Taiwan sports lottery posts NT$8.93 billion in World Cup betting

Taipei, Sept. 2 (CNA) Taiwan Sports Lottery Co. generated NT$8.93 billion (US$281.18 million) in bets during the 39-day run of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, with online betting surpassing in-person wagering for the first time and the share of bets placed by women rising sharply to 35 percent, the company said Wednesday.

The tournament was held from June 11 to July 19 and co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico, featuring many marquee matches broadcast late at night in Taiwan because of the time difference.

Despite that, the company's online membership grew from more than 400,000 to 680,000, helping drive World Cup betting to NT$8.93 billion, the second-highest total in the company's history for the tournament, after NT$10.4 billion in 2022.

Speaking on the sidelines of an awards ceremony honoring lottery retailers, Taiwan Sports Lottery President Ted Lin (林博泰) said World Cup betting was about 3.7 times higher than the NT$2.3 billion generated during the 2014 tournament in Brazil.

Lin said online betting accounted for a larger share of sales than real-world outlets for the first time during a World Cup.

He attributed the sharp rise in female participation to a promotional campaign offering luxury handbags as raffle prizes, which helped increase women's share of total bets from about 20 percent to 35 percent during this year's tournament.

Taiwan Sports Lottery has recorded NT$60 billion in total betting so far this year and is targeting a record NT$84 billion by year-end, Lin said.

He expressed confidence the goal could be met, citing a packed sports calendar over the remaining four months of the year, including Europe's five major domestic soccer leagues, the Asian Games in Nagoya, the Major League Baseball playoffs and the start of the NBA season.