Twenty years since the Internet transformed gambling products and
services, the convergence of online games and gambling has initiated a
new means of consuming Internet-based media. Gambling specifically
connected to eSports is a significant development, not only offering a
new avenue for existing gambling products to be inserted into gaming
media but also affording several novel experiences (e.g. skins and loot
boxes). This study assesses participation rates and demographic
characteristics of eSports spectators who gamble via an international
online survey (N = 582). The sample highlighted the prevalence of
young, often under-age, males in eSports-related gambling activities.
Participation in gambling, and gambling-like activities, was found to be
67%, with rates of problematic and potentially problematic gambling in
the sample being 50.34%. Finally, increased gambling is associated with
increased spectating of eSports. Although the results are not
generalisable to the wider population, they suggest a need for increased
attention, from academia and regulators, regarding newly emergent
gambling behaviours in contemporary digital culture.