DraftKings surpassed FanDuel in popularity. Women are catching up. And Fanatics has some work to do to pull themselves out of the cellar.
These are some of the findings in the YouGov study on sportsbooks in the U.S. Surprisingly, bet365 came out on top in a number of indices, like young adults from 25 to 34, where the sportsbook captured 40 percent of bettors.
YouGov, a U.K.-based research and data analytics firm, focused on sportsbook preferences and demographics. The company surveyed more than 2,000 current and prospective sports bettors between January 5 and 18, 2024.
Some highlights:
- 71 percent are current sports bettors
- 29 percent would consider signing up within a year
- 65 percent of patrons range from 25 to 44
- 28 percent are female
- 72 percent are male
- 73 percent bet on more than one mobile app
The primary age demographic, 25 to 44, averaged betting using three different apps. Older gamblers, those 45 to over 55, prefer no more than two online sportsbooks.
DraftKings, FanDuel, and bet365 rank as the most popular online sportsbooks. Younger demographics favor newer sportsbooks, such as ESPN BET, according to Covers.
Young adults, 25 to 34, prefer bet365 with 40 percent of sports bettors. Indeed, the sportsbook business ranked first in all age categories. The two youngest age categories—21-24 and 25-34—are dominated by bet365, but the veteran DraftKings and FanDuel rule the other three age groups, with DraftKings slightly ahead.
In the 21-24 category, ESPN BET’s usage reached 18 percent, good for fourth place, ahead of BetMGM and Caesars Sportsbooks.
When combining data from all five age demographics, DraftKings ranked at the top with 35 percent of the U.S. betting population, while FanDuel came in second at 32 percent. Fanatics Sportsbook drew 9 percent at the bottom of the pack. Out of the other seven online sportsbooks included in YouGov’s survey, only BetMGM and ESPN BET finished above 15 percent.
