LAS VEGAS (AP) — Sportsbook operators predict this year world cup With the key ingredients in place, it would set a betting record.
The world’s most popular sporting events are held in North America, so U.S. spectators can watch the games live while the sun is out or in the evening. The United States also has the most talented team in history.
And America won the first two games. catch the group.
“I think it exceeded our expectations,” Mark Bickerdyke, head of soccer trading at Caesars Sportsbook, said of the amount wagered.
Johnny Abello, director of DraftKings Sportsbook, said betting on the 48-team World Cup, whose knockout stage began Sunday, is on par with the ever-popular college basketball NCAA tournament.
“At the end of the day, it might be the biggest event of the year,” Abello said. “March Madness runs for three weeks and raises a significant amount of money, which is on track to our goal.
“That blows away the Super Bowl. One game a day. This here is much bigger than that.”
Christian Cipollini, trading manager at BetMGM Sportsbook, said the huge interest in the U.S. team is only growing. american Begin single elimination phase tournament game against Bosnia and Herzegovina on Wednesday night in Santa Clara, California.
“We expect this to be the most bet on soccer game in BetMGM history,” Cipollini said. “This World Cup, the three games we bet on the most were all three USA games. This game is shaping up to be a perfect storm, and America looks very good. There’s a lot of excitement around the team.”
Are France and Argentina on a collision course?
Three sportsbooks have Kylian Mbappé’s France as favorites to win the tournament, with Lionel Messi and defending champions Argentina not far behind. The two teams are on opposite sides of the standings, so if they meet, it will be the final, a rematch from four years ago.
BetMGM received 20.4% of the value, with 15.3% of tickets received the most in France. This is just below Spain, which had 20.5% of the handle, or most of it, before the tournament.
Long-time handicapper Bruce Marshall warned against assuming France and Argentina would meet in the final.
“I could see seven or eight teams winning this,” Marshall said. “So at this stage I’m not sure there’s much value in any of the favorites.”
Bettors aim for long shots
Americans love a good underdog story, and there are bets on some teams with very long odds.
“Bettors like to make small money bets and bet on those teams,” Abello said. “Of course, the risk for us is high because it doesn’t cost that much money. If you bet $5 on the Congo, you get $5,000 (in dividends). If you bet a significant number, the debt becomes quite high.”
Marshall said it makes sense to consider Colombia (33-1 at BetMGM) and Switzerland (66-1) as teams with great value.
“Columbia looks like it’s really dangerous and they’re getting a lot of support,” Marshall said. “They played their first few games in Mexico and it was like a home game for them.
“The one thing that no one talks about is Switzerland. They are one of the teams that remind me of club teams. I say that in a positive way because they know each other well. A lot of the teams at the World Cup, in a way, are together and haven’t played together that much. Switzerland have players who have played 80, 100 games together.”
Sportsbooks don’t necessarily expect the US to win
If the U.S. pulls off the almost unthinkable and wins the World Cup, sportsbooks will feel the financial pain.
America went from 50-1 to 25-1 on BetMGM, 30-1 on Caesars and 33-1 on DraftKings.
“If the U.S. had limped along and made it to the finals, our responsibility probably wouldn’t have been as great,” Cipollini said. “But the fact that they looked good, there’s a lot of people who think, ‘They have a chance.’ That’s on home soil. It’s easy to tell yourself that’s what we all want.”
‘The Simpsons’ promotes betting
A 1997 episode of The Simpsons featuring the Mexico-Portugal match has led some fans to believe that the long-running TV show predicted this year’s World Cup matchup.
it’s not. There was also no mention of the World Cup or 2026.
But those details clearly don’t matter to some bettors, causing a noticeable increase in stakes when that matchup takes place.
“We’re responsible for that,” Bickerdyke said.
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See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here
