According to Worldpay, the delayed Euro 2020 tournament has had a tremendous effect on sports betting in the UK.

With the tournament being pushed back a year, bettors and football fans were always going to up their involvement during this year’s campaign; and this has especially proven to be the case in England.

VP, Gaming and Trading for EMEA at Worldpay, Ian Kay, said: “The Euros are always a popular sporting event for betting activities in the UK, and that trend looks set to continue this year.

“Our analysis shows a surge in the volume of bets made ahead of the opening match of this year’s tournament.”

In general, England and other British games proved to be extremely popular in the opening week of the tournament.

Data showed pre-match betting had peaked just six minutes before England’s first game against Croatia.

Online bookies took in 38 payments every second on the game; Kay says online operators should additionally be prepared for an increase in betting for evening kick-offs.

Worldpay’s analysis shows that the scheduling of matches has a significant impact on the payment levels operators receive.

In addition, it is suggested operators should invest in a smooth customer experience for online betting since football fans will be placing several bets across the summer.

Kay added: “Operators need to understand the payments journey is the differentiator to providing the best user experience, and this can be done without compromising on security.”