Today, the first round of the NCAA tournament will begin and college basketball fans everywhere are getting ready for it. However, they are not the only ones as college basketball bettors have already begun to place their bet. Sports betting operators and analysts expect to see another record-breaking year for March Madness Betting. In fact, according to the latest estimate, Americans will Legally Wager $2.72 Billion On March Madness this year.
This is an 81.33% increase over last year when Americans made $1.4 billion legal bets during March Madness in 2023. For comparison purposes, that is 11.69% the amount of betting that took place during Super Bowl LVIII. Of course, that is like comparing apples and oranges. This is because football is the most popular sport in the US and we are comparing college vs professional sports. However, the point is that it legal sports betting in the U.S. is rapidly increasing!
Betting on March Madness on the Down-Low
While $2.7 billion is a large amount of money, it is only a fraction of wagers made thru other methods. This is because a large percentage of gamblers continue to use offshore sportsbooks and bookies. While there are no exact numbers for obvious reasons, an estimated $63.8 billion in illegal wagers were made by Americans in 2022
For example, records of winnings from offshore sportsbooks are not sent to the IRS. Thus, they are basically tax free winning unless the bettor reports them. In addition, offshore sportsbook can offer bigger bonuses and promotion because their overhead cost is smaller.
Despite legal sportsbooks being more available, they are not able to compete with the local bookies. The first reason is that most bookies are credit bookies. This means, that they give their client credit to bet on and settle-up every week.
In addition, many people are unable to place a basketball bet near them even if it is legal in their state. Until online sports betting becomes more prominent, bettors will continue to place their bets with a bookie or offshore sportsbook.
And of course, there is also the hundreds of thousands March Madness Bracket pool taking place during the tournament. While it is just harmless fun amongst friends and co-workers, they are technically not legal. However, unless your bracket pool has a lot of money at stake, law enforcements will probably not bother with it.
Americans will Legally Wager $2.72 Billion On March Madness in 2024 – Breaking it Down
March Madness Bracket Pool has become an American Tradition – American love to bet on the annual NCAA Men’s Division I Basketball Tournament. Or at least, they like to fill out a March Madness bracket amongst friends or at the office. Whether they like college basketball or not, people will just fill a bracket out to generates more comradery.
In addition, since March Madness is a tournament that lasts 3 weeks, it offers a longer lasting experience for fans. As the years go by, more and more Americans will fill out a March Madness Bracket. Especially, if they went to college and their team happens to be on it.
March Madness is as Popular as Ever
According to a study by NC Sharp, 51% of American in-person workers plan on watch the tournament while at work. As to hybrid workers, 73% of them are planning on watch the tournament. On the other hand, 61% of remote workers will be watching the game from home.
It is a single-elimination tournament made of 0f 68 teams that compete for the national championship.
More People can Legally Bet on March Madness – We can attribute the increase to now having 38 states with legal sports betting. North Carolina became the latest state to launch one sports betting and went live last week. Therefore, now might be a good time to open a sportsbook and profit from it. It might just be much easier than you thought. Read this tutorial on How to start a basketball betting business to see if you have what it takes.
Open a Basketball Sportsbook with PricePerPlayer.com for $5 or Less Per Player!
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