To celebrate this year’s World Cup, Amusnet Interactive is launching a brand-new special slot that’s dedicated to the 2022 World Cup. This new slot game will introduce slot players to a new gambling experience while still taking advantage of the hype that’s surrounding the ongoing World Cup.
The Diamond Plus World Cup slot game has been available to punters since 15th November. Once the World Cup has been concluded on the 20th of December, the special version will cease to exist and will return to the original visuals that Amusnet’s customers have become accustomed to.
The World Cup makes the end of the year one of the most successful betting months
After a 4-year hiatus, the World Cup finally kicked off on November 20th and will last till the final day of the festivities on December 18th. Unlike previous tournaments, this year’s World Cup has set a series of firsts in the tournament’s long and prestigious history. Case in point, this year’s World Cup was the first to ever be held in the Middle East.
The decision was made to host the World Cup in the Middle East after FIFA pledged to stage at least one major international tournament in the extremely prosperous region before 2030. For the small but mighty desert state, where summer temperatures can get as high as 104 F, being selected to host the momentous sporting event was indeed a triumph.
But the summer temperatures were always a concern as the country’s climate was regarded as a potential health risk for all the players, soccer fans, and representatives involved. It was only until Qatar successfully swayed FIFA by agreeing to construct brand new fully air-conditioned open aid stadiums powered by solar power.
All the new stadiums have been fitted with Solar thermal collectors and photovoltaic panels on the exterior and the roofs to harness energy from the blazing sun. The energy harnessed was then used to chill water which is then transformed to cool air that’s distributed all through the stadiums. It is also worth noting that this was the first time that solar technology has been used to keep stadiums in the middle east cool.
With the World Cup scheduled for the winter months for the first time in its history, this also presented a boon in business for operators all over the world. As was anticipated, a record number of wagers were placed during this year’s World Cup thus allowing sportsbooks in the country to generate revenues in the millions.
In the US in particular, this year’s World Cup was the first soccer tournament of its magnitude to be held since the Supreme Court ended its federal ban on sports wagers in 2018. Today, more than 130 million punters live in legal sports betting states, which is a far cry from the 1o million individuals from 4 years ago.
Reports from the American Gaming Association estimated that at least 20.5 million Americans intended to wager on the soccer tournament. These 20.5 million bettors are expected to generate at least $1.8 billion, which is a testament to how much growth the industry has experienced in 4 short years.
While November and December have both featured action-packed games from various leagues including NHL, NFL, and NBA, the World Cup has proven to be the largest draw for audiences. In 2018, the total sports gambling handle in the World Cup in Russia amounted to approximately $135.3 billion based on FIFA’s reports.
But back then, only 3 states had legalized sports betting. Today though, the US has a total of 32 states that allow legal sports betting, and more are expected to decriminalize their markets in 2023. In the US, the total betting handle for 2022 had already reached $61.7 billion by September. As such, the country’s market has already topped 2021’s action by approximately $57.7 billion.
Across the pond in the UK, operators are similarly expecting spectacular betting numbers. For instance, Flutter Entertainment announced before the beginning of the World Cup that it expected its shops in the UK and Ireland to process at least £300 million in World Cup wagers. Flutter is one of the largest betting operators in the UK as it currently operates Sky Betting & Gaming, Paddy Power, as well as Betfair in the 2 regions.
In other parts of the world, several more operators have also looked at the World Cup as an opportunity to forge new partnerships in the burgeoning industry. For instance, not too long ago, wagering technology company Network Gaming announced several new partnerships and product launches that were designed to coincide with the start of the highly anticipated soccer tournament.
Network Gaming recently signed 4 new partnership deals with tech provider Planet Sport, with horse racing media rights company, with football analysis site Whoscored.com, with horse racing media rights firm At the Races, as well as a football streaming and wagering tips website known as XL Media.
But it’s not just operators that are reaping big rewards during the 2022 World Cup. FIFA itself has reportedly successfully generated sponsorship revenues worth $ 1.74 billion over the last 4 years that the organization has been preparing for the World Cup. One of the areas that helped drive the rise of sponsorships this year was the tremendous growth of the sports betting market that has occurred all over the world in the last few years.
Final Thoughts
As the World Cup finally winds down on December 20th, more wagers are expected to be made over the next coming days. One of the major factors that have led to the stratospheric betting numbers is the end of restrictions on sports bets in the US. The much more mature sports betting market, as well as increased publicity and more competition, have all created the perfect scenario for the sports betting boom that has been experienced this Winter.
As time progresses, expect even more sports betting operators and technology providers to cash in on the growth potential of wagering on global soccer events. While the market has certainly matured, we cannot wait to note down the leap in interest in the 2026 World Cup when the World Cup will finally be held on US soil.
