The World Cup is a global event, but the players betting on it are not a global audience. Operators who treat them as one will lose out to those who don't
Read More Kambi network data reveals how crucial live combinability is to best-in-class World Cup user experiences, as well as how player props are driving enhanced sportsbook engagement
A sharp rise in live Bet Builder betting has emerged as one of the key trends from the FIFA World Cup 2026 group stage, data from Kambi shows.
Enabling users to combine a deep range of in-play selections, Kambi’s Bet Builder product drove approximately 20% of all live bets throughout the group stage – a substantial increase on the equivalent figure of 3% during the full length of the 2022 tournament.
Player props are a core part of the soccer offering, with ‘player shots on target’ among the top five pre-match bet offers by turnover on the tournament, while ‘to score or assist’ features in the top 10.
Data from Kambi’s global network of more than 70 partners underlines how the sport’s leading lights are capturing the imagination and generating the majority of player-related match turnover. Combining each of the group stage matches in which they took part and including all players who featured in those games (i.e. discounting Haaland on Norway vs. France during which the striker did not enter the pitch):
- Erling Haaland drove 60% of player prop turnover
- Lionel Messi drove 48% of player prop turnover
- Harry Kane drove 47% of player prop turnover
- Kylian Mbappé drove 47% of player prop turnover
- Cristiano Ronaldo drove 40% of player prop turnover
Kambi’s Auto-Sub product – enabling prop bets to be transferred to the player coming on in the event of a substitution – is available to partners on every match throughout the tournament. It is a tournament in which substitutes are having a big impact, with over 40 goals scored by players coming off the bench so far.
The top five Auto-Sub payouts on individual games during the group stage were:
1. Donyell Malen (replaced by Crysencio Summerville) – Netherlands vs. Sweden
2. Ousmane Dembélé (replaced by Bradley Barcola) – France vs. Senegal
3. Ismael Saibari (replaced by Soufiane Rahimi) – Morocco vs. Haiti
4. Anthony Gordon (replaced by Marcus Rashford) – England vs. Croatia
5. Jamal Musiala (replaced by Deniz Undav) – Germany vs. Ivory Coast
Oliver Lamb, SVP Risk at Kambi, said: “The 2026 FIFA World Cup is unquestionably the biggest opportunity for the betting industry in a generation. Data from across the Kambi network is underlining just how critical a best-in-class live Bet Builder is becoming, giving players the same depth and UX they are accustomed to pre-match.
“Drawing data from more than 70 partners in over 60 regulated jurisdictions, the power of the Kambi network is giving partners an edge and enabling them to capitalise on the tournament and drive customer engagement long after the final whistle has been blown on 19 July”.
Discover more World Cup insights by visiting Kambi’s dedicated World Cup content hub.
