How Has COVID-19 Affected America’s Online Gambling Industry?

Every kind of industry has been affected in some way by the COVID-19 pandemic. In this post, we’ll have a look at America’s online gambling industry and see how it’s coped throughout 2020 and into 2021, and what might happen in the coming years.

It’s safe to say that Americans love gambling. Even though it’s not legal everywhere, there are still many millions of people living in the country who regularly enjoy playing poker, spinning the reels of slots machines and placing bets on big sporting events. Online gambling, which is much more convenient because it lets you gamble wherever you like, is popular and is becoming legal in an increasing number of states.

The Beginning

In 2020, the pandemic started and no one saw it coming. Some industries, such as the aviation and cruising ones, have taken a very brutal hit and for them, the road to normalcy is sure to be very long indeed. The gambling industry as a whole is interesting. Land-based casinos in the US have obviously taken a hit as they’ve had to close for many weeks or months. Even though some have been able to reopen, it’s been with reduced capacity and strict measures in place to curb the spread of the virus.

Online gambling is completely different. Because of its very nature, it’s not being affected in the same way that physical, land-based casinos have. You could say that online gambling is very COVID-friendly, in that you don’t have to leave the house to do it – all you need is a computer or laptop and a steady internet connection, then you’re good to go.

Facing the Real Problem

During the pandemic, billions of people throughout the world have been forced to stay at home. Many have lost jobs and have found themselves with a lot more time on their hands. Some who never gambled online before have started doing so as a way to pass the time and maybe even earn an extra buck or two. Some who regularly gambled online before the pandemic started have been continuing their hobby or even devoting more time to it. Then there are those who prefer gambling at brick-and-mortar casinos. With these places closing, visitors have had to make use of digital gambling destinations, i.e. online casinos, instead.

It should therefore come as no surprise that during the pandemic, the number of Americans visiting online casinos has grown significantly. Figures for 2020’s online gambling activity haven’t ben released yet – it’s the second week of January as of the time of writing – but these figures are widely expected to be higher than what they would have been if the pandemic hadn’t happened.

What’s Next?

But what about the future? With multiple vaccines now available, it’s only a matter of time before America gets enough people vaccinated that the country can return to normal. The lifting of restrictions across the states will certainly be gradual, as opposed to instant, but hopefully, 2021 will see normalcy resume. When this does happen, what will happen to America’s fast-growing online gambling industry?

What’s likely is that more and more states will expedite the legalizing of online gambling. What 2020 has shown is that any sort of activity that requires you to leave home can be seriously affected by a virus and the restrictions brought in to reduce its spread. However, online activities aren’t as severely affected by this and can actually thrive. With more people gambling online – and more people wanting to do so in places where it’s not legal – there’s no doubt that states will want to legalize online gambling as soon as possible so that they can get some revenue from it, effectively cashing in on the growing demand.

Online gambling has been given a huge boost and there’s a good chance that the numbers will only go up, especially if it becomes legalized in more states. While casino games are always available, sports betting has become largely unavailable, what with sporting events all over the world being delayed or cancelled outright. As these events resume, the sports betting sector of the online gambling industry will no doubt pick up and get back to what it used to be.

Conclusion

So to conclude, online gambling is one of America’s few industries that have actually thrived during the pandemic. It’s been able to weather the storm and not only attract new players and punters, but also grow. Many states may legalize it more quickly than they would have done otherwise and it could become a major industry – it may even go on to become bigger than land-based gambling.