The 2026 FIFA World Cup begins this week, and Fanatics Sportsbook has released new data projecting that fans of the U.S. men's national team will garner five times the bets of other games.
In collaboration with YouGov, the new survey data shows that excitement for the 2026 World Cup — which kicks off Thursday (June 11) in Mexico City — is running high among Americans. Sixty-five percent of Americans aged 21 and over said that they are very excited about the World Cup, while 38 percent said that they were more interested this year due to it being hosted in North America.
The majority of fans said that they will be watching the World Cup at home with friends or family, and 62 percent of fans have said they will be rooting for the U.S. Men’s National Team (USMNT).
Other teams that American soccer fans are supporting in the World Cup include England, with 19 percent of respondents, Brazil at 17 percent, and France at 15 percent.
Soccer has accounted for less than five percent of U.S. legal sportsbook betting over the past two years, but Fanatics CEO Matt King believes the World Cup is helping to change that. King said that a deep USMNT run could push soccer's share of total U.S. sportsbook betting to as high as 20 percent, per Sports Business Journal.
The company paired the release of the survey data with a campaign called "The World Is Ready, Are You?" You can check out the teaser via Instagram below.
The USMNT opens its group stage campaign against Paraguay on Friday (June 12) at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood at 9:00 PM ET, with further group matches against Australia on June 19 in Seattle and Türkiye on June 25 in Los Angeles.
