The coronavirus infection is gradually subsiding, preparing to move into the category of complex but treatable diseases.
The world is talking about a miracle vaccine against COVID19. Optimists believe in the victory of medicine, and pessimists are frightened with the second wave – another self-isolation, the economy’s fall “below the plinth,” the impoverishment of the population.
Against this background, the gambling business has to spin somehow. It is especially difficult for land-based casinos, offline bookmakers, and slot machine halls.
Left during the period of self-isolation without visitors and the support of the authorities, they suffered heavy losses. After the quarantine was lifted, the situation did not improve much. However, at least a little, land-based casinos stopped falling into the “abyss.”
There is no denying the fact that the pandemic has closed the pathways for the land-based casinos; therefore, though the gambling business has shifted and then survived in the online spaces, such as vulkan casino, offline gambling has witnessed a significant lapse. So, let’s see how pandemic affects land-based casinos.
Lotteries
It can be assumed that online lotteries will feel good. If tickets are sold via the Internet, and the drawing process takes place with the help of RNG, then nothing prevents the participants from playing from home.
This is exactly the option chosen in Kazakhstan, where from March 19 to April 15, they transferred KENO, 777, and Loto 6/49 to a random number generator.
No Audience Dilemma
The TeleBingo lottery, which was filmed in the studio with the audience, was switched to broadcasting the draw via Youtube. But the dilemma of such a situation is that there are no presenters in the frame, only the lottery drum.
Fewer Sold Outs
Difficulties arise in those lotteries where tickets are sold only (or mainly) in paper form. We can recall the example of China, where the volume of lottery ticket sales decreased by 43.5% in January 2020- a direct consequence of the strict quarantine imposed by the authorities.
US Conditions
It seems that as the situation worsened, lottery ticket sales also collapsed in the US, where almost all tickets were purchased offline. The more challenging the quarantine measures were, the fewer were the points of sale for the potential buyers.
Therefore, such land-based casino and gambling activity was directly affected because of the local government’s pandemic restrictions and the hesitation of the people to purchase the physical objects.
Suspension in Spain
As the most severe development of events, we can cite the example of Spain, where the sale of lotteries was suspended since March 16, 2020. It was necessary to impose similar restrictions in other countries across the world. Therefore, such was a crucial time for survival. However, the land-based casino business had to suffer.
Bookmakers
Major sporting events around the world were also suspended because of the pandemic lockdown. The European Championship 2020 was postponed, matches in Primera, NBA, NHL, Champions League, WTA, and ATP were also cancelled.
As a result, there was a real collapse of the shares of bookmakers on the stock exchange: in just one month, the shares of William Hill fell more than twice.
Disappointing Conditions in Russia
Conditions in Russia also dwindled as, according to logicasino.com, the Russian market also faced restlessness: representatives of the large betting company Liga Stavok said that the betting industry in the country had lost almost 30%.
According to the First TsUPIS, the gambling market continued to fall as the Tokyo Olympics were cancelled. Therefore, matches of many tournaments were not completed during the season.
At the same time, bookmakers were struggling to expand their lines in other, less significant tournaments and also opened popular bets on everything related to the coronavirus.
Representatives of Parimatch BC launched a special section dedicated to this virus called “Quarantine-2020”. There you can bet on the most unusual scenarios – predict the price of buckwheat and other cereals, etc.
Australian Bookmakers Bets
While at the side of British bookmakers, they offered to bet on continuing the English Premier League season 2019/2020. The championship was officially stopped.
Until that time, the bookmakers offered to guess which month the next Premier League match 2019/2020 would be held. Under such unsure conditions, the Australian bookmakers, in turn, started accepting bets on the weather forecast.
Currency Issues
Exchange rates were another outlet for bookmakers who had lost the lion’s share of their earnings due to the coronavirus. Bookmakers accept bets on the US dollar against the many foreign currencies.
Market Moving to Online
The pandemic still has its influence on the global market, and recently we can witness the reluctance in the investments in the land-based business. Masses have moved to the online spaces, and so does the online gambling industry.
The casinos have widely introduced online lottery tickets and tips for buying them. Therefore, online spaces such as are highly welcoming for potential players, gaining users’ trust by providing security services.
However, the fact remains that, in the online space, many of the users are not interested in watching the winning announcements, or there are no spectators at all, which makes it less exciting and social as compared to the land casinos.