General Guide to Sports Betting
Sports betting is the wagering of money against the result of sports events, matches and competitions. Because there is such an intense interest in sports, supporters are drawn to wager on the sports games. They gamble on the sport because the euphoria gamblers feel when watching their favourite player or team is enhanced for the gambler when they are in action. For the more hardened gambler, they can find it increasingly difficult to care about the match they are betting on unless some money is wagered on the outcome. The sports betting market is a massive industry which continues to grow each year.
Because bookmakers are extremely careful with their pricing and research, the gambler is always trying to find areas where they have a small advantage. If you are a massive snooker fan for example, you may be slightly better at deciding who has the edge in a snooker match and can take advantage of a price you think is too high for one of the players. In my youth and to this day I am a massive snooker fan. Having played semi-professionally I can judge a players cue action, and other factors very well. I will be able to spot an opportunity in the betting quite well. You will know the sports where you feel you have a similar advantage.
The best opportunity in soccer / football betting is the away team odds on offer for matches. When Manchester United plays a team like Burnley at home, their odds are likely to be very low, maybe even 1/8 if they have won a run of matches. This is because the bookmakers fully expect them to win and want to discourage the punter from betting on this unprofitable outcome. But when Burnley plays Manchester Utd at home, the odds on Man Utd winning will be a little better, because away teams tend to do less well across the season. Almost the same eleven players are contesting the match for each team and the outcome is likely to be the same, yet the factor of the favourite being away will give you better value.
Tennis betting is another sport where there can be opportunities for the gambler to make money. There are a lot of matches that a handicapper must decide what price to place the players at every day. The usual approach is to look at the previous rounds result and the respective rankings and make odds from that information. If you are a tennis fan, betting on Federer may win you bets but the odds will be terrible as everyone knows he is heavy favourite to win 99% of his matches. It is earlier in the tournament where some key knowledge can identify some great bets. Information can include player injuries, rivalry and potential future ability.
Whatever your sport of choice is, you may be surprised at what you discover when analysing the odds on offer. One fun thing to try out is to grade the matches yourself and place what odds you think should be on offer. Then assess the real odds and compare them. You will spot opportunities where you may have better knowledge than the person setting the odds. Analyse to ensure it is not you making the mistake.
Your final task is to then decide how to proceed with the actual bets. You should be using a bankroll and never bet more than you can afford to lose. Paper trade first to see which sports you show a good win rate. Sports betting can be a fun way to add an extra spice to watching your favourite team play. My advice would be to ensure you are always interested whether wagering or not as you should not need to gamble to enjoy it. But if you do gamble do not bet recklessly and give yourself the best chance to win by spotting value opportunities that are available.
