Betting on football is a way of life that has been popularized by the masses thanks to the World Cup. Now that the tournament has come and gone, people are looking for ways to continue betting on their favorite teams. One such way is to look at the betting odds for upcoming games. One can find a lot of information about a game from simply glancing at the odds – this includes information about who is favored to win, the weather, and the record of past games.
There is a lot of information to be gleaned from studying the odds, but it can be difficult to know which information is most useful. Luckily, modern day fortune tellers such as BettingOdds.com have created an infographic that breaks down the most useful information into an easy to understand format. Here is a description of how to read the odds and use this information to win more money at betting on football:
How to Read The Football Odds
One of the first things that one should do when analyzing odds is to check if the bookmaker is a trusted entity. There are a lot of shady operators out there who will gladly give you the false impression that a game is more likely to end in a certain way when in reality it is far from certain. Checking the history of the bookmaker and looking at previous games between the two teams involved can be extremely useful. Looking at the betting lines for other games between the same teams can give an idea of the magnitude of the betting differences for the current game. The following are some general guidelines for reading football odds:
Check The History Of The Bookmaker
As mentioned above, one of the most effective ways of discovering whether or not one should trust an entity that is offering football odds is by looking into the history of the bookmaker. If you visit the websites of various sportsbooks, you can often find a history of sorts for each bookmaker. This can be a useful tool for comparing the relative trustworthiness of various bookmakers. One should also look at whether or not the bookmaker is a member of the organizations that regulate gaming in their respective countries. Some countries, such as the United States, do not allow for sports betting to take place, but other countries, such as Portugal, do. It is advisable to look for a combination of factors when deciding whether or not to place a bet on a particular game.
Study The Performance History Of The Football Teams Involved
It is always preferable to bet on a team that is well-established as being a winning team. When placing a bet on a team that is less familiar to you, it is often difficult to know for sure whether or not they will perform better than expected. One can examine the winning percentage for a team over a certain period of time to get a general idea of how consistent they have been in winning games.
However, it is often difficult to compare apples to oranges, as each team plays with a different roster of players. Still, the above information is often useful in getting a feel for whether or not a team is a good choice for betting on. The history books for NFL teams are available at Pro-Football-Reference.com; these can be very useful when performing research on individual games or seasons. One should also check out the Wikipedia pages for the teams involved in an upcoming game to get a general idea of their respective histories – this can be a good way to get a feel for whether or not they are likely to perform well in the coming game.
Make Sure The Game Is In Your Favorite Country
The laws regarding where one can and cannot legally bet vary from country to country. In many countries, one cannot legally wager in public places, such as restaurants and bars. Still, as long as one keeps the bets within one’s own country, one should not worry about violating any laws. Knowing where one’s country’s borders are can be helpful in avoiding any trouble when placing a wager on a game.
Check Weather Conditions
As with any sport, the weather conditions in which a game is being played can have a major impact on how that game will play out. Sometimes, the lack of consistency in the weather can make it difficult to judge how a game is going to turn out – especially since a game can be affected by a variety of factors, not all of which are under a team’s control.
Look At Past Games Between The Two Teams
One of the most effective ways of judging the likelihood of a game ending in a certain way is to look at past games between the two teams involved. If one team is accustomed to winning and the other team is not, it is likely that the team which is accustomed to winning will continue winning, no matter what – this is often the case with professional sports teams, where the players on one side are considerably more experienced than the players on the other side (the saying ‘expertise often trumps talent’ comes to mind).
Still, every now and then, one will see a game that is so close that one cannot tell whether or not it will end in a tie or in favor of one team or the other. In these instances, one can turn to the betting lines to get an idea of which way things are leaning – if the game is close, one can often find several betting options, with the over/under lines specifically listing the total number of points that will be scored in the game. These are ideal for cases where one does not know which way the game will turn out. However, even in these situations, one should still try to find a bookmaker that one can trust, as it is usually better to bet on a team that one knows and trusts than to bet on one which is unknown or untrustworthy – unknown quantity is often worse than an unexpected bonus when it comes to casino games, and this holds true for sports betting as well.
Look At The Overall Odds
While studying the odds can be extremely useful in getting a feel for whether or not one will come out ahead betting on a game, it is often useful to take a look at the odds as a whole. In most cases, one will not lose money overall if one studies the odds and bets accordingly – this is especially the case when studying the odds for games between two established teams. Still, in some instances, one might come out slightly ahead or even lose money overall if one is not careful – this is usually due to one’s ignorance of the game or the lack of trust in the bookmaker.
Use Your Feeling)
To some people, studying the odds is like reading tea leaves – one might argue that the odds alone do not guarantee victory or defeat, but one needs to look no further than the results of the last World Cup to know that this is often not the case. Still, in situations where one does not know much about a game or a team, one can sometimes get the best results by relying on one’s feelings rather than facts and data.
For instance, if you have a strong feeling that a game is going to be tied or has the potential to be tied, you might want to avoid betting on it – even though the odds strongly support your theory, you cannot be sure that the bookmaker’s odds are correct and, therefore, you run the risk of losing your money. In these types of situations, one usually does not lose money, but one might lose a bit of money by being too aggressive – this is where one’s “feeling” can get one into trouble.
The Takeaway
Based on the above, one should be able to determine whether or not studying the odds for a game is a worthwhile endeavor. Still, no matter what, one should try to find a bookmaker that they can trust, as this will make all the difference in the world when it comes to winning and losing at sports betting. When choosing a bookmaker, one should look for those who are regulated, have a good reputation, and are available in the country that one is in – the odds will then be more accurately reflected and, in many cases, this will translate into winning money. As with any game, one will never know for sure how a particular game or series of games will play out – this is why it is always advisable to bet on one’s favorite team or teams rather than against them, as in most cases this will translate into winning more money in the long run – it is always better to be safe than sorry when betting, and this holds true for sports betting as well.