Is eSports Betting The Future of iGaming and Data

Esports betting has moved from the margins to the mainstream. Once a niche add-on in the sportsbook ecosystem, it now rivals traditional sports in both wagering volume and audience engagement. The vertical’s rapid rise reflects a wider shift across iGaming — one where data quality, product sophistication, and user experience are defining the new competitive edge. Few companies illustrate this shift more clearly than Kambi and its esports subsidiary, Abios. Together, they are betting on data-driven innovation to cement esports as a central pillar of modern sportsbooks.

• Esports Betting Goes Mainstream: Esports has grown from a niche offering to a top-five sport in betting volume and turnover, driven by audience expansion and product sophistication.

• Data and Technology as Differentiators: Kambi and Abios leverage real-time tournament data, advanced modelling, and scalable infrastructure to deliver low-latency, always-on betting experiences.

• Meeting Next-Gen Expectations: Modern esports bettors demand mobile-first, interactive, and personalised experiences, with features like Bet Builders and player props mirroring the depth of traditional sports betting.

From Niche to Necessity

Kambi reports that its esoccer product — simulated matches modeled on real-world football — has entered the company’s top five sports by both bet count and turnover. It’s a milestone that underscores how far esports betting has evolved from its experimental origins. The audience tells the same story. The 2024 League of Legends World Championship drew 50 million viewers, on par with major traditional sports events. According to Abios founder and managing director Anton Janér, the sector’s growth has been driven by both demand and product maturity.

“Esports has been far more than just a niche for some time,” Janér says. “Its growth is being driven not just by player demand, but by operators and suppliers redefining what an esports betting product can be.” That evolution, he adds, is no accident. It’s the result of sustained investment in modelling, market innovation, and data infrastructure — areas where Kambi and Abios have concentrated their efforts. Many operators have struggled to deliver credible esports products due to gaps in data access and in-house expertise. Kambi’s 2021 acquisition of Abios was designed to fix that. By integrating Abios’ data systems and esports analytics with Kambi’s sportsbook framework, the group has built an offering that spans everything from real-time odds to player props and Bet Builder functionality.

Abios’ data pipeline sources official, live tournament information directly from rights holders, reducing latency and ensuring event integrity. Its visual tools — including live scores, historical performance, and map-specific statistics — give users an experience comparable to that of traditional sports platforms. The result is a scalable, “always-on” betting ecosystem that supports 24/7 engagement. With matches in esoccer and ebasketball lasting roughly ten minutes, sportsbooks can fill calendar gaps between major tournaments or sports seasons — keeping user activity constant.

Kambi now reports a 300% year-on-year increase in monthly esports events, expanding coverage across flagship titles such as Counter-Strike 2, League of Legends, and Dota 2.

Meeting the Gen-Z Betting Standard

As esports attracts a younger, more digitally fluent audience, operators face pressure to rethink user experience. Today’s bettors expect seamless navigation, mobile-first design, and fluid transitions between viewing and wagering. “The modelling behind our CS2 Bet Builder allows the same combinability seen in soccer or the NFL,” Janér notes. “That level of sophistication keeps audiences engaged while setting a new benchmark for product depth.” For Kambi and Abios, that means more than fast odds. Their unified product suite offers consistent functionality and design across titles, giving operators flexibility while maintaining usability and visual coherence — key for retaining digital-native customers.

Integrity and compliance remain central. Kambi applies its traditional sports monitoring systems to esports, tracking irregular betting patterns in real time. Combined with Abios’ deep data sets, the approach supports automated compliance across multiple jurisdictions — an important advantage as global regulation evolves. While Europe remains a stronghold, Latin America is emerging as a core growth region for esports betting. Brazil, in particular, ranks third globally for Counter-Strike players and boasts deep cultural ties to gaming.

Kambi’s partnership with Brazilian fantasy platform Rei do Pitaco reflects that opportunity. The collaboration uses Kambi’s esoccer product — covering more than 20,000 matches monthly — to power fantasy betting experiences tailored to local audiences. Elsewhere in the region, Kambi’s infrastructure supports major operators in Colombia, Argentina, Mexico, and Peru, including BetPlay, RushBet, and BetWarrior. Despite Brazil’s ongoing regulatory uncertainty, esports continues to deliver growth for licensed partners across the continent.

The Data Advantage

As iGaming enters a new data-led phase, scale is becoming the ultimate differentiator. Kambi’s network now processes over $17 billion in annual liquidity and supports more than 50 partners. That scale feeds back into its data systems, refining pricing models and supporting real-time analytics.

“Over the next five years, esports will evolve into a mature, data-driven sports vertical with betting experiences that rival — and in some cases surpass — those of traditional sports,” Janér predicts. Abios’ proprietary data architecture and Kambi’s infrastructure give the company a unique position to drive that change. “Our technology is designed to deliver an ultra-low-latency experience that allows bettors to engage with confidence and precision,” Janér says.

Over the next five years, esports will evolve into a mature, data-driven sports vertical with betting experiences that rival — and in some cases surpass — those of traditional sports.

A Blurring Line

Esports’ integration into the iGaming mainstream represents more than market expansion — it signals a structural transformation in how betting content is consumed. The convergence of real-time data, interactive UX, and year-round engagement is making esports not just a vertical, but a model for the industry’s future.

“The line between esports and traditional sports betting is disappearing,” Janér concludes. “And we intend to stay ahead of that curve.”