Online sports betting has seen an uptick in wagers placed on women’s college basketball betting markets. There’s a strong correlation between Iowa superstar guard, Caitlin Clark, and the growth women’s college basketball has experienced at online sportsbooks during the last two years.
Clark's rise began last year and through Iowa's trip to the NCAA women's national championship game, which the Hawkeyes lost to LSU. It continued this year as Clark became the NCAA's all-time leading scorer.
“We saw the momentum slowly build toward the end of the regular season last year and then into the tournament," Grant Tucker, head of college basketball trading at Caesars Sportsbook, said to the Associated Press of Clark’s ascension impacting women’s college basketball betting markets. "Obviously, Iowa had that great run all the way to the final. So as the tournament went along, the betting increased. Her superstardom grew.”
BetMGM data insights
According to betting data from BetMGM Sportsbook, there has been a substantial increase in women’s sports, as well as women placing wagers on sporting events in the past two calendar years.
“The growth year on year has been exponential, driven by prominent players, like Caitlin Clark, becoming household names and an increase in the number of televised women’s games," said Matt Cosgriff, director of trading at BetMGM.
From 2022 to 2023, women's betting at BetMGM increased 25% year over year. There were 2.5 times as many wagers placed on women’s college basketball this season compared to last campaign. Women wagering on the 2024 Super Bowl was also up 51% compared to the 2023 Super Bowl, while iGaming/poker experienced a 20% increase from 2022 to 2023.
Regression incoming?
Despite the growth in women’s college basketball betting, Clark’s looming absence heading into next season may result in a regression in terms of the volume of bets placed.
“Her stardom is very unique. NIL is here to stay. There are more stars to come, but I don’t know if anybody can really be at the level of Caitlin Clark," Sheldon Jacobson, operator of the BracketOdds site, said to the AP. "I wouldn’t say it would go down to how it was four or five years ago, but I don’t know if this is really sustainable long term.”
The Iowa Hawkeyes are the No. 1 seed in the Albany 2 region of the women’s 2024 March Madness tournament. They will face either Holy Cross or UT Martin as the No. 16 seed in their region on Saturday at 3 p.m. ET aired on ABC.
