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Read More A data-led look at how the 2026 FIFA World Cup revealed the accelerating shift towards Bet Builder, player props and live betting, and what it means for acquisition, engagement and retention across the modern sportsbook.
The 2026 FIFA World Cup once again demonstrated its status as the biggest event in the global sports betting calendar. Through five weeks of football, millions of bettors on the Kambi network placed more than 100 million bets, with the tournament providing a unique window into how betting behaviour is evolving.
From the continued rise of Bet Builder to the growing influence of player props and live betting, this year’s tournament highlighted a clear shift towards more personalised, engaging and dynamic betting experiences.
This article draws on insights from the Kambi World Cup 2026 Report, which analyses betting activity across the tournament and highlights the key behavioural shifts shaping the future of sportsbook engagement.
Bet Builder remains a core part of the betting experience
Bet Builder continued its rapid growth, accounting for 35% of all bets during the tournament compared to 17% at the 2022 World Cup.
However, it wasn’t simply the volume of Bet Builder activity that stood out. Bettors are increasingly using the product to build more detailed, personalised narratives around how they expect a match to unfold. Bets containing three or more selections accounted for 72% of Bet Builder bets, up from 55% in 2022, suggesting players are becoming more ambitious in constructing their own view of a game rather than relying on a single outcome.
Across the tournament, Bet Builder users also placed 3.3x as many bets as non-Bet Builder users, highlighting the role that more engaging and personalised products can play in driving deeper customer activity.
Player props are reshaping Bet Builder
One of the clearest trends of the tournament was the importance of player-specific markets, especially when it comes to including them in Bet Builders.
A total of 65% of Bet Builder bets included at least one player prop, compared to just 25% in 2022. Player shots on target was among the most popular selections, demonstrating how bettors increasingly want to build wagers around individual players and specific moments within a match.
Some of the most engaged users were also the ones attracted to player props, with those who placed at least one player prop wager placing 3.4x more bets and wagering on 2.4x more matches.
For operators, the growing popularity of player props highlights the importance of offering depth and flexibility within these markets. As bettors increasingly build wagers around individual players, having a broad range of player props that can be combined with other markets is becoming increasingly important to delivering the personalised betting experiences they expect.
The best experiences are becoming more personalised
Perhaps the biggest takeaway from the tournament is that bettors are increasingly looking beyond traditional single-outcome wagers such as 1×2.
Bet Builder, player props and live betting all points in the same direction, customers want more control over what they bet on and how they construct their wagers.
At the same time, the data shows that bettors who engage with these parts of the offering tend to be more active. Bet Builder users placed 3.3x as many bets as non-Bet Builder users, while player prop users placed 3.4x more bets than those who didn’t use player props.
For operators, this creates a clear opportunity to offer a deep, combinable and reliable sportsbook supported by accurate pricing, resilient live trading and a broad range of markets that can help turn the biggest sporting moments into deeper and longer-lasting customer engagement.
Live betting is becoming more dynamic
Live betting remained central to engagement throughout the World Cup, but the biggest shift was the way bettors interacted with live markets.
Live Bet Builder accounted for 22% of live Bet Builder Bets, compared to just 3% in 2022. Kambi’s advancements in AI-powered trading enabled a broader and more combinable in-paly experience, giving bettors more opportunities to build personalised wagers while matches unfolded.
The most dramatic moments of matches also proved particularly important. Across the four matches that went to penalties, betting activity grew in extra time and during the shoot-outs, highlighting how bettors engage during the most pivotal moments of a game.
These live betting trends make speed, stability and market availability particularly important in-play. When the action is at its most intense, sportsbooks need to be able to keep pace with it.
The World Cup was an acquisition opportunity, but retention is key
While the tournament presented a huge opportunity for sportsbooks to engage with existing bettors, nearly one in four placed their first ever wager on the Kambi Network during the World Cup. These newcomers accounted for 13% of total tournament turnover.
But what happens next with those same bettors is just as significant and can drive greater value in the long run. The report shows that World Cup newcomers were already beginning to explore the wider sportsbook during the tournament, with 17% placing at least one non-World Cup wager before the tournament concluded. Existing bettors were even more likely to do so, with 39% wagering on other events.
With Wimbledon, the NBA Finals, MLB and other competitions taking place alongside the World Cup, the tournament demonstrated the importance of having a broad, high-quality sportsbook offering capable of keeping newly acquired customers engaged beyond the headline event.
Beyond the World Cup
The 2026 FIFA World Cup provided a unique snapshot of where sports betting is heading, but the trends it revealed extended far beyond football’s biggest tournament.
Bettors are demanding more personalised experiences, increasingly combining markets around individual players and engaging more deeply with live betting. At the same time, major sporting events continue to provide powerful opportunities to acquire new customers, making the ability to retain and engage those players across the wider sportsbook more important than ever.
