World Cup betting set new record, French regulator reports

French World Cup betting set several new records amid diversified betting patterns and high volume matches. Further marketing reforms are possible.

France.- The French gambling regulator L’Autorite Nationale des Jeux (ANJ) has confirmed that the 2026 FIFA World Cup delivered unprecedented betting activity in France, setting multiple records for online wagering. Total stakes surpassed €1.3bn, generating €157m in gross gaming revenue, more than double the figures reported during the 2022 edition of the tournament (€597m in stakes and €70m in GGR).

The upsurge in betting was attributed both to the expanded tournament format, which featured 48 teams and 104 matches, and to the continued growth of online sports betting in general, further amplified by the strong performance of the French national team, which reached the semi-finals before being knocked out by Spain.

The ANJ reported that 3.8m active accounts placed close to 113m bets during the competition, a rise of over 40 per cent compared to 2022 (2.6m accounts and 54m bets). Of these, around 1m accounts were newly opened during the tournament. The France–Spain semi-final on July 14 attracted €63m in wagers, making it the most bet-on World Cup fixture since 2010, surpassing even the €51m staked on the France–Argentina final in 2022.

Other high-volume matches included the France–Morocco quarter-final (€46m), the Spain–Argentina final (€38m), Paraguay–France (€35m), and France–Sweden (€33m), all of which now rank among the ten most bet-on World Cup games.

Diversified World Cup betting patterns

The regulator highlighted that betting patterns during the tournament were more diversified than during the regular football season. Wagers on match winners accounted for just 28 per cent of stakes, compared to more than 45 per cent across the season, with bettors favouring markets such as goalscorers, exact scores, and combination bets. Live betting represented 25 per cent of activity, down from the usual 40 per cent, partly due to late kick-off times.

Gambling operators’ World Cup marketing

The ANJ notes that with the World Cup being an important recruitment driver, operators seized the opportunity to ramp up marketing. Advertising and promotional budgets rose by 25 per cent for 2026, with nearly €150m of spending concentrated in the June–July period. Television saw the largest share of the investment.

The regulator noted that it had urged operators to respect their declared budgets and avoid reallocating funds in ways that could lead to advertising saturation. It says this plea was largely respected, with broadcasters M6 and BeIN Sports opting not to sell cooling break slots to gambling operators.

The regulator suggests that this move was welcomed by the public: some 42 per cent of those surveyed said it was necessary and 35 per cent deemed it to be effective, with the proportions higher among those intending to bet. It says studying is underway on the possibility of updating the commitment charter signed in 2022 with publishers and advertising networks is being studied to address this matter.