Table Tennis Shows Unexpected Popularity During Covid

SunBet index indicates unexpected rise in popularity of the sport

SUNBET, A division of South Africa’s leading hospitality and leisure Group Sun International, has announced that the most popular sports during 2020 were Football, Tennis, Cricket, Basketball, Rugby, and, unexpectedly, Table Tennis.

SunBet, South Africa’s premier online betting platform, announced this finding at the conclusion of its first ever SunBet Gaming Index, which is set to be released on a regular basis.

Nitesh Matai, SunBet’s General Manager, said “Table Tennis became the most popular sport during hard lockdowns last year, by a long way. We also saw people waging money on the outcome of games in unlikely sports such as Darts, Esports, Ice Hockey and Volleyball.” Football remains perennially popular during the major European leagues which run from August to May.

However, some sports may become more popular during a specific month due to a major tournament. Tennis picks up in terms of turnover and volume during the four majors (Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, US Open), the same way cricket betting picks up during the Indian Premier League or rugby during Super Rugby. “This rang true for 2020 as well, except during the complete global shutdown of just about all sports as the world came to terms of the Covid virus,” said Matai. Another interesting statistic is that the average player spent about 15 minutes a day betting. “2021 looks set to be a monumental year in terms of sports betting, provided that the current pandemic is contained. Many major tournaments that were scheduled to take place in 2020 were postponed to this year,” said Matai.

“We are looking forward to a fun-filled betting year and welcoming more bettors to SunBet, which offers trustworthy and secure sports betting and gaming options easily, anywhere and at anytime,” concluded Matai.