The company shares betting activity data across titles, markets and key matches throughout the tournament.

DATA.BET, a sportsbook solutions provider, has published its analysis of wagering activity during the Esports World Cup 2026. The seven-week tournament ran from 2 July to 23 August at Paris Expo Porte de Versailles, marking the first edition staged outside Saudi Arabia, with a total prize pool of $75 million.

DATA.BET covered 24 titles, including Trackmania, which made its Esports World Cup debut this year, and Fortnite, which returned to the line-up with its Reload mode.

Four titles accounted for 93% of total turnover: Counter-Strike 2 represented 41%, Dota 2 31.8%, VALORANT 11.7% and League of Legends 8.5%.

Average bet size, however, followed a different pattern. League of Legends recorded the highest average stake, followed by VALORANT and Dota 2, while Counter-Strike 2 had the lowest average bet size. Outside the leading four titles, Rainbow Six Siege, Call of Duty and Rocket League generated the highest turnover.

Across the full tournament, 29.1% of bets were placed pre-match, while 70.9% were placed live. No title was dominated by pre-match betting, although Counter-Strike 2 came closest, with 29.1% of its handle placed before the first map. At the other end of the spectrum, 87.7% of Dota 2 betting activity took place live.

According to DATA.BET, the pattern reflects the highly dynamic nature of esports, where real-time variables can significantly influence the outcome of a match. In titles such as Dota 2 and League of Legends, factors including drafting and hero selection can reshape expectations before a map begins, encouraging bettors to wait for additional information before placing their wagers.

DATA.BET combines mathematical models with a professional trading team monitoring markets in real time, while its odds are automatically correlated across outcomes.

Player Props Gain Ground

Market preferences followed a similar hierarchy. Player Props accounted for a particularly strong share of Counter-Strike 2 betting activity, representing 11.8% of total turnover in the market, compared with 10.2% in VALORANT, 4.9% in League of Legends and 3.9% in Dota 2.

Ahead of the tournament, DATA.BET expanded its CS2 Player Props offering with two new markets: Player with Most Kills (incl. overtime) and Player with Most Deaths (incl. overtime).

Duration markets, including round and map totals, represented 4.3% of Dota 2 betting activity, followed by League of Legends at 4%, Counter-Strike 2 at 3.5% and VALORANT at 3.4%.

Straight Winner and Map Winner selections also accounted for a larger share of betting in Dota 2, at 67.4%, and League of Legends, at 65.4%, compared with 59% in VALORANT and 53.3% in Counter-Strike 2.

According to the company, the difference is primarily driven by the breadth of markets available. In CS2 and VALORANT, high activity levels and mature mathematical models allow DATA.BET to offer a wider range of markets, distributing betting activity across a greater number of outcomes.

Bogdan Holovnov, Head of Esports at DATA.BET, said: “Esports World Cup is not the first event in esports history to bring multiple disciplines together under one banner. However, it is undoubtedly the most ambitious event of its kind, featuring the largest number of titles. We recognise that many of these games do not currently enjoy the same level of popularity, including among bettors.

“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.”

Three matches stood out by betting volume: FUT Esports vs Team Spirit, Team Vitality vs Team Spirit and FURIA Esports vs FUT Esports, all in Counter-Strike 2.

At club level, Team Spirit, FURIA and FUT Esports attracted the most betting support throughout the seven weeks, both by turnover and number of bets. Team Spirit went on to win the EWC CS2 title in 2026, defeating Team Vitality in the quarter-final and FUT Esports in the Grand Final.

Two of the three highest-volume matches were part of Team Spirit’s path to the championship.

Beyond the core esports titles, DATA.BET also covered one of the tournament’s most unusual competitions: the chess tournament, held from 11 to 15 August. The event featured a new 22-player format with a Play-in stage and brought together some of the world’s highest-rated players, all representing esports clubs. Magnus Carlsen retained the title he won in 2025.

The analysis also highlights the technical challenge presented by an event of this scale. With competitions spread across seven weeks, the platform faced sustained peak demand rather than a single concentrated spike.

The Esports World Cup 2026 results reinforce, according to DATA.BET, two trends that have emerged throughout the season: esports betting is increasingly live-first and player-led.