Nigerians have a knack for enjoying sports, particularly soccer. The most popular sport on the planet has cemented its place in our culture, and it should come as no surprise by now that the English Premier League receives (probably) most of the attention - with the Nigerian Professional Football League being a close second.
It helps that big names like Obafemi Martins, Nwankwo Kanu, Yakubu and Shola Ameobi (just to name a few) have all enjoyed successful careers playing for big english teams.
The bridge between enjoying soccer and participating in sports betting is a short one, which is one of the biggest reasons behind the surge in the number of available sportsbooks in Nigeria, as well as the fact that mobile devices are becoming more and more accessible. Mobile phones offers a wide range of options for bettors to easily sign up with an online sportsbook and start wagering money on the outcomes of sports events.
Which then brings us to our main question behind this article: which sportsbooks are gaining the most popularization amongst Nigerian punters?
The data shown by Google seems to be quite clear about this. The most dominant player in the sports betting market is Bet9ja, which has more searches than Facebook and Youtube. Other national sportsbooks are also available but they don’t seem to come close to the interest generated in Bet9ja. Tough bear in mind that this only speaks about online sportsbooks, not land based betting shops.
Educational content on how to get started in online betting sites is more present than ever, with one such guide explaining what punters can expect to find in the Bet9ja mobile platform. The best betting companies are fully aware that mobile device usage in on the rise, which they can leverage to make their services more readily available.
Note however that Bet9ja’s first place is facing increased competition, not just from other national brands but also international ones who are eager to try out the Nigerian market, which according to some specialists, is ripe with business opportunities.
Such competition can be beneficial for the players, because online sportsbooks are forced to come up with innovative services and appealing odds in order to keep up with the pace.
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Business