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NEW YORK, July 17, 2020/ PRNewswire/ - In March 2020, the unique coronavirus swept through the U.S., requiring stay-at-home orders and business closures across the country - consisting of all but 2 of the country's almost 1,000 casinos. Mentioned in today's commentary includes: Wynn Resorts, Limited (NASDAQ: WYNN), Intel Corporation (NASDAQ: INTC), Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT), Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN), HUYA Inc. (NYSE: HUYA).

That very same month, New Jersey, Delaware, Nevada, and Pennsylvania - the 4 U.S. states with legal online poker websites - all reported record-high online video gaming incomes. In specific, Nevada, the nation's gambling hub, reported more than a 90% boost from the same month last year.

Even before COVID-19 struck, the online gaming market has been growing tremendously for many years. In 2017, the international market was valued at around $45.8 billion. By 2024, some professionals forecast international online gambling bets will strike nearly $95 billion. And the worldwide market for online gaming is approximated to grow by 11.5% yearly up until 2027.

"There is a big shift concerning online betting and we are perfectly situated to take advantage of that," said FansUnite CEO and co-founder Darius Eghdami in a special interview.

While FansUnite (FANS.CN; FUNFF.PK) just went public on May 5, 2020, it's quickly emerging as a serious player (pun planned) in the general public online gambling market.

For one thing, it has a few of the most excellent forward-facing sports wagering innovation in the market. Its proprietary software allows the business to market special services and products, and-more importantly-provide increased transparency which permits regulative oversight in a market that desperately needs it ... all while conserving its consumers cash.

Also, the business's management team-which includes some of the best gamers in the company, with decades of combined experience-is pursuing aggressive development through mergers and acquisitions; in a couple of brief months, it's already finished or signed numerous strategic deals to grow its user base and greatly broaden its service offerings ... and it's actively looking for more.

Specifically, as increasingly more states legislate sports wagering, FansUnite has its eye on capturing the emerging U.S. sports wagering market.

A minute in history ... and a huge potential catalyst

Due to a lack of policy and oversight, the U.S. sports betting industry has actually traditionally been shrouded in secret.

But in the last couple of years, that's begun to alter.

In May 2018, Delaware was the very first U.S. state to legalize sports betting following a historic Supreme Court victory. The win set a precedent for any other state that wanted to legalize sports wagering.

Ever since, other states have been quick to follow match. Since June 2020, 18 states had actually legalized sports betting, while 5 more (consisting of Washington, D.C.) have actually just recently passed costs that would enable them to do so.

In the meantime, Congress has also been considering sports betting legislation at the federal level. Although any major legislation has yet to be enacted, there's been talk: In September 2018, Congress held a hearing on standard sports wagering for the first time in a years.

"Sports betting is inevitable-so let's make certain it's done right," Ex-Senator OrrinHatch stated in journalism release.

If passed, the expense might potentially serve as a huge tailwind for the sports betting industry.

Experts believe sports betting might be worth some $7-8 billion in the U.S. alone by 2025, up from $833 million in 2019.

The online wagering boom is so huge, in truth, that even Sin City giants are getting on board. Wynn Resorts (WYNN) is a renowned Las Vegas staple. Despite some obstacles from the COVID-19 pandemic, Wynn has actually performed well versus its rivals, even after a bigger industry-level decrease. And now it's wanting to broaden its online betting footprint. Though the platform is only offered in a couple of U.S. states at the moment, it will likely grow as more states legalize sports betting.

Now, let's talk about the elephant in the space ...

If you have actually never ever become aware of esports ... well, you might be a little behind the curve. So let's capture up: Esports is an umbrella term for the taking off professional video gaming industry. Professional players compete, spectators view online (and wager), and brands promote.

While it started as a niche-and frequently disparaged-hobby area, it's developed into a billion-dollar industry in its own right. Sports companies like the NBA, in addition to legends like Michael Jordan, have esports collaborations and recommendations, while significant networks like ESPN have been offering it increased direct exposure.

Total esports viewership hit 454 million in 2019 ... and is to grow at a compound annual development rate (CAGR) of 9% to strike 646 million in 2023. The industry is also seeing major growth in financial backing. Investments in 2017 were at about $490 million ... while in 2018, they strike around $4.5 billion-marking a mindblowing 837% YoY boost.

This is why Amazon (AMZN) paid almost $1 billion to obtain streaming giant Twitch. Amazon's Twitch.tv, as the de facto leader in the area, with over 15 million unique visitors per day, has actually become so engrained in the market that brand-new video game consoles even have the platform's streaming functionality built in. It's so dominant, in reality, that it represents 1.8 percent of peak internet traffic.

Seeking to follow in Twitch's steps, nevertheless, Chinese streaming giant Huya (HUYA)is looking to sculpt out its location in the esports market. As a part of its enthusiastic and aggressive strategy to dive into Western markets, Huya is seeking to partner with some of the leading teams in the service, and it's got a substantial war chest to help its cause.

Even tech huge Microsoft (MSFT) is getting on board. The maker of the Xbox and publisher behind such groundbreaking titles as Halo and Destiny, Microsoft all of a sudden ended up being a heavy-hitter in the gaming market in the early 2000s. More just recently, the business's computer game department has struck a couple of snags - like the rest of the industry, revenues were held back by spiraling costs. Despite this, nevertheless, Microsoft has actually grown, and might even become the world's very first $2 trillion company.

And it would be difficult to overlook the hardware manufacturers in this market. Intel Corporation (INTC) is a leader in several fields of innovation. The forward-thinking market giant is the foundation of lots of laptops and PCs running the Windows operating system. The company has actually been so successful in its deal-making and advertising that it is impossible to escape its impact. Without Intel, esports and even online wagering might not exist in the method we understand it now. The chipmaker is everywhere, and while there is some emerging competitors, it stays the de facto leader in its field.

And FansUnite just made a game-winning acquisition into the esports market ...

At the end of June, simply over a month after going public, FansUnite (FANS.CN; FUNFF.PK) announced that it signed an offer to acquire Askott Entertainment, Inc., a gaming software application company based out of Vancouver. Askott is an acknowledged leader of the esports gambling market, offering wagering software for multiple dream sports leagues, casino-style video games, and various other esports.

The Askott acquisition must provide FansUnite the best entry point into esports wagering. And as more U.S. specifies legislate the practice, opening up the marketplace for companies to move in, FansUnite might quickly end up being a substantial recipient of this quickly taking off growth pattern.

An attempted and true development method & industry-leading tech

Back in March, FansUnite (FANS.CN; FUNFF.PK) officially got McBookie-a white-label virtual sportsbook that mainly serves the Scottish market. The acquisition was a clever tactical relocation by the company. The purchase featured an integrated active user base of 10,000 individuals, along with $100 million in collective turnover over the previous 3 years.

Aside from its gotten assets, FansUnite boasts its own exclusive innovation. In addition to its own business-to-customer (B2C) sportsbook, set to introduce later on this year, appropriately branded Sportsbook, the company will sell its "white label" technology to business-to-business (B2B) clients (i.e., companies that wish to develop their own betting platforms). In return, FansUnite would get a part of their customers' "house" earnings.

The bottom line

Online gambling is already booming-and it's set to take off even greater in years to come.

Recently IPOed FansUnite has actually been running in the industry for years. It's got an established user base and industry-recognized innovation ... it's scaling its B2B and B2C organization segments ... and it's concentrated on an aggressive M&A growth technique. It's got a leadership group with decades of experience, and sponsorship from significant investors.

As sports betting becomes legalized across the U.S., FansUnite has a plan to move into the market. And even as we question the status of our favorite professional sports leagues in a post-COVID-19 world ... and how that may impact the sports betting industry ... the company has got that covered, with an eye on the burgeoning esports industry.

FansUnite (FANS.CN; FUNFF.PK) currently has a market cap of just $30. Given what we're seeing in the market, it's difficult to tell where that might go. But with its declared corporate technique, FansUnite might provide the best early phase entry indicate a market expected to grow much bigger in simply a few brief years.

By. Chloe Hawthorne