Major tournaments such as the ongoing 2026 FIFA World Cup serve more than just “marketing hype,” but “genuinely increase sportsbook engagement,” Alexander Kamenetskyi, Head of Sportsbook at SOFTSWISS, told SiGMA News as he discussed how the market behaves and how sportsbooks prepare when such major events approach.
Major events like the World Cup amplify market patterns
Asked if SOFTSWISS has noted that the market audience behaves noticeably differently during such major events, or whether it is more of the standard behaviour at a higher level of participation, Kamenetskyi replied that it is broadly the same behaviour “but with significantly amplified patterns”.
He said that when comparing the data from 1 to 10 June, right before the tournament kicked off, with the first days after it commenced, one would notice that active player numbers more than doubled, and bet volumes followed.
That said, Kamenetskyi commented that, “importantly, average bet size held steady,” which he said does not always happen when an audience grows that quickly.
Due to the nature of an event on the scale of the World Cup and its massive audience, in the context of betting, this means that the product not only attracts regular bettors but also a broader audience that may be following their national teams, major matches, and star players, as well as general media coverage around the tournament.
Kamenetskyi said that these bettors tend to stick to familiar markets, such as match outcomes, totals, handicaps, live betting, player markets, and bet builders. “However, frequency and emotional engagement are both considerably higher,” he added.
What this means for operators, he continued, is that the World Cup is functionally a “full operational stress test, rather than just a high-traffic period”.
He commented that operational factors such as platform stability, risk management, limits, customer support, live betting, bonus mechanics, player communication, and player tools all need to be ready before the event starts.
“Tournaments like this are a perfect indicator of whether a product and operational model are actually built for growth,” he said.
Regulatory involvement and oversight with major events
A number of European regulators, including the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA), issued statements in the lead-up to the World Cup telling licensees to be more vigilant.
In response to a question about whether there has been a noticeable increase in regulatory involvement or oversight with such a major event on the calendar, Kamenetskyi said that SOFTSWISS did not notice any “unusual spike” in regulatory intervention because of the World Cup.
He added that regulators are applying the same standard approach that they typically take to major sporting events.
Having said that, he remarked that “standard” does not imply a low level of oversight. He said that factors such as advertising, bonus offers, player protection, responsible gaming, and how operators communicate with new or casual players all attract closer attention at this scale.
“That’s a normal working environment for a large event,” he commented. “Operators with proper compliance planning will not find it a problem. It is just a part of running the business.”
Summarising, SOFTSWISS’ Head of Sportsbook said that the World Cup is “not just a high-traffic period or a marketing opportunity” but rather functions as a “test” for a sportsbook operation’s maturity.
“Increased activity does not automatically translate into results,” he continued. “Attracting players is only part of it. Operators also need to guide them through the product, retain them after the tournament, and keep risk and user experience under control throughout.”
With all that said, Kamenetskyi concluded that these factors are why serious operators prepare for a major event like the World Cup through coordinated effort across segments such as product, compliance, operations, marketing, and risk management.
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