As the first World Cup with the widespread availability of legal sportsbooks, this year’s World Cup was certainly one of the most wagered-upon soccer events in Illinois. Because the World Cup is held once every 4 years, this year’s World Cup action will mark the first time that punters in the state will be allowed to legally wager on the event.
Plus, this year marked the first time that the US team made its first appearance in the tournament since 2014. As such, this no doubt helped to generate some more interest not just in Illinois but all over the country. Therefore, 2022’s World Cup was historically unique for punters and operators in the country.
Before the 2022 FIFA World Cup kicked off, the American Gambling Association released the findings of a study. This study found that the highly anticipated sporting event was expected to generate at least $1.8 billion in legal sports bets from approximately 20 million registered gamblers in the country.
The survey also found that, unlike other major sporting events like March Madness or the Super Bowl, which typically contain casual wagering mechanisms like square contests and brackets, most punters would opt to place traditional wafers online, at a retail sportsbook or with a preferred bookie.
To ensure that punters in Illinois show up and gamble in large numbers, sports gambling operators continued to offer new and better experienced for old and new customers. In the wake of the World Cup gambling craze, platforms all over the state worked to reinvent themselves in a bid to attract new users.
For instance, some sports betting operators in Illinois offered customers improved prices, as well as enhanced cash-out options. Many of the operators also organized daily promotions while free wagers were also offered to attract and retain customers.
For instance, just before the start of the World Cup, PointsBet announced the launch of an expanded suite of live gambling offers for soccer. As part of its technology integration product known as OddsFactory, PointsBet introduced 130 live football wagering options. The 130 live football gambling options are so far the largest in the US marketplace which allowed PointsBet to position itself as the leader for live gambling during the World Cup.
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World Cup Final becomes the most bet-upon sporting event in 2022
Because the Supreme Court repealed PASPA thus paving the way for legal sports betting in 2018, approximately 132 million adults in the country were able to legally wager on World Cup games. In total, 31 states, as well as the District of Colombia currently offer legal sports betting with more expected to legalize their markets in 2023.
The high number of punters available in 2022 marks a dramatic increase compared to the restricted pool of 10 million that were able to wager in 2018’s World Cup. Before 2018, only Nevada and 2 additional states offered legal sports betting. In the end, wagering across the 2022 World Cup rose by 13% compared to the 2018’s tournament.
According to OpenBet which provides some of the largest sportsbooks in the country with sportsbook technology, gambles on the World Cup in the US were more than double the size of the 2022 NCAA basketball tournaments. After the conclusion of the 2022 World Cup, OpenBet also found that approximately 12 million wagers were placed on the US soccer team thus garnering an excess of $100m worth of stakes.
In addition, the World Cup final emerged as the most popular event for American bettors based on data compiled by GeoComply. According to GeoComply, the final attracted more than 7.9 million betting transactions. Geocomply also noted that the 2022 World Cup attracted 1.7 million active punters, which was a little more than half the 3.1 million people that wagered on the 2022 Super Bowl.
This impressive performance has no doubt helped to put the US in great condition ahead of the upcoming 2026 World Cup. The World Cup in 2026 is scheduled to be held in the US, some parts of Canada, and various regions in Mexico.
In the US, the most wagered-on sports include basketball and American football. Soccer is therefore typically not a popular option for many modern punters. This is not to say that marquee events like the World Cup or the Olympics don’t have their upsides.
Marquee sporting events like the World Cup provide sports betting operators with a unique opportunity to boost awareness, and enhance engagements with existing customers, while also acquiring new clients. Flagship events such as the World Cup are also excellent for attracting first-time and infrequent gamblers, similar to how jackpots help to grow lottery play.
Meanwhile, sportsbooks in Illinois end the year on a high note
Casino sportsbooks in Illinois continued to come up ahead in the last few months of the year with more than $102 million in revenue generated in October. In October 2022, punters in Illinois wagered an excess of $1 billion on sports thus marking a new record for the state’s new betting market. The $1 billion wagered remains one of the highest monthly figures recorded in any market since legalization took place in 2018.
The monthly handle, which refers to the combined amount gambled, effectively cemented the state’s status as one of the most profitable sports markets in the country. Illinois is now ranked among other similarly successful markets that have hit the billion-dollar monthly mark. The only other states to have hit this milestone include New Jersey, Nevada, as well as New York.
As a result, sportsbooks in the state came out ahead in October when they generated revenue worth $102 million. In return, this revenue amounted to state taxes worth $15 million while an additional $1 million was generated for the Cook County government.
Final Thoughts
October’s record-breaking revenue was boosted primarily by NFL games, which returned for the first full month since their last break. As you can predict, American football emerged as the most popular sport to bet on, successfully generating a handle of $358 million. Indeed, reaching $1 billion in the handle was a great accomplishment for the sports betting industry in the state.
