The progress made by technology is unstoppable and trying to resist innovation is futile. The betting shop has been for decades a British institution, with locals flocking to these venues to wager. Sports betting continues to attract many fans to these land-based bookmakers, but their online counterparts get the lion’s
share. The overwhelming majority of new players joints online gambling operators, while traditional betting shops are clinging to their existing customers.
The end of the British betting shop is nigh
Statistics never lie and a quick glance at the number of people currently betting at local shops, compared to their former customer base is a bit frightening. Even though more people than ever before betting on sports in the UK, this doesn’t reflect in the numbers posted by traditional betting shops. Most of the new players
are young individuals and this demographic is hooked on mobile devices and the Internet. For them, online casinos and sportsbooks represent the obvious choice and they don’t even consider betting shops.
Technology is accessible to people of all ages and online sports betting is surprisingly simple. Many new casino sites in 2020 offer sports betting and bingo product. This explains why even older punters are more inclined to try Internet wagering. The moment they realize the simplicity and sheer convenience of this type of betting, they have no hesitation to forsake the British betting shops forever. As this trend is gaining strength, traditional sports betting parlors are losing much of their appeal and struggle to stay afloat.
Don’t scratch British betting shops just yet
The future looks bleak for the classic British betting shop, but we shouldn’t expect this type of gambling to simply go away overnight. They are indeed attracting fewer customers and even lose some of their active players to online gaming parlors. On the other hand, competition is less intense nowadays among local betting shops, as new players focus almost exclusively on Internet gambling. As long as they can keep their operational costs in check, these old-school betting parlors can soldier on for many years.
Another reason why British betting shops are still growing and should be expected to survive for many years is the support they enjoy. In the United Kingdom, the biggest sports betting brands have diversified their portfolio to include both online and offline gambling. The revenue made online is significant and these companies can afford to divert some of the profits to their struggling betting shops. As long as the latter break even or suffer minimal losses, these Internet juggernauts can afford to fund them.
Online bookmakers have the advantage of offering bonuses, live betting opportunities and a broader selection of sports and markets. They also process payments fast, but not as quickly as the classic British betting shop, which pays winners as soon as the game has ended. Those punters who want to cash out their profits as soon as possible have a good reason to bet locally instead of loading an online account.
