The combination of video gaming and gambling via eSports is undoubtedly going to become more popular. But it’s not the revolutionary idea some make it out to be, and its widespread acceptance is not imminent, said one downtown casino executive Thursday at a gathering of gaming marketing pros.

According to Jonathan Fennelly, the author of Gamopo.com, an Esports blog that compares the Best Esports Betting Sites, the growth of Esports Betting in the US is the most underappreciated opportunity in online gaming right now. Esports betting is pacing to do $8 billion in wagers this year and the industry is expected to double in the coming years. This combined with the state by state regulation of the US online gambling Industry makes Jonathan think Esports is coming to Vegas much fast than most people believe.

“The concepts (with esports and skill-based gaming) are not totally different from what our industry is doing now,” said Seth Schorr, CEO of Fifth Street Gaming and owner-operator of the Downtown Grand. “But we just have to present it differently.”

Schorr, a keynote speaker at the Casino Marketing and Technology Conference at Bally’s Las Vegas Wednesday and Thursday, noted that the casino industry has experience with skill gaming with table games and other forms of gambling.

Even in cases when esports and skill-based games diverge radically from traditional casino offerings, they are not something that will or should immediately replace slots and other gambling mainstays on the casino floor, he said.

“I don’t want to be the guy pouring the Kool-Aid and not drinking it. But I want to be the long-term guy,” Schorr said. “If you’re just worrying about the next three years, I wouldn’t even entertain it. But if you’re making games or looking at a longer period, then yes,” he said.

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