You Can Now Bet on Drone Racing With Betfair
Betfair announced a deal with the Drone Racing League and began taking wagers on the UK’s first professional drone racing event.
The company, which is part of Paddy Power Betfair, offered a range markets for the Allianz World Championship held at Alexandra Palace in London between the 13th and 16th of June 2017.
A typical racing drone in flight.
The event marked the beginning of professional drone racing the UK. Competitors piloted their high-tech machines through a multi-dimensional indoor course reaching speeds of up to 80mph. The Drone Racing League (DRL) was set up in 2016 and currently has 16 pilots on its books, six of whom are professional. It hosts race events throughout European and North American cities including Miami, Munich, New Orleans, Boston, and London. During its first season, the DRL attracted more than 30 million viewers worldwide.
Drone racing is the newest addition to the UK sports betting market that is currently dominated by football. Online betting companies are responsible for around 30% of the total £13bn spent by UK gamblers per year. The most popular sport for punters is football, followed by tennis.
Drone racing is a sport made for betting. It combines the raw thrill of short track racing with the complexity and strategy of motorsports. – Nicholas Horbaczewski, CEO of the Drone Racing League
Betfair’s marketing boss, Stephen Mault, said the partnership with the DRL was a “great opportunity” for the firm “given the rise in popularity of the sport of drone racing.”
The event was shown live on ESPN and Sky Sports and players could place bets on individual heat winners, as well as the grand champion, via the Betfair Sportsbook mobile app. Betfair was one of the first major operators to start offering markets for eSports, and as sport and betting companies continue to create bonds, more niche sports are expected to be the subjects of new gambling markets.
