Will There Be a Rise in Social Poker Once the World Returns to Normal?

The world has been a different place since March 2020 and we are all hoping it returns to normality in 2021 and beyond. In terms of land based casinos and gambling, they have taken hit throughout the pandemic but will there be a rise in social poker once the world returns to normal?

There has certainly been a huge reduction in the number of people being able to participate in games of social poker. By social poker, we mean playing around a real table, whether it be with friends and family or in a tournament organised by a land based casino. For many professional poker players, recent months have been tough although there has been some increase in the number of people playing in events, all be it socially distanced, with plastic dividers and players wearing masks.

Online poker has benefited from the worldwide situation and online casinos in the UK have seen a rise in the number of people playing poker on the internet, in addition to other types of online casino games. There was a 200% rise in google searches in March and April for the term ‘how to play poker’ and the online poker industry was predicted to grow by 13.2% from $58.9 billion in 2019 to $66.7 billion in 2020.

In addition to the number of people switching from social poker to online poker, we also witnessed greater coverage of online poker tournaments from live streaming and television broadcasters. Although some of the new people playing online poker can be attributed to the fact people have been stuck at home and started playing as a new hobby, some of the people joining poker websites would previously have played in a social setting, such as a casino. Professional players who would normally play at high stakes in-person games have made the switch to playing online tournaments and it will be interesting to see how many of these players revert back to playing social poker when it is safe.

One of the many reasons why people have chosen to play online poker, is because it retains some of the social element. It is possible to communicate with the other players and the dealer. The built-in social chat features have been a great source of comfort, especially to those who are missing the regular day-to-day contact with friends, family, and other poker players.

One of the major questions surrounding the reintroduction of social poker and in-person tournaments is how many of the events will have survived? There are sure to be millions of players itching to get back to the table but some poker rooms have been forced to close their doors for good. That could see a reduction in the number of poker events we usually see on the calendar. However, poker players cannot wait to get back to the casino and despite the success of online poker during the lockdowns, we are sure to see a rise in social poker once the world returns to normal.

This article does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors or management of EconoTimes