity in betting. While it may not dominate, tennis sees massive popularity on various betting sites and at land-based sportsbooks. Especially popular are the big competitions, like the US Open, Australian Open, etc.
Honorable Mentions
These are some of the sports that didn’t make the cut, but still enjoy massive popularity in the betting scene. Boxing is the most popular combat sport, both in betting and viewership, baseball and American football are hugely popular in America, and hockey dominates the Canadian scene.
