PUNE, India – The New Report “Global Fantasy Sports Market Size, Statistics, Trend Analysis, and Forecast Report, 2022 – 2032” estimates the industry size at $21.46 Billion in 2021 and forecasts to reach $92.61 Billion by 2032. Football, baseball, basketball, hockey, and cricket were all listed as the primary fantasy sports with India giving a major boost to cricket segment. Fantasy sports has grown from being a niche market to sponsoring the largest T20 cricket league in the world.

“The latest insights and forecasts have revealed new areas of profitability. Football, Rugby and Cricket are the largest contributors in the Global Sports Fantasy market and are anticipated to grow in the future. Globally, the Fantasy Sports industry has been showing healthy growth, with India being the fastest-growing FS markets with the largest user base at 13 crores, which is further expected to grow at a CAGR of 32 percent in the coming years. The country has become a high-growth, in-focus market due to a large tech-savvy millennial population base, growing affiliation with sports, rapid smartphone penetration, and the availability of low-cost mobile data; and is projected to grow from INR 34,600 crore in FY21 to an estimated INR 1,65,000 crore by FY25.”
Chandradeep Singh

 

“Despite Pandemic Setback, the Long-Term Prospect of Sports Fantasy Market Remain Positive”

The absence of major sports leagues and tournaments resulted in a huge turmoil for engaged stakeholders in the Sports Fantasy (FS) market. However, the disruption was short, market saw a major influx of new participants and well-funded new startups due to renewed interest brought on by the legalization of “sports betting” in the United States and with sports activities like IPL and French Open resuming along with many other sports leagues. Laws related to sports fantasy platforms are highly ambiguous in countries like Indonesia, Japan, Macau, Malaysia, Pakistan, Taiwan, and Vietnam. Absence of regulatory bodies along with ambiguous laws remains a major challenge for the engaged stakeholders in the sports fantasy industry.

“Technological Advancement and Launch of Various Apps”

Increasing internet penetration, availability of low-cost smartphones, and technological advancements among urban and rural populations have accelerated the growth of the sports fantasy market. A passionate fan base has appeared for the market, with an increasing number of people participating and competing in fantasy sports. Several platforms and applications are introduced in the market to help the users customize and analyze their players, allowing them to choose the right players for their teams based on data.

“India Emerging as the Biggest Fantasy Sports Market: New Sunshine Sector for APAC”

Fantasy sports user base grew 130% from 2016 to 2021. High smartphone penetration and low-cost data lead to growth. Cricket captures 85% of the revenue. Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities hold strong hold in the industry capturing 50% of the transactions. 60% of the user base fall in 25 to 40 years age bracket. Sports betting having circular effect on user making them more actively watch live sports. In a way FS is seeding the culture of sports in the country with more active and deeper involvement.

The fantasy sports industry is making huge economic inroads into India’s overall growth and development in multiple ways – creating highly skilled jobs, attracting foreign direct investment (FDI) and generating significant revenue for the exchequer. Besides, it is also propelling sporting culture and giving a boost to non-cricket sports as people tend to hone knowledge to participate in fantasy sports contests. The emergence of fantasy sports has increased the popularity of various traditional sports like kabaddi, hockey, women’s cricket and football. The Women’s World Cup generated 4.1 Crore viewing hours in India, a 218% rise from 2018. Fantasy Sports is promoting constant fan-engagement across traditional and NextGen platforms, leading to a greater viewership and TRP, thereby attracting more sponsorship and the overall development of sports infrastructure. The key players in India’s Fantasy Sports Market are Dream11, MyTeam11, Halaplay, Gamezy, etc.

“Fantasy Sports Market: Use of Fantasy Sports for Brand Promotion”

The growing popularity of fantasy sports is driving many brands to participate in fantasy leagues to market their products. For instance, Unilever launched its Dove Men+Care fantasy football hub. It provides consumers exclusive access to fantasy football suggestions and advice from ESPN analysts. Similarly, Hilton launched a free-entry fantasy racing contest for honors club members of hotel chains. The participation of such advertisers is expected to increase over the forecast period and is expected to promote the growth of the market.

The popularity of e-sports and the use of blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies in fantasy sports will further accelerate the growth of the market during the forecast period. “U.S./China combo dictates 65% of the market and India registers as the biggest emerging market”

Recent Developments:

  • Dream Sports signs 5-year deal with New Zealand Cricket for NFTs, gaming, and merchandising
  • Rotoworld rebranded as NBC Sports Edge upon its acquisition in February 2021.
  • DraftKings and the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation announced that they have agreed to a deal to expand their relationship and pave the way to offering the DraftKings online and retail sports betting experience in Puerto Rico, subject to applicable licenses and regulatory approvals being obtained.
  • NBA Designates company as official sports betting partner as Fanduel and NBA expand partnership
  • SharpLink Gaming to Acquire SportsHub Games Network: SharpLink a data-driven user engagement and conversion solutions for the U.S. sports betting and iGaming industries, today announced that it has entered into an Agreement and Plan of Merger pursuant to which it will acquire 100% of SportsHub Games Network, Inc.
  • Google plans to run a pilot to allow daily fantasy sports and rummy apps on the Play Store in India.

Key Statistics

  • Fantasy Sports market growing at 14.2% CAGR
  • 3/4th of fantasy sports participants plays Fantasy football
  • NBA and NHL are leading leagues in Fantasy Sports
  • Cricket growing at 38% annually in India Fantasy Sports Market
  • Indian Premier League (IPL) major contributor to Indian Industry
  • Benefits for India include creating highly skilled job & FDI
  • North America leads the global market
  • Asia Pacific is the most potential region
  • In terms of gender and age, fantasy sports and sports betting go shoulder to shoulder
  • 20% of 18+ Americans participate in fantasy sports as well as sports betting
  • 11% play Fantasy esports

Key Market Players in Fantasy Sports Market

  • Rotoworld (Comcast Corporation)
  • Fantasypros (Marzen Media LLC)
  • Roto Sports, INC
  • Fantrax
  • Good Gamer Corporation
  • NFL Enterprises LLC
  • Draftkings INC
  • Sportech INC
  • Fanduel
  • Dream Sports
  • Dream 11

Fantasy Sports Market Research Report Analysis Highlights

  • Historical data available (as per request)
  • Estimation/projections/forecast for revenue (2022 – 2032)
  • Data breakdown for every market segment (2022 – 2032)
  • Gross margin and profitability analysis of companies
  • Market Drivers
  • Market Challenges
  • Business trend and expansion analysis
  • Competition analysis/market share
  • Client list and case studies
  • Market entry strategy

Source: Market Decipher