An international betting integrity watchdog has flagged several matches from the 2026 World Cup for unusual gambling patterns detected across global sports betting markets.
The Copenhagen Group, an international advisory network linked to the Council of Europe, issued seven yellow alerts in a preliminary assessment of the tournament.
The Group specialises in sports integrity and described the alerts as relating to anomalies and atypical financial flows detected on global betting markets during the competition.
In total, the Copenhagen Group monitored all 104 World Cup matches, placing 15 fixtures under enhanced surveillance, particularly during the final day of the group stage.
Among the incidents drawing attention was a red card shown to South Africa’s Themba Zwane in the match against Mexico, which attracted scrutiny from integrity monitors.
More than four million euros was reportedly staked on a draw in the Spain versus Cape Verde fixture, a pattern that the Copenhagen Group flagged as worthy of further examination.
A lengthy VAR review that led to a Ferran Torres goal being disallowed also featured among the 12 major controversies related to integrity risks that the Group analysed.
Despite these concerns, FIFA maintained that no cause for suspicion around match manipulation was identified during the entirety of the 2026 World Cup tournament run.
FIFA’s dedicated integrity unit monitored all 104 matches in real time, operating in partnership with Interpol and the FBI as part of a wider anti-corruption effort.
The operation was centralised through the collection of betting reports and relevant data submitted by taskforce members, with intelligence shared across all partner organisations throughout the competition.
Liam Rich, FIFA’s Senior Integrity Manager, said: “The FIFA Integrity Task Force provided a strong framework during the FIFA World Cup 2026 for sharing intelligence, assessing potential concerns and coordinating a timely response.”
Rich added: “We thank all Task Force members for their expertise and commitment during the competition and we look forward to building on this collaboration at future FIFA tournaments.”
FIFA’s Integrity Task Force reported no suspicious betting activity or indications of match manipulation across any fixture, despite an estimated $240 billion in total bets placed during the tournament.
Council of Europe Secretary General Alain Berset has called on FIFA to begin what he described as a third half and to build the integrity framework of the 2030 World Cup before it is played.
European authorities are now planning to tighten regulations around betting and predictions activity on international sport in the wake of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
