Study: Online Gambling Soars As Aussie Punters Take To Apps

A new study into the gambling habits of Australians have revealed that horse racing remains our number one bet of choice, while we’re increasingly betting via online sports gambling apps.

The study by Roy Morgan Research and titled The Gambling Currency Report found that of all bets 50.9 per cent was for horse racing, 12.5 per cent were for greyhound racing and 11.4 per cent for harness racing.

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The remaining 25 per cent was for other sports betting with 7.6 per cent of that coming from NRL gambling and 6.8 per cent from AFL. The remaining 10 per cent is spread around all other sports including tennis, cricket, basketball, swimming, football, netball and cycling.

Australians aged 35-64 and those from NSW and Victoria most likely to bet

Analysis of the 10.5 per cent of Australians who’ve had a bet in the last three months reveals there are noteworthy differences with the proportion of Australians having a bet by age increasing until Australians reach retirement age at which point the likelihood of having a bet plunges.

Only 7.2 per cent of Australians aged under 25 have had a bet in the last three months compared to 9.3 per cent of those aged 25-34 years old, 11.3 per cent of those aged 35-49 years old and 12.6 per cent of 50-64 year olds – the highest of any age group, before dropping to 10.2 per cent of Australians of retirement age (65-plus).

Australians who’ve had a bet in the last three months: Age & State

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Australians in the two largest states are most likely to bet: 11.5 per cent of Victorians and 11.1 per cent of those from New South Wales (including ACT) have had a bet in the last three months.

The likelihood of betting is underneath the national average in the all other states with 9.8 per cent of those in medium-sized Queensland and Western Australia having a bet, 8.1 per cent of South Australians and only 7.2 per cent of those in Australia’s smallest State of Tasmania.

The Northern Territory, which is home to many of Australia’s sports betting agencies due to favourable gambling laws, bucks this trend with 11.1 per cent of Territorians having a bet in the last three months.

Commenting on the study, Roy Morgan CEO, Michele Levine, said: “Over two million Australians aged 18-plus have had a bet in the last three months whether on horse racing, greyhounds, or sporting events like the AFL, NRL, tennis, cricket or any of thousands of other sports available to bet on whether the sporting contest is undertaken here in Australia or almost anywhere around the world.

“It is hardly surprising that Australians having a bet are far more likely to be men (13.9 per cent of Australian men aged 18-plus) than women (7.3 per cent) whilst there is a strong co-relation between age and the likelihood of having a bet. Some 12.6 per cent of Australians aged 50-64 years old have had a bet in the last three months – clearly higher than any other age group compared to only 7.2 per cent of younger Australians aged 18-24 years old.

“Intriguingly the likelihood of having a bet also co-relates fairly well to the size of the State an Australian is from. The most likely Australians to have a bet are those from Australia’s largest States of New South Wales (11.1 per cent) and Victoria (11.5 per cent) whilst the least likely are from Australia’s two smaller States of South Australia (8.1 per cent) and Tasmania (7.2 per cent).

“This disparity is likely related to the lack of professional sporting content available in smaller markets. As a comparison there are 17 professional AFL/NRL/Super Rugby/A-League clubs in New South Wales, fourteen in Victoria, seven in Queensland and three each in Western Australia and South Australia. There are no professional football clubs in Tasmania.

“The relatively high proportion of Northern Territorians who’ve had a bet at 11.1% does buck this trend, however its worth remembering that the Northern Territory has long been a home to many Australians sports and horse racing betting companies due to the favourable laws in the jurisdiction,” Levine said.

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