Get ready for a winter revolution as the world descends on Northern Italy for Milano Cortina 2026. From the high-fashion streets of Milan to the jagged, sun-drenched peaks of the Dolomites, the stage is set for a Winter Olympics that blends urban edge with alpine tradition.
With the high-octane debut of Ski Mountaineering, the return of NHL superstars to the ice, and a historic push for gender equality, the energy is electric. Under the theme of Armonia (Harmony), 2,900 elite athletes are about to redefine the limits of human potential.
With the global increase in recreational sports betting, many of the events at the 2026 Winter Olympics will be available to wager on. Learn about the betting - and trading - opportunities with the help of our guide below.
Time and place
When: Feb. 4-22, 2026
Where: Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy
Olympics betting
Betting on the Olympics is relatively new to most bettors. Still, there isn’t much difference between the markets available for Olympic betting and any other types of betting. Some of the earliest betting markets available are nations’ gold and total medal counts, featuring odds for who will win most straight up and set to an Over/Under.
Other markets are sport-specific, with bettors choosing the winner of a race, game, or the entire event. Additionally, some markets are athlete-specific, with books posting medal totals on individual athletes.
Olympics betting at prediction markets
For the first time in Olympic history, the 2026 Winter Games are tradable on federally regulated prediction markets like Kalshi. Unlike traditional sportsbooks that set house odds, Kalshi operates as a Designated Contract Market (DCM) overseen by the CFTC. This allows users to buy and sell "event contracts" on outcomes like "Will the U.S. win the most gold medals?" as if they were stocks.
This shift was made possible by recent landmark court victories where judges ruled that forecasting competitions isn't "gaming" but rather a form of economic hedging. By trading binary contracts (priced $0.01 to $0.99), fans now use collective intelligence to turn athletic performance into a transparent, real-time probability map.
Olympic events
The 2026 Winter Olympics will feature 116 events across 16 different disciplines:
- Alpine Skiing
- Biathlon
- Bobsleigh
- Cross-Country Skiing
- Curling
- Figure Skating
- Freestyle Skiing
- Ice Hockey
- Luge
- Nordic Combined
- Skeleton
- Ski Jumping
- Ski Mountaineering
- Short Track Speed Skating
- Speed Skating
- Snowboarding
New events for 2026
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has added eight new events for 2026 in an effort to increase gender parity.
- Ski Mountaineering: Men’s Sprint, Women’s Sprint, Mixed Relay
- Skeleton: Mixed Team Event
- Luge: Women’s Doubles
- Freestyle Skiing: Men’s and Women’s Dual Moguls
- Ski Jumping: Women’s Individual Large Hill
Medals
One of the most common markets for Olympic betting is Olympic medal odds. Bettors can choose which country they think will capture the most gold medals, including Norway, which opened as a -160 favorite. There are also Over/Under markets for golds and total medals per country, which are great future markets to get on early before the Olympics kick off.
Most gold medals odds
Norway opened with the shortest odds to capture the most gold medals in 2026, followed by Germany and the USA. Visit our 2026 Winter Olympics Medal Count tracker for the latest odds available.
Norway
Germany
USA
Canada
ItalyHockey
The NHL’s return to the 2026 Winter Olympics has ignited a "best-on-best" fever not felt since Sochi 2014. Fans are buzzing to see icons like Sidney Crosby share the ice with generational talents like Connor McDavid and Auston Matthews, who will finally make their Olympic debuts.
This historic comeback was forged through a landmark agreement between the NHL, NHLPA, IIHF, and IOC. By resolving long-standing disputes over player insurance, travel costs, and marketing rights, the parties cleared the path for a mid-season break, ensuring the world’s greatest stage features its greatest stars.
The men's ice hockey tournament runs from February 11 to 22.
How to bet on the Olympics
With so many events to choose from, the 2026 Winter Olympics are sure to bring in many new bettors looking to wager on their favorite event. Let us guide you through how to bet on the Olympics with some basics on reading odds and tips for making smarter Olympic bets.
