French sports betting tops €690m during 2018 World Cup
Bets almost double those taken at 2014 World Cup and Euro 2016
The French sports betting market generated a total of €690m (£616m) in sports betting turnover during the 2018 FIFA World Cup, according to new figures from ARJEL.
The figures almost are almost double those reported at the 2014 World Cup which generated over €290m (£259.2m) in turnover and UEFA Euro 2016, which generated €297m (£265.2m).
ARJEL did not break out revenues figures, although the hefty margins enjoyed by other European operators may have been diminished by the French team’s success.
French players bet €381m (£340.5m) online using the 12 ARJEL licensed operators sites, with €204m (£182.2m) being bet on live group games. The final stages of the tournament generated over €166m (£148.3m) in online bets. A further €309m (€276m) was bet at the 27,000 Francais De Jeux retail bookmakers located throughout France.
Of the 64 matches which took place during the FIFA 2018 World Cup, the final between France and Croatia received the most bets from French bettors, with €38.5m (£34.4m) in online bets.
The next highest betting amounts were in the semi-final between France and Belgium which generated €17.9m (£15.9m) in bets and the quarter-final between Uruguay and France, which generated €11.5m (£10.2m).
England’s semi-final match with Croatia was also popular with French online bettors generating €11m (£9.8m) in bets placed online.
ARJEL conducted an extensive responsible gambling themed advertising campaign throughout the World Cup, airing a 5-episode mini-series of adverts entitled “Betting must remain a game” on TV and the ARJEL Facebook page.