OpenBet said its platform processed more than 175 million bets and $3 billion in stakes across its global operator customers during World Cup 2026. The supplier published the figures on 22nd July 2026, describing the tournament as its biggest-ever betting event.

The company said England’s run to the semi-finals drove high volumes across its UK-facing customers. OpenBet reported almost 5 million pre-match bets for England vs Norway in the quarter-final, with England vs Argentina close behind at 4.65 million.

OpenBet also pointed to increased demand for player-driven markets. It said 23 million Player Prop bets were processed during the tournament, up 130% versus Qatar 2022, and that the final between Spain and Argentina generated 831,000 BetBuilder bets, 39% more than four years earlier. OpenBet added that ten of the 20 most repeated bet combinations included a Player Goals or Player Stats selection, compared with four in 2022.

In-play betting rose as the knockout rounds progressed, with OpenBet saying live bets reached around one in six bets and carried higher average stakes than pre-match. The supplier said it also provided Managed Trading Services to platform customers during the tournament, covering odds creation, trading content, and risk and liability management.

Beyond sportsbook, OpenBet said its OpenBet Locator product processed more than 200 million location checks across regulated US states during the World Cup. Nikos Konstakis, President at OpenBet, said: “A World Cup is one of the defining moments for our industry, and this was the largest betting event our platform has ever supported.

“What stands out beyond the numbers is the extent to which player behaviour continues to evolve. Fans are no longer simply backing a result, they are building their own narrative around individual players, and our expanded BetBuilder and Player Prop offering met that demand while delivering the high-margin products operators need.

“Sustained peak load across a six-week tournament is different to managing a single event, and our platform handled it extremely well.

“The highest-profile operators trust us with the events that matter most, and this was the largest of them all.”

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Cinemo, a global leader and innovative one-stop-shop provider for fully integrated, multi-device in-car infotainment solutions, announces its collaboration with SmashLabs, a boutique gaming and technology company to deliver an extremely immersive in-vehicle gaming experience. The solution is designed to address growing consumer demand in connected, engaging cabin experiences.

The integrated solution combines SmashLabs’ music-based games with Cinemo’s scalable software, synchronizing lighting, haptics, audio and even climate elements with gameplay to create an immersive, multi-sensory experience. Optimised for low-latency performance across vehicle displays and audio systems, it enables interactive entertainment during charging stops and for passengers while driving.

The first game available from SmashLabs via Cinemo’s in-car immersion is Smashworld: Beat Explorers, a rhythm-based game where player interactions are directly synchronized with music, enhanced by immersive Dolby Atmos audio when supported by the vehicle. Through collaboration with Sony Music Publishing and Extreme Music (Sony Group), passengers can download new song packs for Smashworld: Beat Explorers at any time.

“OEMs are racing to turn the cabin into a standout experience. Together with SmashLabs, we’re proving that connected entertainment can captivate passengers, strengthen differentiation, and become a seamless part of the vehicle ecosystem,” said Charly Lippoth, Director of Partnerships at Cinemo.

“Bringing our games into the vehicle creates entirely new opportunities to engage passengers in ways that were not possible before. What makes this especially exciting is that we can now create experiences in the car that simply don’t exist at home: immersive, social, and perfectly integrated into the journey itself. It is a pleasure to work with Cinemo on this truly transformative gaming experience,” said Niccolò Cappon, President & CEO at SmashLabs.

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FIRST.bet, the Tier-1 sportsbook technology provider, announced its integration with Pragmatic Solutions’ iGaming Player Account Management (PAM) platform for regulated gaming and betting operators.

Under this collaboration, FIRST.bet is now available to operators through the Pragmatic Solutions platform ecosystem, providing access to its full sportsbook engine, trading stack, risk management and managed services.

The integration combines two core layers operators need to build and scale competitive betting operations: Pragmatic Solutions’ modern PAM platform and the trading-led sportsbook technology from FIRST.bet. The Pragmatic Solutions platform is designed to support end-to-end player journeys, multiple brands and flexible operations through a stable, scalable central infrastructure layer. Its open API model enables operators to integrate and manage sportsbook, casino, payments, CRM, compliance, reporting and third-party services within a single platform environment, while retaining control over their product roadmap, front-end experience and vendor strategy.

FIRST.bet is already live within the Pragmatic Solutions ecosystem, establishing FIRST.bet as a major sportsbook supplier and making its full managed offering available to operators across the platform. It is positioned as a managed sportsbook solution with advanced in-play betting and player engagement features.

Tom Light, Founder and CEO of FIRST.bet, said: “This is a major step for FIRST.bet. Operators don’t need another basic sportsbook connection – they need real trading depth, product innovation and managed execution that moves the business. That’s exactly where we focus: a sportsbook engineered to perform, run by a team that owns the result. Being available through Pragmatic Solutions puts that in front of operators who are serious about competing in sports.”

Ashley Lang, CEO of Pragmatic Solutions, said: “Sportsbook remains a core component of the product offering for many operators, particularly in regulated markets where flexibility, compliance, and speed to market are important. FIRST.bet brings a strong sportsbook product to our platform ecosystem, giving operators access to a modular product with proven in-play and player engagement capabilities.”

Two things set the FIRST.bet stack apart: API and gamification. SportOS, an open API, lets operators build and customise their own betting products on top of the FIRST.bet engine – the sportsbook becomes a platform they can extend, not a fixed product. GMFY, a full sportsbook gamification engine, makes engagement and retention native to the betting experience. Around them sit the essentials operators expect – Bet Builder, Player Props, Cash Out, Early Payout and ACCA Promotions – plus Fast Markets and SnapBet , all backed by FIRST.bet and its Managed Services for full trading, risk and operational expertise.

FIRST.bet powers a growing global partner network handling millions of daily transactions across LATAM, Europe and Africa.

This collaboration positions FIRST.bet as a leading B2B sportsbook supplier for operators that want more than standard sports betting technology. Through Pragmatic Solutions, operators can combine a proven Tier-1 PAM core with a fully managed sportsbook built around product depth, local-market execution, player engagement and trading performance.

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