Super Bowl vs. Presidential Election Betting: Which Is Bigger?

Betting on the Presidential Election is estimated to pull in $1 billion when all is said and done.

The 2020 Presidential Election has received a record number of wagers in the United Kingdom.
American betting platforms do not offer political wagers but the UK estimates $1 billion in bets for the election by the time it’s over.
The 2020 Super Bowl was estimated to receive $6.8 billion in handle from just US sports bettors but if political betting was allowed, the election could have given the event a run for its money.

WASHINGTON – Election Day is here in the US and gamblers worldwide are wagering on who will win the presidency at a record amount. The number of prop bets available and money being wagered on the election mirrors that of the Super Bowl. But which occasion brings in more handle for bookmakers?

It’s a well-known fact that football is the most gambled on sport in the U.S. and the Super Bowl is the biggest day for action on a single event all year at sportsbooks nationwide.

But the 2020 Presidential Election has brought in so much handle in available markets that one has to ask, is the Super Bowl or the election the bigger betting event. To be fair, the big game happens every year while bettors have to wait every four years to get in on some presidential gambling and that alone could be a reason for its sheer popularity.

The 2020 Presidential Election Vs. The 2020 Super Bowl Numbers

President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden are racking up the bets from online sportsbooks located across the pond.

Despite starting as the betting favorite, Trump has been the underdog in this battle for quite some time.

On Tuesday, his odds were set at (+150) while Biden is favored at (-180). But this hasn’t deterred gamblers from betting on the current president to win re-election as 80% of all wagers coming into sportsbooks like BetOnline have recently been put on Trump to win.

The election is expected to have a final tally of nearly $1 billion dollars when all is said and done. The United Kingdom has already made history dubbing the 2020 Presidential Election for the United States their most bet on event to date.

Betfair, a UK based betting platform, has recorded almost 6,700 wagers for Trump totaling $4.83 million and 5,250 bets for Biden at $4.7 million in total for the Democrat.

The biggest wager in the UK was a $1.29 million bet on Biden to win. Bookies in the country have put Biden’s odds of winning the election at 65%. However, betting companies across the globe are astounded by the number of bets being placed on a Trump victory as Biden is so heavily favored by all of them to win.

It’s reminiscent of the 2016 Presidential Election where Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton went head to head with Clinton being favored and Trump somehow beating the odds. Bettors back then also felt as though he would win it. And if he wins re-election, sportsbooks everywhere will be taking huge hits in payouts to the underdog and the influx of wagers he’s received.

With a billion dollars being the figure for the estimated handle on the event, does that beat out the Super Bowl activity seen this past February? One would think it would but no.

While the election has seen record highs in the UK and record highs for general activity in the realm of political betting it’s not eligible to be gambled on at American sportsbooks so it pales in comparison to the Super Bowl’s handle.

With legal sports betting becoming more and more accepted by states across the nation, more gamblers were able to place wagers on the Super Bowl this year than ever before.

It was estimated that $6.8 billion was bet on the Super Bowl nationwide.

That’s almost seven times that of the 2020 Presidential Election and only accounts for US books. But if political betting was available at American books, there is little doubt that it would surpass or at least be just as high as Super Bowl bets because the interest is clearly there.

The Super Bowl had plenty of high rollers placing bets of $500K or more. But for European platforms accepting wagers for the election, that has also attracted high rollers as well, exceeding the $500K mark for single bets in quite a few cases.

“This is a huge market,” said Matthew Shaddick, head of political betting at British sports betting and gambling firm GVC. “It is twice as big as 2016, easily making it the biggest political event ever.”

Which Event Trumps The Other?

Gamblers want action for both events, that’s apparent. If it were an equal playing field, the 2020 Presidential Election would skyrocket in handle as the UK and other areas of the world have seen it make records.

But the United States has not yet legalized local markets for political betting, often weighing the pros and cons and so far, the cons outweigh the pros in the eyes of lawmakers.

Based on the numbers at hand, it’s a safe bet that both the Super Bowl and the 2020 Presidential Election have the attention of bettors everywhere as the handle speaks for itself.

If ever the US approves political betting, revenue in the gaming industries across the nation would surge every four years and the country could welcome both high revenue and a new president simultaneously.

Until then, records will likely continue to be set in Europe for the elections while records for the Super Bowl will be set here in the U.S.

Advertising Disclosure

In order to provide you with the best independent sports betting news and content LegalSportsBetting.com may receive a commission from partners when you make a purchase through a link on our site.

Christina Monroe

Christina has been writing for as long as she can remember and does dedicated research on the newly regulated sports betting market. She comes from a family of sports lovers that engage in friendly bets from time to time. During the winter months, you can find Christina baking cookies and beating the entire staff at Mario Kart…the N64 version of course.