AK Bets Head of Risk and Trading David Murray has described what he called a near-constant operational cycle for sportsbook trading teams during the FIFA World Cup, as it overlaps with a packed summer calendar including Royal Ascot, the US Open and Wimbledon.
“It’s just not comparable really,” says David Murray, Head of Risk & Trading at AK Bets. “It’s completely and utterly non-stop. We’ve had three or four World Cup matches almost every day, with games taking place late into the night and even during the early hours. Our focus has effectively been on the tournament 24 hours a day.”
Murray said the expanded schedule creates continuous preparation and live management, with teams pricing upcoming fixtures, reviewing outright markets and setting additional markets ahead of kick-off, before switching into in-play operations. “During the morning we’re creating and pricing matches, reviewing outright markets and preparing additional betting markets before the games even begin,” Murray told sports betting community OLBG. “Once the football starts, everything switches to in-play trading, while at the same time you’re already preparing for what’s coming next.”
He also pointed to the practical impact of match timings for UK audiences, with AK Bets running overnight coverage. “The overnight games are naturally quieter because fewer people are watching them live,” Murray says. “But from a trading perspective they still require exactly the same level of focus. You want to watch every game. That’s one of the enjoyable parts of the job. Previous World Cups often had games on during the afternoon though, whereas now some of the biggest matches are taking place while most people are asleep.”
On in-play trading, Murray highlighted the need to manage markets through incidents such as red cards, VAR checks and potential penalties. “You want markets to stay open for customers for as long as possible, but equally you can’t leave prices available if something significant is about to happen.” He added that hydration breaks can serve as a decision point for bettors: “It almost becomes a mini half-time. People have a chance to think about what they’ve watched, look at the prices again and decide whether they want to get involved.”
Murray said team news and wider football developments still ripple through pricing during the tournament, especially as squads rotate in the group stage and into knockouts. “As teams qualify for the knockout stages, you’re thinking about who’s going to be rested and what impact that has across multiple markets,” he says. “If somebody like Harry Kane or Lionel Messi doesn’t start, suddenly you’re reassessing Golden Boot betting, outright markets and individual match prices all at the same time.”
