The FIFA World Cup 2026 is underway, with plenty to expect from the 48 squads sent out to battle for the golden trophy. But how exactly are punters feeling about their national teams?
We break down the data provided by three betting operators – England-focused Bet St George; multinational giant Entain with its profile across the UK, Ireland, Italy, Spain and more; and Greek international Kaizen Gaming, one of the market leaders in Brazil.
Bet St George – patriotism runs high
The betting brand Bet St George, which launched not so long ago and builds its identity all around English national pride, asked a total of 1,000 bettors whether England has a chance to bring it home.
The results? Apparently four in 10 (40%) Bet St George customers are strong believers that the Three Lions will finally prove naysayers wrong and come back to English shores as the Champions of the World.
Those aged 25 to 34 seem to be the biggest optimists, with 67% of them sternly confident of England’s success at this year’s tournament.
Not only that, but seeing the trophy being flown back home is apparently a monumental lifetime milestone for around 26% of all punters, Bet St George said, even more important than passing their driving test or getting a university diploma.
This percentage goes even higher, up to 31%, for the male demographic.
To put it lightly, judging on the findings, there will be scenes on the streets of England if the ultimate football trophy does end up coming home – though did anyone expect anything else if the impossible does happen?
Entain – is it coming home?
Global operator Entain has provided a more holistic overview of the faith running across domestic punters, and things start to look more cynical.
In its Patriotic Punter Index composed specifically for the World Cup, the brand revealed that only 20% of UK punters have faith in England to land a successful campaign. For Scotland – the second UK nation to participate – the rate drops even lower to only 9%, with odds standing at 300/1.
An interesting takeaway from Entain is that Scottish fans are more likely to back England than vice versa, with only 1% of English punters backing the Tartan Army. In comparison, 8% of Scots have put their money on the Three Lions.
Kaizen – Harry Kane takes precedence over Ronaldo
Kaizen Gaming has also shared global punters’ data from its Betano platform, unveiling that the England captain holds 12% of the bets for becoming the top goal scorer in the tournament, as opposed to Cristiano Ronaldo’s 8%. Meanwhile, Frenchman Mbappé captured the most Betano bets at 26%.
The difference between Kane and Ronaldo might not come as a surprise given that the Portugal legend is nearing its final years as a professional player, with this World Cup most likely being his last.
His performance at the 2022 edition wasn’t exactly glamorous either, landing a somewhat unsatisfying 290 minutes of total gameplay across Portugal’s five fixtures, scoring only one goal, and failing to materialise any assists before his team was eventually knocked out in the quarter final against Morocco.
Still, this performance hasn’t stopped Portugal from being one of the nations with the most domestic backing to achieve glory this summer.
Portugal scores high on the faith metrics
Both Entain and Kaizen highlight that Portugal is one of the most patriotic markets, with 57% of the local population trusting it can emerge victorious at the end of the tournament.
Tom Ritzema, Group Trading Director at Entain, commented: “Portugal clearly stands out as the most patriotic market, with fans firmly backing their team, while countries like France and Germany also show strong belief.”
For Entain punters, the French national team comes right after Portugal in terms of punters’ patriotism at 29%. Meanwhile, 24% of German fans are backing their squad, slightly behind the second place with Austria at 25%.
Kaizen’s books, however, place Germany (57%) and Portugal (57%) as the third and fourth most patriotic nations respectively. The first two places are reserved for Argentina (79%) and Brazil (75%) – at least when it comes to the Betano platform.
Writing on the wall for FIFA World Cup 2026 betting
The tournament is already underway, with South Korea and hosts Mexico scoring the first victories of this year’s World Cup against their respective rivals of Czechia and South Africa.
With this being the biggest edition in the event’s history, it is expected that global wagers will reach an astronomical $50bn (£37.4bn) in placed bets throughout the entirety of the competition, making it the biggest betting event of all time.
There are huge opportunities to be leveraged here by both operators and punters, with no shortage of content happening anytime soon.
Who have you got as your World Cup winner?
