‘It just went boom’: NZ model shows others how to capitalise on sports betting surge

Karim Lopez of the NZ Breakers dunks during an NBL game. Basketball New Zealand is one of several sporting bodies to benefit directly from the rise in sports betting. Photograph: John Davidson/AAP

The first payment was a surprise, given it was almost double the entire annual budget of Table Tennis New Zealand. The next year, however, the money kept coming.

“Over the past 18 months [Table Tennis New Zealand] has had to adapt to a set of challenges that is virtually unheard of, not just to table tennis in NZ, but among all but the largest sporting organisations,” its annual report said.