Fantasy sports leagues allow users to participate in ‘the game’ (whatever the game may be) on a whole different level, controlling and managing fantasy teams which then reflect the real-world performance of the athletes.
This heightened interaction with any number of sports leagues is helping the Global Fantasy Sports Market grow by leaps and bounds, with a projected CAGR of 10.32 percent from 2014-2019. North America, led by the US, by far holds the major market share, followed by Europe. Latin America and the APAC region are the fastest growing markets in terms of user base.
For those interested in the world of fantasy sport, here are a few key trends to keep an eye on over the next few years:
Use of Fantasy Sports for Brand Promotion
The 18-50-year-old male population can be an elusive one for advertisers. While it may seem like a relatively broad group, it can be a hard one to reach exclusively with TV ads.
However, this group also happens to be the biggest end-user segment of the Global Fantasy Sports Market, accounting for about 40 percent of the overall market. A lot of big brands are catching onto the fact that fantasy sport sites are a great way to tap this demographic, and are turning to fantasy leagues to market their products—a trend which is expected to gain traction over the forecast period.
Recently, Unilever launched its Dove Men+Care fantasy football hub, which grants consumers exclusive access to fantasy football suggestions and advice from ESPN analysts. Toyota has purchased advertising space to sponsor the Yahoo fantasy football league recaps, and Hilton has launched a free-entry fantasy racing contest for honors club members of hotel chains. These global brands use fantasy sports for promotion mainly to target high-income customers falling in the 25-50 years range.
This influx of advertisers is expected to continue over the next few years, and promote growth in the Global Fantasy Sports Market.
Increase in Mergers and Acquisitions
You can expect to see some big shifts in the fantasy sports landscape over the next few years, as several vendors work to enhance their market presence and potential through mergers and acquisitions. Many vendors are also expected to acquire small and domestic suppliers during the forecast period to increase their market share, which, in turn, will help them enhance their distribution channels and improve their market outreach.
These mergers are expected to help vendors increase their customer base and add more revenue to the market during the forecast period.
Increased Demand from APAC Region and Latin America
While North America and Europe definitely dominate fantasy sports, the global market is witnessing increased end-user participation from the APAC region and Latin America.
However, the popularity of various sports differs from country to country. For instance, India has the highest number of fantasy cricket players, whereas fantasy basketball is the largest segment in China. In Japan, fantasy sumo is famous among end-users, while Brazil has been witnessing growth in the number of fantasy soccer players after the 2014 FIFA World Cup in the country.
