Yahoo Finance The Current State of Sports Betting & Why Esports Matter
Welcome to the latest episode of the Full-Court Finance podcast from Zacks Investment Research where Associate Stock Strategist Ben Rains dives into the current state of sports betting in the U.S. after daily fantasy sports power FanDuel opened its first sportsbook over the weekend. The conversation then shifts to the continued rise of esports and their importance to media companies after Disney’s DIS big announcement last week.
FanDuelGroup opened its first sportsbook on Saturday at the Meadowlands Race Track in New Jersey, which is in walking distance from where the New York Giants and Jets play. The move comes after UK-based gaming giant Paddy Power Betfair plc PDYPY officially closed its deal with the daily fantasy company to combine its U.S. businesses with FanDuel.
The new move is part of a massive new sports betting world that could see the likes of MGM MGM, Las Vegas Sands LVS, and Wynn Resorts WYNN become major players in states that legalize sports betting on their own or through partnerships. Sports betting companies such as William Hill WIMHY and Churchill Downs CHDN could also make their presence felt. Meanwhile, investors should be on the lookout for tech players that enter the space as mobile and real-time online betting is both the present and the future of the industry.
Moving on, shares of Activision Blizzard ATVI surged last week after it announcement that it landed a multi-year deal with Disney that will see its esports Overwatch League broadcast live on both ESPN and ABC. Disney secured the deal for an undisclosed amount, and it is worth noting that its TV and streaming contract will not impact existing rights agreements the Overwatch League has with partners such as Amazon’s AMZN widely popular Twitch streaming platform.
The Overwatch League, which is set to conclude its inaugural season this summer, and its city-based teams is a potentially huge step in the right direction for esports. There is already big money behind professional video gaming, which include sponsors such as Intel INTC, T-Mobile TMUS, and HP HPQ. In fact, the overall esports economy is expected to hit $906 million in 2018, up from $696 million in 2017, according to market research firm Newzoo—with the potential to reach $1.5 billion by 2020.
Looking ahead, Facebook FB and Twitter TWTR could easily dive into esports amid their larger live sports ventures. Investors should also pay close attention to the rise of sports-based video games, which Take-Two Interactive TTWO and the NBA’s brand new NBA 2K League is a shining example of.
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HP Inc. (HPQ) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Las Vegas Sands Corp. (LVS) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Wynn Resorts, Limited (WYNN) : Free Stock Analysis Report
MGM Resorts International (MGM) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Churchill Downs, Incorporated (CHDN) : Free Stock Analysis Report
The Walt Disney Company (DIS) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Amazon.com, Inc. (AMZN) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Facebook, Inc. (FB) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Twitter, Inc. (TWTR) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Activision Blizzard, Inc (ATVI) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (TTWO) : Free Stock Analysis Report
T-Mobile US, Inc. (TMUS) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Intel Corporation (INTC) : Free Stock Analysis Report
PADDY POWER BET (PDYPY) : Free Stock Analysis Report
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