The Evolving Landscape of Fantasy Sports Gaming In India

The gaming and the fantasy sports sector in India have found numerous ways to encourage fan engagement. Currently, the industry is around 48.3 billion, and it’s expected to reach approximately 118.8 billion with a growth rate of 22.1%. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Fantasy Betting sites gained plenty of popularity. According to the reports provided by IFSG and KPMG, about 71% have played fantasy cricket games, and around 54% have played fantasy football games. The report also states that the number of fantasy sports operations has increased seven times between 2016 and 2018. The number of users has also increased almost twenty-five times between June 2016 and February 2019.

Reasons Why Fantasy Sports Gaming Became Popular

Several reasons prove why fantasy sports have gained so much recognition on Indian soil. These reasons are:

1. The Appearance Of Sport Leagues

The advent of numerous sports leagues in the country, such as football, kabaddi, hockey, badminton, and volleyball, has increased individuals’ opportunities to engage themselves in fantasy sports. The Indian Premier League or IPL remains one of the leading sports properties on the Indian soil. But the emergence of these new leagues can ensure that you can engage in fantasy sports throughout the entire year. Moreover, the mundane or regional-based team structure and the presence of international and national players provide a keen following of all these significant leagues.

2. The Growth In Digital Foundation

Within the past several years, the number of internet users has increased from 368 million in 2016 to 560 million in 2018. Out of them, about 86% were broadband subscribers. But during the same time, the data usage per subscriber also increased significantly because of tablets and smartphones.

Due to the massive growth within the digital infrastructure, high-speed internet was available to the Indian public. This helped fantasy sports games to increase. In addition, playing on Fantasy Sports sites through a handheld device, irrespective of the time and location, has dramatically helped the user engagement around fantasy sports.

3. The Enhanced Interest Of The Investors

Due to the immense popularity of fantasy sports within the country, it has also received plenty of support from investors. These investors showed interest in some of the leading players within the market. There have been many recent investments within fantasy sports as well. Platforms, such as FCricNWin and DailyFantasy Cricket, have raised around USD 4 million. On the other hand, Halaplay raised around USD 5 million in series A, funded by Nazara Technologies in 2018. There are many like Fantasybet.com that are entering the market and bring better technology for the players. 

The Reaffirmation On The Authority Of Fantasy Sports

The following attestation by the Supreme Court and the High Court of Punjab and Haryana on Dream 11’s fantasy sports format has ruled out as the game of skill. This has helped spread consciousness about the legitimacy of fantasy sports games and boosted the participation of many people. Also, the operators of fantasy sports games have begun to promote all their products and items intensively.

Along with that, they are also making a lot of effort to maintain the credibility of the fantasy sports platforms by partnering up with all the official sports leagues. The campaign “Khelo Dimaag Se by Dream 11 was to reaffirm the skill-based nature of fantasy sports.

Sports Betting vs Fantasy Sports: The Difference

Fantasy sports and sports betting are not the same. There is a massive difference between and to know what these differences are, please take a look at the information below.

1. Transaction Sizes: In fantasy sports, the transaction sizes are small. These transactions are carried electronically with verifiable and complete records available on stakeholder’s precious connections. But under sports betting, the transaction size is massive and instantly cash out all your winnings.
2.  Financial Benefits Of The State: The main downfall of sports betting is the massive revenue loss, which is earned by taxing all the earnings of the bettors. This provides a significant revenue stream to the government. Under fantasy sports, the platform charges around 31.2% of tax from the player’s earnings if it’s over 10,000.
3. Addresses Motivation For Betting: One of the main reasons people engage in sports wagering is monetary gains. To win big time, players have to use proper knowledge and skills in this particular area. Fantasy sports also provide the same advantages to their users, where they can play their favourite to win real money. The platforms also ensure that each of the participants is well aware of their losses or profits.

Conclusion

Fantasy sports gaming has taken India by storm. This is because of many licensed and trusted platforms where people can play the sports they love. Around 74% of the individuals take part in fantasy sports competitions 1 to 3 times per week. When users start showing interest in such platforms, it will help the fantasy sports industry in India to grow enormously.