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Eilers & Krejcik Gaming expects the 2026 FIFA World Cup to bring a much larger U.S. online betting market than the 2022 tournament, helped by more matches, North American time zones, and stronger mainstream interest in soccer betting.
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The 2026 FIFA World Cup runs from June 11 through July 19 across the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. EKG sees the tournament producing $2.82 billion in betting handle, far above the $900 million to $1 billion it estimated for the 2022 World Cup.
At the high end of that 2022 range, the 2026 estimate would mean a 182% increase in U.S. online World Cup betting. More games help explain a lot of that jump. The 2026 format grows from 32 teams to 48, while the match count rises from 64 to 104.
EKG does not treat the $2.82 billion forecast as fixed. Team USA could change the number in either direction, especially with the tournament partly staged on home soil.
“Our forecast comes with wide error bars because of the impact of a potential run from the U.S. Men’s National Team, but our base case assumes they advance from the group stage before exiting in either the Round of 32 or Round of 16,” EKG wrote in its report.
A longer Team USA run would likely drive more casual betting, more live betting, and more interest from U.S. sportsbooks. EKG said handle could climb near $4 billion in that case.
However, a short stay could cut into that upside. An early exit could leave total betting handle just above $2.3 billion. Team USA reached the Round of 16 at the 2022 World Cup, though the team has also failed to get out of the group stage three times since 1990.
For sportsbooks, the expanded FIFA World Cup gives operators a longer betting calendar, more soccer betting markets, and more chances to reach casual bettors. Still, EKG sees Team USA performance as the biggest swing factor for U.S. World Cup betting handle.