European Football Championship: Up to 1 billion euros in bets forecast in Germany

The European Football Championship is in full swing - and a clear winner is already emerging: the sports betting industry association DSWV is predicting enormous turnover. We are talking about no less than 1 billion euros! In addition, they want to use the event as an opportunity to take market share away from illegal providers.

The 2024 European Football Championship in Germany is a true spectacle for players, fans and betting enthusiasts alike. With Germany as the host country, which has a rich football tradition and some of the most modern stadiums in the world, the tournament will be set against an exciting and dynamic backdrop. However, this European Championship is not only attracting attention for the high-calibre football, but also for the enormous betting opportunities it offers.

Experts predict that up to 1 billion euros in bets could be placed in Germany, which clearly emphasises the appeal of the European Championship for betting providers and participants. The combination of exciting matches, the participation of some of the best teams in the world and the wide availability of betting options creates an ideal environment for football fans who want to experience their passion even more intensely through (hopefully) lucrative bets. In addition, the legal and technical infrastructure in Germany plays a crucial role as it ensures a safe and regulated market for sports betting.

This is the ideal situation: a lot of turnover for the bookies and some big winnings for the bettors are practically guaranteed. However, not everything is going smoothly when it comes to channelling. In a press release, the German Sports Betting Association (DSWV) not only forecast the mega sum mentioned above, but also predicted that a significant proportion of it would probably be generated on the black market. The aim is to change this in the course of the event. But how?

1 billion euros in betting volume, but unfortunately a lot of it on the black market

In the DSWV press release, the 2024 European Football Championship is seen as a great opportunity to win back many customers who have migrated to the black market. It makes it clear that "structural regulatory weaknesses" have led to a significant decline in turnover for regulated bookmakers over the past two years. More and more bettors appear to be playing with illegal providers. This should improve during the current European Championship.

According to Mathias Dahms, the European Championship is an ideal opportunity for a turnaround: "The European Football Championship not only promises to be a sporting highlight, but is also the most important event of the year for the sports betting industry. We are expecting exciting matches, emotional moments and of course we are all rooting for the German national team."

The DSWV expects a betting volume of around 1 billion euros. However, it remains sceptical and assumes that "at least a third of this will end up on the books of betting providers that are illegal in Germany". The black market has a large presence in this country, but it is strongly recommended not to use such platforms in order to rule out certain risks.

DSWV President Mathias Dahms says specifically: "In the black market, there is no player protection and no certainty that winnings will be paid out reliably - only the licensed providers offer all of this."

Dahms sees advertising for legal bookies and the GGL seal as important tools for channelling: "This is precisely why it is so important that people who want to place a sports bet during the European Championship are made aware of these legal offers through the advertising that is present. Only licensed providers that are on the official whitelist are allowed to advertise their products. To give consumers further security, licensed providers also display the seal of the Joint Gambling Authority of the Federal States (GGL) on their websites. All members of the DSWV have a German licence."

What was the turnover like at the last major football tournaments?

The international betting turnover at the last Football World Cup and European Championship was impressive and illustrates the immense global participation in sports betting during these prestigious tournaments.

World Cup 2022 in Qatar

The FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar generated remarkable betting turnover worldwide. According to estimates, over 100 billion euros were bet on the tournament. The share was particularly significant in Europe, which accounted for two thirds of the global betting market for the World Cup. According to the sports betting software experts at PricePerPlayer.com, 1.29 billion went across the (digital) betting counter in England alone.

European Championship 2020 (postponed to 2021)

Betting turnover was also considerable at the UEFA European Championship 2020, which was postponed to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In Germany, bookmakers recorded an increase in turnover of more than 1 billion euros in the year of the tournament, as reported by the Frankfurter Rundschau newspaper, for example. According to industry experts, this increase was clearly attributable to the major event.

The high betting turnover at both tournaments shows that football events with such international attention as the World Cup or the European Championship are not only sporting events, but also economic events of immense importance. The current European Championship 2024 in Germany could once again set record-breaking figures.

Conclusion

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