The Group of Copenhagen has identified seven cases of potential suspicious betting activity during the 2026 World Cup, in contrast to a report from FIFA’s integrity task force, which reported no alerts.
The Council of Europe’s integrity watchdog monitored all 104 matches at the tournament, with 15 matches placed under “enhanced monitoring”, 12 “major controversies” assessed and seven ‘yellow notices’ identified.
Yellow notices do not represent a declaration of match‑fixing nor a formal investigation, but an indicator that more data is needed before escalating to a red notice or a formal probe.
Per The Athletic, the seven events warranting yellow notices include the red card issued to South Africa’s Themba Zwane, and large trading volumes on Polymarket relating to Spain’s 0-0 draw with Cape Verde.
Polymarket gave Spain a 91% chance of defeating Cape Verde and processed $4.8m in trades on the match.
The prediction market platform also created a market on whether US striker Folarin Balogun’s red card against Bosnia would be rescinded, which it was three days later after an intervention from Donald Trump. No markets were created for the 14 other red card recipients during the tournament.
Activity around the three-minute-long VAR review leading to a disallowed goal for Ferran Torres during Spain’s 4-0 win over Saudi Arabia also reportedly aroused the suspicion of the watchdog.
The Group of Copenhagen estimated that approximately $240bn was wagered on the World Cup, doubling the volume for Qatar 2022.
The group also conducted constant monitoring of prediction markets during the tournament, which reported $50bn in trading volume in the first month of the tournament.
A spokesperson for the watchdog said: “This operation demonstrates the importance of a coordinated and independent approach to protecting the integrity of major sporting competitions.
“Through this cooperation, national platforms share intelligence, coordinate their actions and strengthen their collective capacity to detect and respond to integrity threats. Together, they help preserve trust in football.”
The Group of Copenhagen is part of the wider FIFA integrity task force, which in its own report identified “no suspicious betting activity or indications of match manipulation in connection with any fixture”.
The post Integrity watchdog flags seven betting alerts during World Cup despite FIFA reporting no issues first appeared on EGR Intel.
Group of Copenhagen issues ‘yellow notices’ for 2026 tournament as activity on Polymarket comes under scrutiny, in contrast to FIFA report which identified “no suspicious betting activity”
The post Integrity watchdog flags seven betting alerts during World Cup despite FIFA reporting no issues first appeared on EGR Intel.