Euro 2024 betting: British Gambling Commission releases survey stats

The British regulator has released a study on betting behaviour during Euro 2024.

UK.- The British Gambling Commission has released a report providing statistics on bettors behaviour during the UEFA European Football Championship in June and July. The report made use of cross-sectional tracking via an omnibus survey from the consultancy Yonder.

Some 6,237 people participated in the survey, with over 2,000 in each of three waves: one a week before the tournament, the second between the group stage and knockout stages, and the final wave a week after Euro 2024 ended.

The research found that the differences in the participation rate between male and female bettors dropped as the tournament advanced, going from 27 per cent vs 9.6 per cent mid-tournament to 27.3 per cent vs 13.3 per cent at the end. It also noted that the proportion of respondents aged 18 to 24 who reported betting on the Euros rose from 14 per cent pre-tournament to 36 per cent in the week after Spain beat England in the final.

The most common reasons for gambling on the tournament were said to be to win money, to make the game more interesting or owing to a promotional offer and/or free bet. The performance of the English team was seen to have influenced behaviour, increasing the participation observed in the latter waves.

However, respondents claimed that advertising had a limited impact on their motivation to place a bet. Most respondents also said that they gave themselves a fixed limit for how much they would bet and that they felt in control of the amount they spent.

Across the three waves, there was little change in the proportion of people who said they planned to bet on future sports events such as the 2026 World Cup or the Premier League, which remained steady at 67 per cent and 52 per cent respectively.