There’s something of a silent revolution occurring in the sports betting industry at the moment and it may be one that you are entirely unaware of. Over the past few years, the emergence of a 
new sporting contest, eSports, has gained prominence, so much so that many sports books, including Coral, are now offering many different eSports bets.
Now for those of you that are not au-fait with the world of multi-player online gaming, or Multiplayer Online Battle Arena (MOBA) games, then this may be something completely unknown to you.
However, over the rest of this article, we are going to take you through all you need to know and understand about eSports and the burgeoning eSports betting industry, which is arguably the fastest growing sports betting industry in the world today.
Let’s begin at the very beginning by assuming that you have no idea what eSports actually refers to.
What exactly are eSports?
The name eSports is simply a term that refers to ‘electronic sports’, although the sports element can be something of a misnomer as the games tend not to be based on sports. The sporting element comes from the fact that the games pit individuals or teams of players against other individuals or teams in a competitive contest with the object simply being to beat your opponents.
Technically, there are many forms of eSports and indeed many of the popular games you can now play online from your PC or console device (such as PS4 of an Xbox One) against other players online, could be classed as a similar form of eSports game. Good examples of this include the FIFA series of games or the Call of Duty franchise.
However, just as there are different levels of football across the football pyramid (from the top professionals in the highest leagues, to children playing Sunday league), in the eSports world, there are different levels of eSports gaming. When it comes to the eSports betting industry, it is the world’s top players and tournaments, not to mention a select few eSports games that are the focus of this new form of betting.
How long have people been betting on eSports?
In truth, the eSports betting industry is a relatively new phenomenon and it is still very much in its infancy, with the first eSports betting sites only being founded around 3-4 years ago. It took sites such as Coral a little longer to offer this form of betting but now almost all the top betting sites will offer betting on some form of eSports.
What is certainly true however is that in that period, eSports betting has grown hugely as an industry and as eSports gains greater fame around the world, the likelihood is that this is a betting market that will continue to grow quickly for many years to come as the potential betting opportunities are almost limitless.
Is eSports betting a ‘safe’ market to bet on?
Of course, one of the most common things any punter would ask when betting on a relatively unknown market is whether it is a safe market to bet on. Of course, if you think you are betting on two teenagers playing FIFA against each other in their bedroom, then you would think that eSports betting is in no way likely to be a safe bet, but the truth is, it is as safe a betting choice as any top sports betting market you can bet on today.
The reason for that is that it is only the top level eSports tournament, that feature the top eSports professional players and teams, with clear rules and regulations and in some cases, huge sponsorship and massive prize money, that are available to bet on.
At this level, the industry is well policed and you can be sure that when you bet on an event, that you are betting on a fair and keenly fought out contest.
How well regulated are the top-level eSports tournaments?
At the highest level, all the top tournaments are policed by teams of experts so that teams and individuals cannot collude. Beside’s should any player try to do so, then they would risk being banned from playing eSports (which would severely hamper their chances of earning a living from the game in the future).
Yet that’s not all, there’s now drug testing in place for eSports gamers to ensure that players are not taking any drugs to enhance their reaction times and give them a better chance of success.
Do I need to be an eSports expert to bet on it?
As with any sports betting market, if you have a little (or a lot) of knowledge about the sport in question then this can be an advantage when betting, but there is absolutely no requirement for 
you to be an eSports expert in order to bet on it.
You can simply try and pick winners from the wide range of bets available at Coral on the different eSports events and see how things pan out, or you can conduct a little research using some of the excellent stats sites now available for eSports fans to keep track of the latest tournament, events and individual teams and players.
What are the main types of eSports games and markets I am likely to find available to bet on at Coral?
In the eSports world there are relatively few games that sites offer regular betting on. The most common eSports games and tournaments you will be able to bet on at Coral Sport with are based around the following games:
- League of Legends (LoL) – A fantasy themed MOBA game contested between teams of players
- Defense of the Ancients 2 (DOTA 2) – Another fantasy-themed MOBA game, developed by a different studio to LoL
- StarCraft II (SCII) – A space-themed game generally played by individual players rather than teams
- Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) – A first person shoot-em up where teams of players compete against each other across a series of maps to win the game.
Occasionally, you may also find betting available for other less popular eSports games such as Hearthstone, Brood War, Smash, Call of Duty, Heroes, World of Tanks and Overwatch.
Will I make a larger or smaller profit betting on eSports compared to other forms of betting?
How profitable eSports betting is for an individual depends, like all other forms of betting, on how well you research your bets and/or how lucky you are when it comes to placing them. In short, eSports can be as profitable as any other form of sports betting, if you are good enough, or lucky enough.
