Sports betting like we all know has contributed very well to reshaping the sports industry and increased engagements on sports activities.
It has increased viewership which comes not just from supporters watching matches for pleasure purposes but because most of them have financially invested in the outcome of the matches, players performance among others. <snip>
I think this is the other way around; sport betting is feeding off the popularity of various sports and trying to get more sport fans to bet on games.
I think it is complementary here, some fans pay more keener attention to certain sports, even those ones they are alien to just to be able to bet correctly on it, the betting platform also gets more fans of various sports trying out their luck on them too
No one starts to watch sports simply because they want to bet on it, but a fan can be interested in betting cause they already spend so much time on the sport and are emotionally invested.
Nope, I have seen people who didn't like soccer but started watching football so they can gamble effectively since others have won from it.
Sports betting like we all know has contributed very well to reshaping the sports industry and increased engagements on sports activities.
How, by having more people staying on their sofas with their eyes glued on their mobiles and phones and watching sports?
That instead of going out and actually doing those sports?

Everybody must not be an athlete, same reasons there are fans and spectators, even viewers off the pitch do so with subscriptions bought from providers who cover live and generate income for the sports industry, without the viewers which most of them are gamblers, most providers may be out of business, meaning a lost or reduced income source for the sports industry.
Online platforms like twitter and Facebook have become hubs for gamblers to engage in discussions about sports and share predictions among themselves while following up on new developments about clubs both offline and online to be in the know and make better predictions, these offline and online follow-ups bring more revenue and engagement to the sports industry.
Oh yeah, and speaking of forums and discussions, it has also helped a lot the gambling section here, right?
I mean, no spam or endless discussions without anything to say, right?
Right?

Lol, dark humor. There are still useful contributions here on the gambling section, so it still serves its purpose regardless.
Even though there are no spams

You failed to point us to a direction such as which impact between the negative and positive that you already mentioned do you want to get our input on?
You missed the point or maybe you did not read the OP to the ending, I was sparking up a discussion that should include the positives and the negatives and requesting contributions from any of the two angles you deem fit or both.
see below:
Let's discuss ways that sports betting has impacted the sports industry.
I might partially disagree on the OP's point because, believe it or not, the sports industry can reach what it is now even without the existence of sports betting. Sports betting, in fact, just started to become an idea because of the existence of sports, which is kind of obvious.
I still believe sports betting brought more fame and popularity to the sports industry and even increased it's financial power with their involvement. Sports industry would have reached this level without sports betting actually no doubt, but it would not have been now, maybe in 10 years' time or more.
Sports betting contribution in the sports industry is technically just about gambling, where huge money circulates - business as usual.
I don't see how it contributed to the growth of the sports industry as a whole, unless it's about money.
Do you measure a business growth without it's financial strength? Is there an athlete that plays out of conscience? they play to earn, so the finance is a priority.
What about partnerships and sponsorships?, increased viewership, fanbase and popularity? Are they all insignificant to you? Sports betting catalyzed all these features the sports industry now enjoys.