Original | Odaily Star Daily (@OdailyChina)
Author | Asher (@Asher_ 0210)
Yesterday, the "World Cup Champion" prediction event was finally settled with a transaction volume of $4.32 billion, surpassing the $3.686 billion of "2024 U.S. Presidential Election Winner," becoming the highest single prediction event in Polymarket's history.
In addition, the nominal trading volume of Polymarket's football sector reached $8.5 billion during the six weeks of the World Cup, which is four times the total trading volume of all other sports events during the same period.
The 2024 U.S. election brought Polymarket into mainstream visibility, while the 2026 World Cup pushed it into a sports market with higher trading frequency. With $8.5 billion over six weeks and $4.32 billion in a single market, Polymarket not only broke records but also found a faster traffic machine than the elections.
Taking Advantage of World Cup Traffic, Polymarket "Sneakily" Increased Sports Sector Fees
On July 10, at the end stage of the World Cup, Polymarket raised the trading fees for the sports market.
This adjustment was not separately announced to regular users but appeared in the platform developer Changelog. The Taker fee coefficient for the sports sector was raised from 0.03 to 0.05; the Maker rebate rate was also reduced from 25% to 15%.
Though the rate increase from 0.03 to 0.05 may seem small, the actual trading cost increased by nearly 70%. For example, purchasing 100 shares of a sports event at a share price of $0.50 incurs the maximum fee. Before the adjustment, users paid a maximum of $0.75; afterward, the maximum fee rose to $1.25. As the share price approaches $0.01 or $0.99, the fee symmetrically decreases towards both ends, detailed in the table below.
The sports sector has thus bid farewell to Polymarket's lowest fee tier. Previously, it was considered a low-cost trading category alongside politics, finance, and technology; after the adjustment, the maximum fee for every 100 shares increased to $1.25, placing it in the same tier as the economy, culture, and weather sectors, only lower than the cryptocurrency market's $1.75.
Looking back over the past six months, Polymarket's fee range has been quietly expanding.
In January 2026, Polymarket was the first to implement Taker fees in the 15-minute cryptocurrency market; in February, the fee scope expanded to some college basketball and Serie A markets; in March, all newly launched crypto markets began charging fees; and by the end of March, with the launch of Fee Structure V2, categories such as politics, finance, economy, culture, weather, and technology were gradually included.
For the platform, once user habits are established, raising fees does not lead to widespread user loss but allows the same trading volume to contribute more revenue.
POLY Airdrop Controversy Reignites, How Much Longer Do Users Have to Wait?
Recently, the community discovered that the official associated account Polymarket Traders deleted a tweet posted on May 13. The original tweet was interpreted by the community as a hint towards the POLY airdrop. After the deletion, many users began revisiting the account's historical content, reigniting discussions about "whether the airdrop has changed."
The market is particularly sensitive because Polymarket's token issuance had already moved beyond unfounded speculation. In October 2025, Polymarket's Chief Marketing Officer Matthew Modabber clearly stated in a podcast: "There will be tokens, and there will be airdrops." He also mentioned that Polymarket's primary task at that time was to return to the U.S. market, and the token plan would be advanced after establishing U.S. operations, praising Hyperliquid's token issuance method.
This statement led the community to believe that POLY was merely a matter of time. After that, trading volume, market-making scale, and active days were considered potential weights for airdrop eligibility by many users. Even though the platform has not announced a snapshot date or allocation rules, users remain willing to trade continuously, awaiting the real rollout of the token plan.
The issue is that U.S. operations have progressed, the much-anticipated World Cup has ended, yet POLY has still not announced a timeline. Observant users noticed that the help center section on Polymarket's official website recently added a note stating that the platform "has not announced any airdrop or token generation event plans," and warns users to be vigilant against scams under the guise of airdrops. This does not mean that POLY has been canceled, but for users who have been waiting for a long time, the question is no longer whether Polymarket will issue tokens, but rather how much longer this "future" will be delayed.
Currently, the community has two main judgments regarding the delay reasons. One viewpoint suggests that Polymarket is waiting for a more suitable compliance window. The platform is still expanding in the U.S. market, and issuing tokens and airdrops may bring additional regulatory issues. Before a formal plan is confirmed, deleting overly direct hints from associated accounts may be simply to tighten external communications.
The other viewpoint suggests that Polymarket no longer needs to rush to issue tokens, perhaps aiming to become the next OpenSea. In the past, the platform relied on airdrop expectations to attract users, increase trading volume, and supplement liquidity; now, Polymarket has already garnered a large user base and real income, with fees continually increasing. As the platform becomes less dependent on tokens, the priority of POLY may naturally continue to be lowered.
In the past, the community debated how POLY would be airdropped and whether trading volume counted towards eligibility; now, the discussion has turned to how much longer they will have to wait and what the next hopeful timeline might be. Polymarket, which has launched countless prediction events, is still unable to provide a settlement date for its airdrop.
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