Opening Thoughts

Betting markets are such an intriguing sector as they can highlight areas many sports fans don’t see. For instance, the popularity of eSports has resulted in a flurry of betting providers now offering markets on dozens of professional video gaming tournaments and competitions. While Counter-Strike 2 is clearly one of the most popular and drives a lot of this action, plenty of niche games have also started to find an audience.

Not only does this open up new areas of entertainment for those interested in video gaming betting, but it also opens up a market for bettors who are interested in niche markets. It’s a two-way street – and while we will look at some of the other factors that have contributed to the rise in the number of people betting on video games – this is one of the key points to remember.

Online Platforms Becoming Dominant

Throughout the last two decades, the gambling world has embarked on a massive digital shift, and the endgame is where the market lies now – digital platforms dominate it. Sure, some casino gamers and sports bettors will opt for mobile apps instead of websites, but there’s no denying that digital platforms now dominate this space.

By the early 2000s, there was an enormous and noticeable shift in the dynamic of internet betting. Entire sectors within the casino gaming industry, such as slot gaming, were quickly shifting their attention to websites and online platforms, and by the 2010s, mobile apps started to play a huge role, too.

For instance, casino gamers who play slots can now seek out online platforms that cater to their every preference. Before the internet, land-based providers had a small number of slots available. Still, in the modern digital market, countless new ideas and themes are available in the slot gaming world.

Slot gaming companies were able to harness the popularity of this sector and then mirror this popularity online. Developers were able to find an audience and provide a facility that made it easier for those who had this gambling preference to access these markets on their laptops, PCs, and phones—and this is precisely what happened in the world of eSports betting, too.

How CS2 Became A Popular Betting Market

CS2 can thank digital platforms for the way it’s risen through the ranks of the gaming world, too. It’s quickly become one of the most popular FPS games on the market, and the popularity in the betting markets underwrites this popularity.

While much of the CS2 betting market’s popularity is due to the game’s overarching popularity, a raft of changes have meant that social media companies and affiliate marketers have embraced the idea of professional video gaming betting markets.

Zywoo is the top CS2 player on the planet, helping to lift the sport in his homeland of France and across Europe, which features some of the biggest gambling markets in the world. He often streams his CS2 expertise and is often called “The Chosen One”—given that he was born on the same day Counter-Strike was initially released in November 2000.

Without the big names to prop up the market and create engaging and eye-catching performances in the world’s biggest tournaments, there simply wouldn’t be that many eyes on CS2. Although we can’t say for certain that this would result in fewer people betting on the tournament outcome, we only need to look at the correlation between the world’s most prominent sports to see that more viewers lead to more betting activity.

The Rise Of Tablets & Smartphones

Smartphones have played a seminal role in our current world. Not only have they changed betting and gaming forever, but they are also used as a blueprint for other growing markets that want to change the shape and fabric of our society.

For CS2 betting, this equation is a lot simpler. More smartphones and tablets meant that people could stay updated with the latest tournament news, watch them on the go, and access betting markets while they were doing so. This wasn’t just specific to markets prior to the game; the exponential rise of in-play betting has mostly stemmed from the rise of smartphones being used to access betting markets.

Final Thoughts

CS2 betting has been able to ride the wave of some of the broader hysteria that has followed the world of professional video gaming over the last decade. There’s no denying that Counter-Strike 2 has done a lot of this lifting and attracts millions of gamers, but the whole industry has been going through a huge boom period. From $30 million Fortnite tournaments to the League Of Legends World Championships being held in stadiums.

All of this has contributed to the rising popularity of video game betting markets – and with CS2 sitting right at the higher echelon of this market, it becomes a lot easier to see why it’s risen with such speed. Throw in the ease of mobile phone accessibility and online platforms continuing to provide greater access, and it becomes a much more straightforward answer to piece together.