bet365 have released their 2024 Year in Sports Betting which includes a huge surge in women’s sports, and the player prop bet market.

“Action on sports in general is up, and specifically it’s been very encouraging to see the growth in popularity for some women’s sports leagues that have been around for some time, but haven’t garnered the attention they deserve,” said bet365 trading leader Aron Wattleworth.

“Women’s college basketball is extremely popular now, whereas it wasn’t nearly as popular two to five years ago. The numbers in the WNBA show that their potential now and for the future is huge.”
That’s reflected in no small part thanks to the mega-star arrival of Caitlin Clark, who took home the WNBA’s Rookie of the Year honors in a historic season. 

The league as a whole saw substantial gains league-wide, as A’ja Wilson, Breanna Stewart, and Napheesa Collier led the way on MVP props, serving as the tip of the spear for a league that saw 67% growth globally, and growth as high as 100% in parts of North America.

“The league attendance and viewing is way up and the attention overall leads to more attention for other women’s sports/leagues,” Wattleworth noted. “Women’s UFC action has always been decent for the bigger title fights, but we see huge growth in the sport in general and that brings more action to the women’s bouts.”

bet365 also demonstrated major growth in the world of player prop bets, with NBA stars leading the way for the booming sports betting sector.

“Nikola Jokic, Luka Doncic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jayson Tatum, LeBron James, and Stephen Curry can often see more action on their total points scored lines than on the game total,” Wattleworth noted, demonstrating the incredible power of stardom the NBA has harnessed.