In the evolution of modern sports fandom and sports betting alike, the team is being eclipsed by the individual. Nowhere is this shift more apparent – or more consequential – than in the rise of player prop betting. Once a niche category, player props are becoming central to sportsbook offerings, marketing strategies and bettor engagement worldwide.
“Sport is now more people-focused,” says Karl Danzer, SVP of Odds Services at Sportradar. “Team sports are more personality-led. Not all organisations like that – it hands players the power – but it plays a big role in how people bet”
Danzer is among a growing chorus of voices in the industry noting how generational and technological shifts are converging to drive the popularity of player-specific markets. From increased investment in micro-betting to product innovation in bet builders and same game parlays (SGPs), sportsbooks are rapidly adapting to a reality where fans follow players more than teams.
From team allegiances to player loyalty
“If you look at older generations and in the European space with football, how you grew up was to support a team first and foremost,” Danzer explains. “That has always historically been different in US terms. The whole draft concept usually means players don’t stick with a team and the fans might follow the players over the team.”
This shift has only accelerated with the rise of social media. “Now the players have the platform to promote themselves over the team,” Danzer adds. “This is now not only the superstars of the team but a much wider proportion of the players.”
This star power and direct-to-consumer access have changed how fans engage – and how they bet. “It is logical to think this will lead to more people betting on player markets,” Danzer argues.
Micro-markets and personalisation
Sportradar is responding to the shift with targeted investment. “We are definitely seeing the growth of player markets, particularly within bet builders and SGPs,” Danzer says. “One of our key strategies is that we are investing in micro player markets to help our clients meet increased consumer demand.”
These micro markets are designed to create real-time, player-specific betting opportunities.
“How we build markets will be, on the one hand, around the specific individual and then with the characteristics of the actual player,” says Danzer. “That would appeal to people who follow a specific player.”
Danzer sees this not only as a product shift, but as a fundamental opportunity for sportsbook growth.
“It is easier to convert someone to sports betting if they are following a player,” he says.
The SGP surge
Tom Daniel, SVP of trading at Huddle, agrees with Danzer’s assessment. He points to structural aspects of US sports – discrete, measurable events like pitches, plays and possessions – as naturally conducive to player-focused betting.
“Our data reinforces the dominance of player props,” Daniel says. “Six of the top seven most popular SGP markets are focused on individual performances. Player props represent approximately 70%–75% of all bets placed in this category.”
He attributes part of this trend to the cultural embrace of statistics among US fans.
“Take baseball, for instance. Sabermetrics has been around since the 1970s,” Daniel notes. “Fans have long been accustomed to breaking down every aspect of a player’s performance.”
Daily fantasy sports (DFS) have also played a pivotal role.
“Many of today’s sports bettors will have played DFS and so will be extremely familiar with assessing and taking an opinion on player performances,” Daniel says. “This naturally crosses over into betting on the actual metrics.”
A European shift
While the rise of player props may have US origins, it is no longer a North American story alone.
“We’re seeing a growing demand for player-specific markets in Europe,” Daniel says, citing football’s shift toward player-centred engagement. “Players are becoming brands in their own right, with massive social media followings and influence.”
Marc Thomas, managing director of Algosport, echoes the sentiment.
“The trend is clear in European football and has certainly accelerated over recent years,” he says. “Player props now feature much more heavily than previously.”
Thomas notes that the 2024 Euros and Copa America tournaments acted as catalysts.
“These tournaments were almost perfect for in-play bet builders,” he explains. “We see no reason why the proportion of bet builders struck in-play versus pre-match will not continue further, becoming the dominant revenue driver in the near future.”
At Algosport, Thomas says, the infrastructure is in place to support this trend.
“We allow end-users to truly turn their opinions on a particular match or player into a bet that can test their knowledge and opinion against the bookmakers’ odds.”
Sports betting innovation at the edge
Beyond traditional props, operators are exploring even more granular experiences. Tomash Devenishek, CEO at Kero Sports, says the future lies in contextual, AI-driven betting markets.
“Imagine a scenario where a player goes on a scoring streak, and the betting platform instantly offers and elevates a prop like ‘Player X has scored 14 points in four minutes – will he score over 25 in the half?’” Devenishek says. “At Kero, we’re pioneering this approach, delivering real-time, contextual micro markets.”
Devenishek sees this as the natural evolution of the market. “It makes the popular offering more relevant and contextual while reducing the search effort on the user’s part,” he explains.
While some platforms attempt to achieve this manually, he says the only scalable solution will come via automation and AI.
Challenges and considerations
Despite the promise, challenges remain. “It’s not good enough to try and fudge the pricing with a priori guesses at correlations anymore,” Daniel warns. “Modern sportsbook architecture must be robust enough to handle large numbers of SGP requests, each requiring hundreds of thousands of simulations of games.”
Risk management is also a hurdle. “Modern systems can detect potentially large payouts across similar but non-identical SGP bets,” he says. “But not all the challenges have been overcome.”
Danzer adds that while the logic of personalisation and demographic targeting is sound, the data is still emerging. “It seems logical that younger people are playing more on player props,” he says. “But whether it is true, we will find out.”
He is cautious about overestimating player props’ role in customer acquisition. “I’m not sure whether it is more efficient than other ways,” he admits. “Advertising in the right environment, understanding the fans and giving them corresponding offers has a significant uptick in terms of performance – that again is logical.”
The road ahead
If current trends continue, the dominance of player props will only grow. “Operators like parlays; margins are better for a start,” Danzer notes. “And this is where player props are interesting.”
With the convergence of technology, personalisation, and fan behaviour, the future of sports betting may lie not in the final score, but in who scores it, how, and when.
As fans increasingly follow athletes rather than teams, sports betting is evolving to reflect the shift. Player props and micro markets are now central to engagement, personalisation and profit.