Most bettors will be aware of major sporting events that are on the horizon, such as the FIFA World Cup, golf’s Ryder Cup, and even the Ashes in cricket. Naturally, the more passion a person has for a particular sport, the more aware they will be of its tournaments.
Bookmakers will capitalise on the significant interest when events like the Kentucky Derby, Super Bowl or Copa América come around. Those are essential times for bookmakers to potentially capture new accounts and get a boost in the number of bets being placed. Sometimes, they even expand their regular bonuses for new customers during these big events to draw more punters to their platforms.
For punters, it’s also interesting to scope out some future events that could become a hot trend for betting when they come around. Now that we are halfway through the 2020s, let’s look at what the rest of the decade has to offer.
2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON)
The 2025 Africa Cup of Nations will run in Morocco from 21 December 2025 to 18 January 2026. It will be the 35th edition of the tournament, organised by the Confederation of African Football, and feature 24 teams.
Morocco, hosting for the second time after 1988, is a favourite. They qualified unbeaten, scored 26 goals, and conceded only two. With players like Achraf Hakimi, Brahim Diaz, and Youssef En-Nesyri, they are strong contenders.
Ivory Coast, the defending champions, are back to try and retain their crown, while Algeria, led by Riyad Mahrez and Amine Gouiri, aim for a strong showing. Nigeria, with Victor Osimhen up front, are also among the favourites.
Senegal, Cameroon, and Egypt also remain in the mix. South Africa could cause problems too. With many world-class players involved and unpredictable knockout stages, AFCON 2025 is expected to be a major focus for sports bettors.
2026 Winter Olympics
2026 will be the time for another Winter Olympics, and this is when betting on winter sports gets a massive boost. Winter sports don’t capture such a big global audience often, even though global events in multiple disciplines, from skiing to speed skating and ice hockey, happen.
Countries like the USA, Canada, and Nordic nations like Norway get to follow their elite winter athletes, which will produce a spike in betting interest on who gets the gold medals.
2027 Rugby World Cup
Despite being a prominent sport in countries like the UK, France, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa, rugby betting participation still lags behind that of other sports like soccer and horse racing.
There is no bigger event that shakes up rugby betting than the World Cup, which happens every four years. The 2027 Rugby World Cup, therefore, will see a huge rise in rugby odds and drive greater betting interest in places like Ireland and New Zealand.
2028 Summer Olympics
The Olympics remains one of the most amazing spectacles of sport. Coming around every four years, it is a rare occasion to see the greatest athletes in the world come together for two weeks of elite competitions in sports ranging from swimming and shooting to skateboarding and track.
Outside the Olympics, athletics betting interest wanes greatly. Not even the World Championship, European Champions, or the Diamond League produces the volume of athletics bets the Olympics does. However, the Olympics’ reach will influence betting markets right around the world once again in 2028 when it heads to Los Angeles.
2029 UEFA Women’s Euro
Women’s soccer has come a long way in the last decade, with professionalism growing within the sport. 2029 will see the 14th edition of the Women’s Euros. Europe has the strongest women’s soccer scene, with countries like France, Spain, and England leading the way in quality at the club level.
Women’s soccer takes far less volume of bets than men’s, but it will get a boost in 2029. It will again be a fantastic chance for the women’s game to shine again in front of ever-growing public support, which will translate into the betting markets.
2030 Rugby League World Cup
Rugby League doesn’t have the following that Rugby Union does. But every four years it steps out of the Union’s shadow and into the limelight with the staging of the Rugby League World Cup, and 2030 will be the eighteenth edition.
Australia is the all-time leader in the tournament’s history, with twelve titles. Besides Australia, only Great Britain (3) and New Zealand (1) have lifted the title. The tournament will, again, focus on whether anyone can knock Australia off their perch, and bookmakers will see a massive spike in Rugby League bets when it kicks off.
Plenty to Look Forward to
All of the above is in addition to annual staples like the F1 season, Premier League soccer, tennis Grand Slams, the NBA Finals and Tour de France. Online betting conveniently and safely brings all of this, and a lot more to bettors.
