A sports fan watching a football match in 2026 can already see how different betting has become from the traditional experience of checking a few pre-match odds. A mobile screen can update while the game is being played, and changing events on the field can quickly affect the markets available to customers. At the same time, the industry is dealing with a more complicated regulatory environment in which governments now have to decide how wagering should operate alongside newer forms of event-based trading.
A quick look at the scale of this market reveals why these changes matter. In the US alone, commercial sports wagering generated $16.89 billion in revenue during 2025, an increase of 22.6% from the previous year, according to the American Gaming Association (AGA). By the second quarter of 2026, US sportsbooks recorded $38.84 billion in sports betting handle, up 7.8% year over year.
Based on these numbers, the next five years are unlikely to produce one single transformation. Instead, several gradual changes could change how fans bet and how sportsbooks build their platforms. So, what exactly could change between now and 2031?
The experience could become more customer-focused
Twenty years ago, placing a bet online was a very different experience from what sports fans encounter today. Websites were generally designed around desktop screens and offered far less information during a live match. A bettor had to move between pages to find a particular market, while updates could take longer to appear.
In other words, the experience was largely built around completing a transaction rather than keeping pace with everything happening during a sporting event. Modern bettors have evolved, and they no longer fancy such experiences. In fact, if your website works well on desktop but fails on mobile, you may end up losing a significant share of visitors.
Unfortunately, such bad experiences are part of why UXCam believes 88% of users won’t return to a website. At a time when acquiring new customers has become super challenging, no sportsbook would want to incur such a loss. This is why the focus has shifted from just offering odds to simplifying the experience.
It’s why the modern onboarding process feels much simpler than it did in the early days of online wagering. A fan can move from registration to the sports section without having to navigate through several separate pages.
And since competition is expected to become fiercer, this shift could become even more noticeable in the coming years. Sportsbooks may place greater emphasis on reducing the number of steps required to find information or move between different parts of a platform.
Regulation could become a bigger part of the industry
Betting on your favorite team should be for entertainment purposes only. And caution must always be exercised to avoid going beyond personal limits. This is one reason regulation could become an even more visible part of this industry over the next five years.
After all, the industry has moved from a niche sector and is now drawing the attention of millions of followers worldwide. According to Statista, if this trend continues, the industry’s users will increase, hitting over 314 million by 2030.
Then there’s also the issue of offshore platforms. Some markets where sports betting is available through licensed operators also have customers who can access offshore platforms. In such regions, protecting bettors can be challenging because offshore sites usually operate outside local regulations.
And if governments have to get ahead of these offshore platforms, regulation cannot just be about setting rules for licensed sportsbooks. It also has to involve making it harder for unlicensed businesses to reach customers in regulated markets. Thankfully, some jurisdictions have already begun addressing this challenge. The Dutch regulator, for instance, reported that 91% of Dutch gamblers used only legal operators in the second half of 2025.
The rising number of bettors who bet on regulated sites is also something to watch. With a licensed sportsbook, you can be sure the platform is accountable to a relevant gambling authority. If any challenge arises, a regulator can investigate whether the platform has followed the rules governing the market. That accountability improves trust, and it could be something many bettors consider before placing a bet.
Security will become non-negotiable
Imagine the amount of customer data available in an industry that’s expected to have over 300 million users within the next four years. It’s this information that cybercriminals are always seeking. They only need to spot a vulnerability in a sportsbook’s systems, and that’s it.
But who wants to be involved in a cyberattack at a time when customer trust has become a growing concern? And not just that; cyberattacks can lead to serious financial losses. But no bookmaker wants to find himself here, which is why most of them are prioritizing online security.
That makes the future of sports wagering less about offering bets and more about the convergence of user experience, regulation and technology.
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