2026 FIFA World Cup Set to Become Biggest Betting Event in History

The FIFA Men’s World Cup is set to become the biggest betting event of all time, with more than $50 billion (£37.4 billion) in wagers expected to be placed globally.

The tournament will see punters place bets worth around $500 million per match, according to a forecast by financial services firm Macquarie, Francisco Velasquez reported for BBC News.

The expected $50 billion total would mark a major increase from the $35 billion in wagers placed during the 2022 World Cup held in Qatar.

However, gambling awareness groups warned that almost all punters lose money in the long run and that betting during the World Cup could encourage gamblers to try more addictive forms of wagering.

Macquarie analyst Chad Beynon said the expected surge in gambling revenue is primarily due to the expansion of teams in this year’s tournament, from 32 to 48.

As a result, there will be more than 100 matches during the six-week schedule, compared with the 64 matches played in Qatar in 2022.

The favorable time zones of host countries the United States, Canada, and Mexico are also expected to boost global viewership, Beynon added, fueling demand among punters in Europe, Latin America, and Africa.

Another factor behind the increase is the growing sports betting market in the United States, with around 65 percent of the population now able to legally gamble on sports, up from 40 percent in 2022.