Bettors are more engaged in sporting events than non-bettors and that many fans — especially younger ones — are doing multiple activities at home as they watch a live sporting event.
Younger sports fans are more likely to follow athletes online and are also more likely to subscribe to streaming video services to watch sports, according to a survey commissioned by Deloitte Consulting.
The survey, 2023 Sports Fan Insights: The Beginning of the Immersive Sports Era, released this month, also found that bettors are more engaged in sporting events than non-bettors and that many fans — especially younger ones — are doing multiple activities at home as they watch a live sporting event.
“The emerging era of immersive sports is expected to require a more unified and personalized sports experience for fans,” Deloitte’s research team, led by Pete Giorgio, head of the firm’s Global and US Sports division, said in the survey.
“This could mean paying extra attention to foundational technology infrastructure and data management capabilities, as well as new approaches to producing, managing, and distributing content.”
According to Deloitte, 46% of respondents who identified as Generation Z (those born between 1997 and 2009) reported watching a live sporting event from home. About 32% of Gen-Zers have attended a live sporting event in person, while about 23% had either purchased a product or played a video game associated with a particular athlete.
The emerging era of immersive sports is expected to require a more unified and personalized sports experience for fans.
Deloitte also found that while 30% of respondents had subscribed to a streaming video service to watch sports over the past 12 months, that figure increases to 46% for Millennials, which the survey defined as those born between 1983 and 1996.
The survey found an equal percentage of respondents (83%) who identified as bettors and non-bettors watched a sporting event on TV or online within the past 12 months, but that’s where the similarities end. From there, 61% of bettors said they had attended a live sporting event in person (compared to 44% of non-bettors) during that timeframe, while 58% of bettors had purchased sports merchandise or memorabilia (42% among non-bettors).
Younger fans were also more likely to multitask while watching a sporting event at home. The survey found that 51% of Gen-Zers looked up a player or team statistics during a game (compared to 49% of Millennials and Generation X, and 34% of Boomers). Fifty-one percent of Gen-Zers also said they use social media to read comments and opinions from others, and 44% said they use social media or a messaging service to interact with others.
But there were also some warning signs for the gaming industry. The survey found that 66% of non-bettors were tired of seeing so many ads for sports betting, compared to 48% of bettors.
“When looking to integrate betting into the fan experience, it’s important to address the sentiments of non-bettors as well,” the researchers said. “They’re more concerned than bettors about several issues. Could the US follow the UK and some European countries where sports betting has been legal for a long time, and there are an increasing number of advertising and sponsorship restrictions?”
Additionally, 59% of non-bettors said they worried about the long-term impacts of sports betting on professional sports, compared to 42% of bettors. “This reflects the feeling that the more prevalent sports betting becomes in the US, the chances for mistakes and abuse could grow,” Deloitte said.
Deloitte said the survey was conducted by an independent research firm, which it did not identify. The firm interviewed 3,004 US sports fans aged 14 and older online in March 2023.
