US sports betting operators have hailed the World Cup as the biggest football betting event in their respective histories following the conclusion of the 104-game tournament.
The quadrennial competition, which was hosted in the US, Canada and Mexico, concluded on Sunday, 19 July, as Spain deservedly beat Argentina 1-0 in what proved to be a war of attrition.
DraftKings, Flutter-owned FanDuel and Caesars Entertainment all revealed the enlarged 48-team tournament broke records across the board for football betting in the US.
In the case of DraftKings, the operator said the World Cup final was the most bet-on football match in the company’s history with more than two million wagers placed.
In fact, DraftKings Sportsbook reported a 650% increase in total bets on the tournament compared to the 2022 edition, which was held in Qatar in November and December that year.
The Boston-based giant added there was a 245% increase in active Spanish-language customers during the tournament.
CEO Jason Robins had previously talked up the opportunity of DraftKings’ Spanish-language version of the sportsbook app prior to the World Cup kicking off.
DraftKings Predictions also set a record for trading volume and actives during the final, despite no goals in 90 minutes.
The company said combos, the prediction market equivalent of bet builders, made up 20% of all World Cup consumer trading volume on its platform.
Over at FanDuel, the final generated almost 200% more in stakes than its biggest football game prior to the World Cup, which was the 2024 Copa América final between Argentina and Colombia.
The Spain versus Argentina clash was also a record breaker in terms of actives for a single football game, the firm added.
FanDuel also reported patriotic punting from those in the US, with the round of 16 tie between the co-hosts and Belgium generating the highest stakes bar the final. The host nation lost 4-1.
The US, led by former Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino, were the most popular team by handle across all bet types as well.
At Caesars Sportsbook, the final delivered records on total stakes, total bets and unique users.
Total stakes were up almost 65% versus the Las Vegas-based firm’s previous record-setting football event.
A Caesars statement read: “The results reflect not only the global appeal of the World Cup, but also the dedication of the teams across trading, product, technology, operations, marketing and our retail sportsbook team members, who were on the ground every match day helping fans experience the energy and excitement of the World Cup firsthand.
“Their dedication was instrumental in making this tournament a record-breaking success.”
Looking at prediction markets, Citizens’ analyst Jordan Bender said Kalshi and Polymarket had emerged on top in the pricing battle throughout the tournament.
In an analyst note, Bender wrote: “The World Cup marks the second consecutive major sporting event in which pricing was superior on prediction markets even when including fees, demonstrating market pricing is becoming structurally more competitive as liquidity scales, reinforcing our view that customer economics are likely to improve further as volumes increase.”
Bender said that if the trend continued, prediction markets would be able to attract “liquidity providers and sophisticated users, strengthening the ecosystem over time”.
Kalshi told CNBC that it signed up three million new users during the course of the World Cup.
H2 Gambling Capital, which was acquired by EGR parent Burghclere this month, said around 27% of all legal US sports betting volume during the World Cup came from prediction markets.
The post US operators hail record-breaking World Cup amid prediction markets challenge first appeared on EGR Intel.
FanDuel, DraftKings and Caesars all report strong interest and turnover, while H2 Gambling Capital says more than a quarter of all legal US sports betting volume came from exchanges
The post US operators hail record-breaking World Cup amid prediction markets challenge first appeared on EGR Intel.