Every so often, TransUnion takes the pulse of the gambling industry. The current edition of its U.S. Betting Report might surprise those who think bettors naturally skew older.
According to the report, 57 percent of high-value bettors—those who spend more than $500 per month—are millennials, defined as those born between 1981 and 1996.
The fact that millennials are driving wagering online doesn’t surprise TransUnion Senior Director – Gaming Declan Raines.
“I might be biased as a millennial myself, but at this point, it’s pretty well known that online betting, particularly sportsbooks, usually trend to the millennial demographic,” says Raines during an interview with CDC Gaming. “This report reflects that. It wasn’t too surprising to see the results within this edition.”
During the recent National Council of Legislators from Gaming States summer meeting, one participant said that during a walk through of Rivers Casino in Pittsburgh, he saw gamblers who were “old, older, and primitive.” The reason more younger people aren’t present – in addition to the remarks being made on a Saturday morning – is that they are online.
“The oldest millennials are in their forties these days,” Raines said. “ … I also point to the fact that we’ve seen in previous editions (of the survey) that millennial demographic has increased their income the most.”
Raines adds that millennials have, for the most part, taken advantage of current market conditions, leveraging it to their advantage. Millennials have taken on more responsibilities in the business world and their increasd wages is reflected in that.
But millennials may also suffer from credit issues, and owe child support payments.
“This has been consistent throughout most versions of the report,” says Raines. “You have that divergent segment where you have a lot of nuance. … If you can have a millennial high income earner whose credit scores improved, they may have missed bills or payments. There’s a plethora of reasons why someone might have been referred to a collection agency.”
Raines adds that there also are individuals who have not increased their incomes and are spending discretionary income on betting products.
“That really speaks to my opinion there’s a well-known divergence in betting overall that high spenders can be at opposite ends of the spectrum,” he says. “What’s really the most important thing for an operator is how do you distinguish between someone who is playing at sustainable levels, within their means, versus someone who isn’t. That’s the challenge, because we all know that there are people who engage in unsustainable play.
“It’s important for operators, and for legislators, how do we identify those who are engaged in unsustainable play?”
Other takeaways from the U.S. Betting Report:
- Consumers who bet online and in land-based casinos appear to have a financial advantage, compared to non-bettors. For example, 20% of online bettors and 18% of land-based bettors indicated their incomes increased over the past three months—compared to just 4% of non-bettors. Similarly, 55% of online bettors and 58% of land-based bettors have good or excellent credit scores, while only 50% of non-bettors said the same.
- As the market matures, operators can anticipate increased scrutiny from media, with questions focused on the perceived social drawbacks of widespread betting. Other gaming markets such as the UK and Australia have experienced similar cycles leading to increased regulatory requirements around responsible gaming. In fact, U.S. state regulators are already evaluating how best to improve consumer protections, while striking the difficult balance between state tax revenues and the risk of pushing consumers to unregulated and offshore providers.
- Approximately 54% of US sports bettors earn more than $100,000. More sports wagerers, 89%, are employed than the general public, 81%.
