SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
No lazy summer for bookmakers, as once again they are tasked with pricing a FIFA World Cup tournament. England travel to Australia and New Zealand as the tournament’s joint-favourites alongside Team USA. Can the Lionesses deliver World Cup glory in what is guaranteed to be the biggest-ever sporting event for women’s sport…
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SBC: Following the success of last year’s European Championships, and with coverage across all major TV networks, Is the FIFA 2023 Women’s World Cup on course to be a record-breaking wagering event for female sports?
Chad Yeomans (Global Head of Communications @ Betway): While the bar for the record to be broken isn’t the highest, it does appear that following the support the women’s game is getting, there is clear growth for interest of the sport. It all happens in cycles, though. TV broadcasters are the first, and largely most important supporters in getting the game visible on mass. Other strands then cascade down from that, so it’s good that plenty of the games with be broadcast by some of the largest providers.
While England’s success in the Women’s Euro’s last year bought excitement to many, there are other nations, such as the US and Germany who have shown a bigger desire to engage in the game from a betting perspective.
The women’s game is increasing in popularity, but from a betting point of view, still has a way to go to be matched up with some of the more mature betting markets within men’s sport.
SBC: Team USA and England’s Lionesses have been short-priced as pre-tournament favourites… Is this the guaranteed final or can any team spoil their party?
Katie Bayliss (Head of PR & Content @ Betfair): The Women’s World Cup is proving to be really popular with punters, and there are two teams that are dominating the market.
We have taken most bets on the reigning champions and current favourites USA. They’re currently 5/2 and are the team to beat.
There’s also been a lot of support for the Lionesses, and while there are a few key players missing for England due to injury, that hasn’t dampened the spirits of punters who have been backing them to bring it home. The European Champions come into this tournament as second favourites at 5/1, and they are the second best backed team in the book.
Looking at another team that punters have been backing, we’ve seen a steady amount of interest for Germany, who have captain Alexandra Popp back fit following the disappointment of missing the Euros final against England in their last major tournament. They will be a tricky side to beat and could be the value at 7/1.
SBC: Predicting the outcome of a World Cup is an impossible endeavour… Yet, which unique intricacies and factors have come into play when pricing World Cup 2023?
Tom Lewis (PR & Communications Manager @ Kambi): There are a number of factors which make this FIFA Women’s World Cup unique, chief among them being the larger scale of the tournament.
The tournament has been expanded to 32 teams from 24 for the first time in its history, meaning more first-time meetings between new teams and fresh, exciting permutations from the perspective of both the bettor and the bookmaker.
Furthermore, it’s the first time the event has been co-hosted, with plenty of travel time between different venues – Perth and Wellington alone are separated by more than 5000km. Plenty of players have also been resting and recuperating after the close of their domestic club seasons. Just how fit and ready for action they return is another factor for a sportsbook to consider when creating and pricing markets for the tournament.
With these intricacies and more in mind it is shaping up to be a fascinating competition offering multiple opportunities for sportsbooks to engage their customers. Kambi partners will be able to offer end users unmatched levels of combinability through the Kambi Bet Builder, which enables bettors to combine bets across different matches both pre-match and live
SBC: Finally, the big question… Can England’s Lionesses do what the boys can’t – win a world cup or perhaps a penalty shootout?
Rachel Kane (Public Relations @ Paddy Power): The Lionesses have already proven themselves to be the strongest side in Europe having won the Euro’s last year, and despite not going through a penalty shootout during the championship, they did beat Brazil in the Finalissima Final earlier this year via a penalty shoutout (4-2).
They’re set to avoid the USA until the final should they top their group and win all their playoff games (and the USA do the same) so it’ll be exciting no matter what. Winning under any circumstances would be unbelievable for the squad, but if they succeed in circumstances where their male counterparts couldn’t, we’ll that would just be fairytale stuff for fans!
