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Gambling911.com realized a major surge in 2010 FIFA World Cup betting traffic on Wednesday, a sign that the next month should be huge for its prized online sportsbook advertisers.
"Specifically we were witnessing a lot of traffic coming in related to 2010 FIFA World Cup odds," says Payton O'Brien, Senior Editor of the Gambling911.com website. "For the first time a World Cup related article ranked among the top 5 most trafficked."
That article focused on Mexico and South Africa's odds to win the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The two teams are playing one another in the first game of the World Cup on Friday.
Significant traffic was coming in on the World Cup throughout the evening Wednesday. For periods of time, World Cup traffic was competing with reads for Gambling911.com's coverage on the Joran van der Sloot murder investigation. He was an avid online poker player who allegedly committed his crime while attending the Latin American Poker Tour.
Bookmakers the world over were anticipating record amounts bet on the FIFA World Cup 2010. Billions of dollars will be spent.
British bookmakers are expecting the World Cup to be the biggest betting event in history, but very little of that money is being staked on an England win. Early forecasts suggests that 3 billion pounds will be bet on the Cup but those estimates may be rather low if a single bookmaker like William Hill anticipates 1 billion pounds
to be gambled on the competition. That being the case, the UK's three largest bookmakers: Ladbrokes, William Hill and Paddy Power, should each see a billion come in. Most of those wagers are going towards Spain.
One punter at William Hill has reportedly placed 110,000 pounds at 20-1 on Les Bleus, a bet that would return a profit of 1.65 million pounds if they lift the trophy.
Las Vegas is not sure how attractive the 2010 FIFA World Cup betting will be.
"We know there is going to be interest in the World Cup," Lucky's Chief Executive Officer Joe Asher told the Las Vegas Review Journal. "We're going to find out quickly if the interest is more than just passing."
"I think World Cup wagering is going to be matchup driven, such as when the United States plays," Jay Rood, MGM Mirage's race and sports book director, told the Review Journal. "We have some proposition wagers and future bets, but we haven't gotten crazy."
Vegas is not expecting the business that a William Hill or Ladbrokes is anticipating.
US facing online gambling websites will see a surge when it comes to games featuring the USA. They play England on Saturday and that matchup is expected to rake in significant amounts of money.
Online gambling websites should see amounts wagered somewhere in between those of Vegas and the British books. The UK bookmakers benefit from both walkups and an online presence.
Gambling911.com traffic, it should be noted, is worldwide and, with the World Cup kicking off Friday, 45 percent of the traffic is likely to come from outside the US.
Christopher Costigan, Gambling911.com Publisher
