Gambling is one of the fastest-growing sources of income in most countries. Just in the United States alone, it is estimated that Americans wager over $150 billion each year on sporting events. However, what is made worldwide from gambling is grossly higher, and it is rising higher as more states are legalizing sports online betting.

Here’s a list of the top six most bets on sporting events in the entire world that make up most of the American market estimates and beyond. 

Super Bowl

The Super Bowl is American’s favorite sport and the biggest sporting event that happens yearly. With over 100 million people watching the event annually, the Super Bowl continues to grow. According to the American Gaming Association, in the 2020 Edition of the Super Bowl, about $7billion was wagered solely on a single game. The game was between San Francisco and Kansas City Chiefs. The Super Bowl is particularly intriguing because of the spectacular bets on the halftime show, coin toss, national anthem, and others bringing in more casual sports bettors. Some sportsbooks even offered up to 600 additional props for the Chiefs-49ers game. 

World Cup

Soccer is not America’s most favorite, but when it is time for the World Cup, who doesn’t want to watch it? In 2018 alone, reports say that over the course of the entire sports event, over 3 billion people viewed the 64 matches. FIFA also recorded that the viewers wagered a lot on those games such that an estimated $136 billion was the total amount used for gambling throughout the tournament. And in the final match, $7.2 billion was wagered. In 2022, there will be a Men’s World Cup, and that would be the first-time majority of Americans will be able to place bets on the event legally.

Boxing 

Boxing in recent years isn’t the same as it used to be, but some vast fights like that of Conor McGregor, Manny Pacquiao, Floyd Mayweather, and others have rejuvenated the love for the sport. In Nevada, a little over $100 million worth of wagers was realized. That amount has so far been the biggest that the state has gotten in one event. Various sportsbooks all over the state saw a single wager of over $1 million for one of the two fighters. 

NBA Finals 

Basketball is a sports game that is fast rising in the world, and as such, it is not surprising that its event is one of the best bets. Getting an exact estimate of the total amount made during the entire event is difficult because most bets were made at illegal offshore books. However, in Nevada alone, the estimated number of wagers was about $10 million per game.  Given that over 20 million people watch the event, one can guess what’s going to be a whole lot of money. 

Rugby World Cup

Rugby isn’t so popular in the United States, but it is known worldwide, so it still has a large number of viewers. Many viewers mean more people made wagers, which also means lots of money was made. In 2019, the highest number in the tournament’s history was reported, and it was over 850 million worldwide viewers. 

Kentucky Derby

Horse racing might not be the first sporting event that comes to mind as the most bet on, and that is because people underestimate the size of the Kentucky Derby. During the sports event, the Kentucky Derby hosts many people, which means millions of dollars on betting. 

The inclusion of online betting and mobile options has also added to the gross increase in the number of gambling enthusiasts and the revenue generated from sports bets.