Gambling at casinos and sports betting are both extremely popular. It can be tricky to determine which one is most profitable for gambling operators. Casino gambling generates more revenue than sports betting, which has a higher profit margin and tends to have lower operational costs.
Sports betting – more profitable
Sports betting means placing bets on the outcome of sporting events like football and basketball games. A sportsbook generates revenue by taking a percentage of bets placed by bettors. This is known as the vigorish and typically ranges from 5% to 10%. Sportsbooks make a higher percentage of profit on each bet than casinos.
The house edge in casino gambling is usually between 1% and 15%. Sports betting has only been legal in the U.S. for a while in comparison with casino gambling. Online sports betting is becoming very popular and is taking sports betting to a new level.
Casino gambling – higher revenue
Casino gambling involves slots, table games, and live dealer games. Casinos generate revenue by taking a percentage of the bets placed by players. This is known as the house edge. Games like roulette and blackjack can be the most profitable for players as they have a low house edge.
In the first 10 months of 2024, commercial gambling revenue reached $59.11 billion. In 2023, sports betting revenue hit $11 billion. This year, it is expected to reach $14.20 billion. It is obvious that there is still quite a significant gap between the revenue that comes from commercial gambling and sports betting. Commercial gambling in the U.S. has been around for much longer than sports betting.
Overhead costs
Casinos need large physical spaces that often include restaurants and entertainment venues apart from the gaming floor. Maintaining these facilities can incur substantial overhead costs.
Sportsbooks have lower overhead costs than casinos. They don’t need the same level of infrastructure or personnel as casinos. They can operate in a dedicated area in a casino, and some operate exclusively online. The overheads are lower because they focus mainly on screens, betting terminals, and seating.
One of the trends in sports broadcasting is the emergence of live-streaming services. Fans can watch live streams and then place their bets in real time.
Commercial casinos often have high staffing costs as they need dealers, pit bosses, security personnel, customer service staff, etc. Sportsbooks don’t need so many employees, especially online sportsbooks. The roles at sportsbooks primarily involve calculating odds, IT maintenance, and customer support.
Catering to player preferences
When it comes to players, some prefer the anticipation and thrill of casino gambling while others enjoy the strategy and knowledge they need for sports betting. If they want to make quick money, they always have a chance of doing so when playing slots. However, it is as easy to lose. Slots have random number generators (RNGs) which make the results unpredictable. Gambling operators today will often offer players the option to play both casino games and place sports bets.