With the FIFA World Cup underway, South Africa is demonstrating its enduring passion for major sporting events. This manifests in various ways: gathering, watching, debating,and, increasingly, betting. A study by the consumer insights agency KLA, utilising YouGov Profiles+ data, highlight sport’s central role in South African life, not only as a shared experience but also as a rapidly expanding arena for risk, money, and identity.

The first key finding reveals the pervasive nature of sport in how South Africans spend their time. Seventy percent watch live sport on television, and 64% engage with it onsocial media. Live streaming reaches 58% of fans, while online highlights and mobile apps each account for 50%. Traditional media remains robust rather than diminishing – radio still reaches 45%, newspapers 36%, and magazines 27%. Each medium caters to a distinctappetite: live action on television, real-time debate on social media, commentary on radio, and in-depth analysis in print.

Sport also serves as a physical gathering point for the country. Thirty-nine percent of fans watch in public venues, and 36% do so in friends’ and family homes, transformingindividual fandom into a collective experience. This habit is intergenerational: 84% of parents encourage their children to play sport, positioning it alongside education and health as a core parenting priority. This generational pull ensures sport remainsat the heart of national identity decade after decade.

Against this backdrop, a rapidly growing area in South Africa is sports betting. Nationally, soccer is the sport South Africans are most likely to bet on, with 29% having placeda bet on it in the past year. This figure is significantly higher than horse racing (12%), rugby (11%), cricket (10%), and boxing (8%). Only PowerBall, at 32%, attracts more participants than soccer. With the World Cup in full swing, this appetite now hasa clear focal point.

A more revealing picture emerges when examining the demographics of these bettors. South Africans who gamble on sport are more comfortable with risk than the general population.Seventy-seven percent state they enjoy taking risks (versus 69% nationally), 81% believe it is important to seize opportunities, and 77% prioritise enjoyment. They are also more financially confident: 82% are excited about their future (versus 73%), 65% considerthemselves financially secure, 65% do not mind taking risks with their money, and 60% feel they could handle a personal financial crisis.

Demographically, the sports bettor skews male and is concentrated in the 25 – 44 age bracket. Men constitute 64% of this group, while under-24s and over 45s are both under-represented.Online, they are heavier users of gambling websites (53% versus 41%), gaming platforms (58% versus 49%), and news and sport sites (67% versus 60%). This indicates a digitally fluent audience that is easy to reach but discerning about where its attention isdirected.

A thread of self-awareness runs through the data. More than half (54%) of sports gamblers agree they should gamble less, and 40% believe all gambling should be illegal. Thisgroup enjoys the thrill but is clear-eyed about the associated costs.

“Sport in South Africa is a strong part of our culture, but the data shows it is now also about participation in a more active sense,” says Rakhee Naik, Managing Consultant,Insights at KLA. “The fan who once simply watched is now streaming, posting, debating and, for a sizeable group, betting. For brands, that shift demands more than sponsorship logos. It calls for an understanding of why people engage – the risk, the confidence,the search for shared experience – and a responsibility to meet that audience honestly and authentically, including when it comes to the real risks of gambling.”

For marketers, sport remains the country’s most powerful point of connection and cultural force, and the audience surrounding it is engaged, digitally active, and financiallyself-assured. The opportunity lies in being present across the full spectrum of how fans now experience the game – broadcast, social media, streaming, and in person – while recognising that a growing segment of this audience has a genuine appetite for riskand reward.