Betting Turnover for World Cup Could Reach £1bn – Gambling News
If there’s ever been a sporting event to make the world take notice, it’s the World Cup, and with the tournament well underway, it’s no surprise that the betting world has been alight, predicting one of the biggest turnovers in betting history – and that’s just in Britain alone.
Obviously the huge, near global interest in both the sport and the competition is fuelling some of the popularity, but we’ve had plenty of World Cups in the past, so why has this one seen the biggest betting turnover in the history of the tournament?
Industry experts have suggested that its technology rather than football that’s allowing more people than ever to bet on a game. The huge popularity in online gambling and the ability to gamble through mobile phone services has meant it’s now easier than ever to place a bet on your favourite team, and increased online coverage of the games makes it easy to keep track of what’s going on.
The scheduled times for matches in South Africa are also helping the betting industry as just about every single match is being shown live at peak TV viewing times in the UK.
Darren Haines, Spokesman for bookies Paddy Power stated: “It’s huge, really surging this week and going into World Cup frenzy for football fans. We anticipate one-billion-pounds being gambled industry-wide, and the further England goes in the tournament, the more likely it is that this figure will be comfortably surpassed. It will be the biggest betting event in British history, without a doubt.”
Paddy Power isn’t alone though, with William Hill predicting a similar turnover for the industry.
These figures do rely on how long England is in the World Cup for, of course. The longer we stay in, the longer UK betting is likely to be on a high.
Betting during the England v. USA match recently week reached a height of nearly 100 bets per second, showing just how popular the World Cup can be for gamblers, even in the first few games.