As the 2022 FIFA World Cup is set to kick off this weekend with hosts Qatar taking on Ecuador, Flutter Entertainment plc expects Ireland and UK betting brands to process c.£300m (€340) in World Cup betting.

Flutter operates Paddy Power, Betfair and Sky Betting & Gaming in Ireland and the UK.

FIFA-led analysis estimated that €136bn was staked globally on 2018 World Cup outcomes.

Flutter’s FanDuel and Sportsbet brands are benefiting from the participation of USA and Australia in the 32-team tournament.

At 125/1, the USA winning the World Cup represents Flutter’s biggest overall liability in the outright book, three times the amount of Argentina in second.

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The company said around 100 staff will be involved in handling the World Cup sportsbook, in roles such as in-play and pre-match traders, odds compilers, performance analysts, and product managers.

Combined, this group operates a ‘follow-the-sun’ model across trading centres in Dublin, Melbourne, and New Jersey, with the pricing model developed by Flutter UK&I distributed across the world and underpinning prices for 250 markets for each World Cup game.

Group chief trading officer Dom Crosthwaite said: “Our UK and Ireland brands are set to manage over £300m in stakes, but we expect global customer interest considering the involvement of countries such as the USA, Australia, Spain and Brazil – all important markets to Flutter.

“With 9.5m average monthly players now engaging with our brands around the world, many of whom are likely to bet on their own country, our global Risk and Trading operation must provide a compelling World Cup proposition, distribute accurate prices and manage risk effectively across the group.”

Crosthwaite explained that risk assessment spans a sophisticated simulator that plays out the tournament thousands of times, predicting a unique winner based on several variables.

Paddy Power has priced the five-time champions Brazil as current favourites to lift the World Cup, at 7/2.

England captain Harry Kane is 15/2 favourite to win the Golden Boot for top goal scorer.

Flutter had 3.7 million online punters in Ireland and the UK in the first half of 2022. Sportsbook stakes totalled €4.5bn in the period, with sports revenue making up 56% of total online revenue and gaming revenue the balance.

Operating profit for the UK&I online division was €303m for the six months period.