With the 2006 World Cup behind us, financial analysts are reviewing and mulling over the gambling figures generated from what is already being deemed the largest wagering event in the history of mankind.  The earliest figures are indicating that over $2 billion was wagered worldwide, and that most of the betting revenue remained with the bookmakers and online sportsbooks who took the majority of their bets on the favorites, England and Brazil, both of which were eliminated relatively early on in the tournament.

Both of the finalists, France and Italy, were not heavily favored according to leading sportsbooks like William Hill, who was offering 50/1 odds on both teams at the start of the World Cup games.  This equated into large profit margins for most of the world's leading bookmakers - many of which were taking bets online.  Will Hill said their bettors plunked down nearly £30 million per day (amounting to £1.5 million per hour), on a variety bets that included all games, halftime scores, red/yellow cards, goals scored and even the style of David Beckham's haircut.

Online bookies and sportbooks in countries from around the globe all contributed to the prodigious gambling sums generated by the 2006 World Cup.  In Greece, reviews show the sportsbook and lottery conglomerate OPAP processed more than $573 million in bets on their fixed-odds Stihima game, with just under half of that amount staying with the sportsbook.

In the Czech Republic, where online gambling is considered illegal, reviews show that over $10 million in online bets was estimated to have been place by Czech citizens.  Overall, Czech bettors wagered over $67 million on World Cup games, of which, many bets were bet on their home team.

In Australia, both Betfair and the newly AIM-floated Centrebet reported record numbers of new bettors, although the New Zealand TAB surprisingly processed less bets than it did in the 2002 World Cup, which the company is blaming on a tight regulations that prohibit the company from taking bets at certain times of the day and week.