United States vs Belgium Match Sets All-Time Football Betting Record in the US

^{US vs Belgium World Cup Match on 7 July 2026}

The World Cup round-of-16 match between the United States and Belgium became the most popular football betting event in the history of several major US bookmakers. The figures were reported by operators including BetMGM, FanDuel and Caesars.

BetMGM public relations manager John Ewing said the match attracted more bets than any 2026 College Football Playoff game, excluding the national championship, as well as the NCAA men’s basketball final and any single game from the NBA Finals, Stanley Cup Final or MLB World Series.

John Ewing’s post on X

“This World Cup has delivered record betting volumes for us. And I think the timing of the games has been an important factor. The fact that yesterday’s national team game took place at 8 p.m. in prime time is a very important factor,” BetMGM senior trading manager Christian Cipollini told ESPN.

FanDuel also reported record user activity. According to Bloomberg, the United States v Belgium match generated the highest number of bettors and the largest betting handle of any football match in the platform’s history.

The number of customers who placed bets on the game was more than double the previous record for football events, while the betting handle was 72% higher than for the United States’ opening match at the tournament.

Most customers backed the tournament hosts in the match against Belgium. Caesars said 81% of the total betting handle on the market for qualification to the next round was placed on the United States. Belgium’s 4-1 victory made the match one of the most profitable football events for bookmakers.