DATA.BET looks into bettnig trends from Esports World Cup 2026

• DATA.BET has released an overview of wagering activity at the Esports World Cup
• Counter-Stirke 2, Dota 2, Valorant and League of Legends led the way in terms of share of the total bets
• League of Legends saw the largest bets placed on the game, however

DATA.BET has taken a look at the latest betting activity from the Esports World Cup 2026 that concluded on August 23 at Paris Expo Porte de Versaille and featured a prize pool of $75,000,000, backed by Saudi Arabia, and the very first edition to be hosted out of the country.

DATA.BET breaks down esports betting activity at $75M Espots World Cup event

DATA.BET tracked activity over 24 titles, including newly-intrdocued esports competitions, such as Trackmania. According to the company’s data, 93% of the turnover was generated by only four titles, including Counter-Strike 2, Dota 2, Valorant and League of Legends.

Counter-Strike 2 and Dota 2 held a disproportionate share of the total wagering activity that took place, with 41% and 31.8%, respectively. Valorant and League of Legends scooped 11.7% and 8.5% of the total in terms of betting turnover, but this was not the whole story.

In terms of actual bet size, League of Legends actually generated the highest wager size. Outside the 93%, three other titles drove betting turnover, with Rainbow Six Siege, Call of Duty, and Rocket League.

DATA.BET also looked into the types of wagers placed, with 29.1% of all bets placed before games, and 70.9%, the bulk, placed during live competitions, indicating that fans are overwhelmingly likely to wager as an event unfolds.

Player props on Counter-Strike 2 lead the way

The company estimated that there are real reasons for this. For example, esports have many variables that can only be addressed once in-game events have resolved, meaning bettors are far less likely to place pre-game wagers if they can track events and then make decisions.

Player Props, for example, drew 11.8% of all turnover for Counter-Strike 2, with popular markets here including Player with Most Kills, Player with Most Deaths. DATA.BET Head of Esports Bogdan Holovnov welcomed the opportunity to study the data and look into the metrics up close.

He hailed the opportunity for Esports World Cup to bring so many games under the same event umbrella, although DATA.BET acknowledged that some games were still minnows in terms of popularity.

"As a leading force in esports, we are constantly evolving, exploring new opportunities, and striving to lead the way into new areas of the industry. For us, this is yet another challenge we have set ourselves and another demonstration that, when it comes to esports, there is virtually no limit to what we can deliver," Holovnov noted.

Counter-Strike 2 produced the most turnover and the most bets placed by teams, with Team Spirit, FURIA and FUT Esports generating the most activity in both metrics, DATA.BET noted.

Image credit: DATA.BET