People love their sports, and sportsbooks thrive on their love. When the games end and the action heats up, the action becomes much more exciting, but also much more complicated.
The lines between the different sports can blur, and it’s hard to keep track of all the upsets and score adjustments that happen during the game. As an enthusiast who wants to place a wager on the big games, you’ll quickly learn that the odds are always in your favor when it comes to NFL, NBA, and NHL betting, but that’s definitely not the case in all sports.
To help you get the most from your sporting activities, we’ll walk you through the odds in different sports so you can make the right wagers and have the rug pulled from underneath you when your team wins!
The Basics Of Odds
When you walk into a bookmaker’s shop to place a bet, the odds will be the first thing you’ll see. They’ll be in the form of a list of sporting events, with each event followed by its’ odds. If you were in the betting shop when we published this article, you’d see the following listed prices:
- Newcastle v Manchester United – (Newcastle) 2.7
- Liverpool v Manchester City – (Liverpool) 1.9
- Everton v Man Utd – (Everton) 1.85
- Sunderland v Man City – (Sunderland) 1.7
- Arsenal v Spurs – (Arsenal) 1.55
- Chelsea v Man Utd – (Chelsea) 1.5
As you can see, there’s a wide variety of odds available for sporting events, with some offering better values than others. That’s because not all sports are created equal, and certain events are considered more risky or less predictable than others.
For example, will Man United win the Premier League? Is it a coin toss or is it a foregone conclusion? Those are the sorts of questions you need to ask yourself before putting any money on a game involving United.
The same logic can be applied to the American football games. Will the Pittsburgh Steelers win the Super Bowl? Is it even possible for them not to win the Super Bowl this year? The key difference is that the bookmaker knows the answers to these questions, so they can price their odds accordingly. It’s just one of the ways they make money off football fans. The problem is, if you don’t know the answer to these questions, you have no way of knowing whether or not the odds are in your favor. That’s why it’s always a good idea to back a favorite – at least, until your team wins. Then, you’ll have to live with the agony of losing your money. But at least you’ll know you were betting on the right side.
How To Calculate The Odds
If you want to calculate the odds for yourself, it’s pretty easy. All you need is a calculator and some time on your hands. The basic formula for calculating odds is:
(odds of winning) / (odds of losing)
For example, suppose you want to know the odds of Manchester United winning the Champions League this year. To do that, you need to take the following into consideration:
(1) The odds of Manchester United winning the Champions League – (choosing them first in Europes premier division) x (2) The odds of winning the Europa League – (choosing second in Europes premier division)
Now you can see how the odds work. If you choose Manchester United, their odds of winning the competition will be 1 in 3.33 – that’s 27 percent. But if you choose Barcelona, the odds of winning the competition will be 1 in 11.11 – that’s 11 percent. The key point to notice is that the odds of Manchester United winning remain the same regardless of whether or not you included Barcelona as an option, whereas the odds of winning the Europa League increase if you include it. For the purposes of this example, it doesn’t matter which option you choose. Either way, the odds of Manchester United winning the Champions League are outstandingly low!
Why Do The Odds Favor The Home Team In Football?
One of the most prominent features of the odds in football is that they always favor the home team. It doesn’t matter if you bet on the underdogs or the favorites – the odds will always be in their favor. This is mainly due to the fact that it’s usually the case that the home team wins more games than the away team. Another factor is crowd noise. When the crowds get into it, it’s usually the case that the home team wins. Finally, in the case of international games, the bookmaker knows that most of the people there are English speakers, and thus he’d rather take the odds on the England team. He doesn’t care which team wins as long as he gets his payout.
The same can be said for the Indian national football team. They’ll always be considered long shots to win, but thanks to some highly questionable tactics, they’ve managed to surprise everyone and bring home the gold.
How Do Bookmakers Make Money Off Of Football?
As mentioned earlier, the main source of income for a bookmaker is through wagering. This is where they make their money from casual bettors who want to watch their favorite sport and happen upon a betting opportunity. Sometimes this is simply by advertising on social media sites or in newspapers, but sometimes they’ll use a third party affiliate to get the casual sports bettor’s attention. When this happens, the bookmaker earns a commission from any bets that are placed via a clickthrough on their website.
Which Sports Have The Highest Grossprofit Margins?
The main source of income for a bookmaker is through wagering, which naturally means they’ll be keen to maximize their earnings. One way they can do this is by looking at the profitability of various sports. The following table shows the five sports with the highest grossprofit margins:
(a) Gross Profit Margin (%)
(b) Average Revenue Per User ($)
(c) Attracting New Users (%)
(d) Larger Market Size (%)
(e) Third Party Affiliate Marketing (%)
It should come as no surprise that football dominates the list, accounting for four of the five spots. It’s the most popular sport in the world and attracts a large and loyal following. Naturally, bookmakers want to take advantage of this by offering odds on football matches. Allowing for inflation, the 2022 NFL season will be the 100th season of professional American football. There are now more than 300 million registered users on social media sites like Twitter and Facebook. The following two sports are next on the list, accounting for the other spot.
Why Do The Odds Favor The Cubs Over The Sox In Baseball?
Baseball is one of the most popular sports in the United States. No sport attracts as many casual and enthusiast bettors as baseball. Naturally, this creates a lucrative market for bookmakers, who want to take advantage of this by offering odds on baseball games. But which team deserves to win – the Chicago Cubs or the Boston Red Sox?
It’s clear that the bookmakers have sided with the Cubs because they’re the underdogs. The Red Sox have won the past 23 World Series titles, compared to the Cubs’ one. The Cubs are currently in the midst of one of the greatest comebacks in baseball history, having won the World Series in 2016 after a 108-year drought. Backed by a strong farm system and a motivated fan base, the Cubs have the ingredients for a successful season.
The same goes for the NFL. With no teams from the bottom three American football leagues remaining in the competition, the future of the NFL is very much in doubt. The competition is now down to eight teams, including the previously unstoppable New England Patriots, whom many consider to be the greatest team ever. Led by head coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady, New England has now won six straight Super Bowls, and it looks like they have every intention of continuing their winning ways this year as well.