Betting on the outcome of Mueller indictments has become something of a sport in the last few months. The special counsel brought indictments against five individuals connected to the Russian government, including three members of the Russian Parliament. Every subsequent indictment has brought more sportsbooks to deal in, with each successive winner paying out exponentially more than the last. This has created a whole new market for sports betting, with some taking the view that this is now the best way to play sports.
The Parlay System
The Mueller indictments have given rise to a new betting system called a parlay, which is a type of bet that layers on top of another. A parlay is usually placed after a point spread or over/under win betting, with both options being favorites to win. The bettor selects how much they want to wager on each option, with the total sum being the parlay. For example, a sportsbook may set the line for the Dallas Cowboys at 3 points, with the over bettor paying 2.0 and the under bettor receiving 1.0. In this case, the over would net 2.0 and the under would be credited with 1.0. When it comes to parlays, the majority of bookmakers will take credit toward a bettor’s winning wager when the numbers come in, even if it is a push. For instance, if a Cowboys fan bets $100 on the over and the game ends up being a tie, the overall bettor would win $200, although they may only be credited with $100.
Best of Seven
Mueller’s indictments have also led to the creation of a new betting tournament called the ‘Best of Seven’. The concept behind the Best of Seven is to pit various teams or individuals against one another in a winner-take-all format. The first two games are always seeded matches, with the remaining five games being conducted in a best-of-seven format. The defending champion will be crowned after every round, with the overall cumulative winner taking all the winnings. If a match is tied at the end of regulation play, then a tie breaker game or sudden death playoffs will determine the champion. The first two games of each tournament will be played as part of the NFL season, with the other five games being held as part of the World Series of Sports-related Activities.
Who’ll Win the GOP Nomination?
One of the most interesting trends to arise from the Mueller indictments is the betting odds on who will be the next president of the United States. The special counsel indicted a total of 18 people, including 13 Russian nationals, who are either members of the Trump campaign or close associates of Trump. The odds on who will be the 2020 Republican nominee have shifted dramatically since the start of last year. At the time, the favorites were:
- Joe Biden
- Bernie Sanders
- Elizabeth Warren
- Pete Buttigieg
- Kamala Harris
- Cory Booker
Since then, the odds on all of the above have slid, with only one person remaining as a significant competitor for the 2020 Republican nomination: president Donald Trump.
The NFL Season
The 2020 NFL season kicked off on September 7th, with many people looking to take advantage of the sudden explosion of interest in football betting. The preseason games alone delivered a record $5.2 billion in revenue last year, according to the American Gaming Association. The regular season will last for 13 weeks, with playoff games extending the season for another 4 weeks. For sportsbooks, the off-season is literally the best time for betting, with very few sportsbooks closing down or laying off employees during the NFL’s offseason. The only downside is that the action is mostly confined to college football and the NFL Europe League, with the NCAA March Madness Tournament and various high school sports attracting considerably less attention.
World Series Of Sports
Roughly two weeks after the start of the NFL season, the World Series of Sports began. This series of sports events will consist of the 2020 Summer Olympics, the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament, the 2021 FIFA Men’s World Cup, and the 2022 WBS Golf Championship. The four events listed above will be held in different continents and last for a varying amount of time, with the Olympics and World Cup potentially running for a week or more. The WBS Golf Championship will be played in one of the four major golfing countries (the U.S., Australia, Japan, and the UK) and is set to conclude in mid-March 2022.
The World Series of Sports is a series of international sporting events that are held every four years. The first edition, which pitted the best North American college basketball teams against one another, pitted the University of North Carolina against the University of Texas. The second edition, which pitted the best teams from South Africa, was won by the Golden Arrows, who defeated the Blitzboks in the final. The third edition was known as the ‘War on Ice’ due to the involvement of the Russian and Swedish national hockey teams. The 2020 edition will be held in the U.S. and is set to attract huge interest. Not only does the host have the best NBA team in the world (the Celtics), the country also boasts some of the top college football teams. The host city, Covid-19-themed Boston, will also be the headquarters of the NCAA during the tournament. The final event of the series will be the 2022 FIFA World Cup, which is set to be the biggest World Cup held so far. The U.S. has qualified for the tournament and has hosted the event once before, in 2018.
The World Series of Sports is the pinnacle of any sports fan’s athletic career, as they get the chance to see their favorite teams from all over the world compete against one another in a single event. It is also the one instance where one’s love for one sport can truly shine, as fans can follow the fortunes of their favorite teams across all sports.