Monthly Archives: March 2019

‘League Of Legends’ Spring Finals Expected To Draw Record Wagers

League of Legends (Flickr/artubr)

One of the world’s most popular video games, League of Legends is estimated to gather a total viewership of over 76 million people during their LCS Spring Finals this coming April. But Payperhead.com – the leading sportsbook software company in the industry – is expecting an unprecedented number of wagers being placed on the eSports event, a never-before-seen phenomenon.

“League of Legends is one of the most popular games in the video game industry. Their last Spring Split gathered a total viewership of over 75 million people worldwide.” explained Nate Johnson, Product Manager of PayPerHead.com. “This year’s ‘Split’ has been quite the rollercoaster ride of excitement and upset. During their Spring Finals this April, we’re expecting a 75% increase of wagers.”

Recently, PayPerHead has improved their list of eSports to their software, where agents can choose which eSport they provide to their players and the ability to set their own lines.  Currently, their platform supports games like League of Legends, DOTA, CS:GO and Overwatch. While the company admits that their supported games can be seen as a limited list, PayPerHead commented that the majority of eSport industry revenue stems from these major titles.

“People who are not quite versed in eSports, many compare the industry to a league like the NBA or NFL, however, this relation is completely wrong.” Explained Johnson. “Each video game can be seen as a league of their own. League of Legends can be related to the NFL, and Fortnite to the NBA.”

(Flickr/downloadsource.fr)

In previous months, PayPerHead.com reported an increase of users and agents in their 18-32 year old demographic. The company is anticipating that an increased amount of adult millennials are creating sportsbooks of their own, and including esports as one of the leading betting options they offer.

“Our sales team is getting bombarded with calls with inquiries regarding the eSports leagues we support and options for betting.” Explained Johnson. “People are specifically asking for League of Legends, which is a clear sign that we’re going to see a significant increase in bets throughout their spring finals.”

Ireland to get new gambling regulatory body, eventually

Ireland’s gambling market will get a new regulatory watchdog, although the new body won’t be in place until late-2020 at the earliest.

On Wednesday, Ireland’s government voted in favor of establishing a new gambling regulatory authority, which will be tasked with overseeing all gambling activity in the Republic, including online betting, via the issuing of licenses and the imposing of penalties on operators who fail to toe the line.

A report prepared by an interdepartmental working group suggested the regulator should also be tasked with monitoring gambling marketing, maintaining sports integrity and banning betting inducements such as issuing credit to customers for gambling purposes. The report also suggested the regulator consider imposing daily, weekly and monthly spending limits for gambling.

However, the government cautioned that the formation of the new body, which will report to the Department of Justice, could take up to 18 months. Minister of State David Stanton said the “ultimate aim” is that the regulator will be “self-financing” through fees and levies paid by companies authorized to conduct gambling activity in the country.