The Super Bowl is annually one of the biggest days of the year for the sports betting industry. However, according to a survey from the American Gaming Association, wagers on the Super Bowl will be down approximately 37 percent from last year as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the survey forecasts that $4.3 billion will be bet on Super Bowl LV between the Kansas City Chiefs and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The American Gaming Association believes that $4.3 billion will be wagered on the game instead of the $6.8 billion that was bet on Super Bowl LIV a season ago.
Part of the reason for the anticipated drop in bets is the fact that many casual bettors won't be participating in office pools like they have in years past. In addition, the survey also showed that just 7.6 million United States citizens will place their bets on mobile apps and websites, which is a 63 percent crease from 2020.
One positive that sportsbooks do have in their favor is that seven more states launched sports betting since Super Bowl LIV. Colorado, Illinois, Michigan, Montana, Tennessee, Virginia, and the District of Columbia all legalized sports betting. Michigan and Virginia actually launched sports betting markets earlier this month.
It is worth noting that $21 billion was bet at sportsbooks around the United States in 2020, which is an increase of $13 billion from 2019. Even though sports were on hiatus through the first half of 2020, fans quickly flocked back to sportsbooks and mobile betting once sports returned.
Popular gambling cities like Las Vegas and Atlantic City are bracing for a decrease in in-person betting due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The American Gaming Association projects that an estimated 1.4 million Americans will bet at in-person sportsbooks this year, which is down from 61 percent last year.
