GeoComply: 7.9 million geolocation checks as US bettors lap up World Cup final
International football tournament yields strong interest from US bettors, just behind NFL Super Bowl numbers
US bettors’ interest in the FIFA World Cup final between Argentina and France saw a record 7.9 million geolocation checks, according to latest data from geolocation specialists GeoComply.
Releasing data on the showpiece soccer game, GeoComply confirmed check levels were still far behind geolocation check numbers for the NFL Super Bowl, which amounted to 23.5 million.
Source: GeoComply
The 7.9 million figure was however, substantially ahead of the check levels of the final game of the NBA season, which saw 5.1 million geolocation checks, and the NCAA March Madness final, with 4.8 million recorded .
According to GeoComply data, over 1.7 million users were actively betting on the World Cup Final, the second highest of the three tournaments highlighted, behind Super Bowl actives which topped 3.1 million but well ahead of the two named NBA and NCAA games and the NHL Stanley Cup final.
Source: GeoComply
After the soccer tournament’s final, England’s last 16 game against Senegal was the next most popular game with 7.6 million geolocation checks. The crucial group game between Germany and Spain was just behind it with 7.2 million.
This years FIFA World Cup is the first soccer tournament since the repeal of PASPA in May 2018 and the first featuring both the USA and Canada, who will jointly host the 2026 tournament with Mexico.
In respect of Qatar 2022, one million new sports betting accounts were created.
Excluding US states that have regulated during the past year, geolocation checks for the first week of the World Cup were up 34.5% over the same period last year.
In respect of viewers, the USA versus England match in the group stages drew over 15.3 million viewers, making it the most-watched men’s soccer match ever on English-language TV in America.
Argentina’s game against Mexico was the most-watched sporting event in TV network Telemundo’s history, with the Spanish-language broadcast drawing more than 8.9 million viewers.
The USA versus England game was also the busiest game with 4.3 million geolocation checks, with USA games attracting more than the average 2.73 million geolocation checks across the tournament as well as creating 30,000 new accounts.