Betting volume for the current World Cup has surged by 80 percent compared to the 2022 event, according to Sportradar, even when adjusting for the expanded 48-team format. Darren Small, a senior executive at the sports technology firm, noted that while the transition from 32 teams faced initial skepticism, the increase in matches to 104 has been met with enthusiasm from bettors.
For the final between Spain and Argentina, Sportradar projects around 8.5 million betting tickets processed across its global client network. England led the total betting volume for the tournament with 16.3 million tickets, followed closely by France, Argentina, and Spain. The most heavily bet match was England’s semi-final loss to Argentina, which saw roughly 5.8 million individual bets.
David Stevens of the bookmaker Coral admitted that initial concerns regarding a lack of competition from smaller nations proved unfounded. Surprise performances, particularly from Cape Verde during the group stages, helped keep the tournament engaging for the public. Diversified betting options, ranging from individual player statistics to specific game events, have further driven these high engagement numbers.
While FIFA president Gianni Infantino has suggested a further expansion to 64 teams, industry experts like Stevens caution that this might lead to market saturation. Despite these concerns, the current success of the 48-team structure makes further changes appear increasingly likely under Infantino’s leadership.
