ADVERTISEMENT

A 2022 guide on other sports to bet on besides football

Sports betting has become increasingly popular since its introduction in Nigeria. However, most indigenous bettors tend to focus more on football betting because of the popularity of the sport in the country.

Naomi Osaka is one of the tennis stars you can bet on this week

Top leagues such as the English Premier League, La Liga, and the UEFA Champions League receive the highest stakes. International football does not receive as much attention and, for this reason, betting activities become considerably lower during international breaks.

Betting is fun and most sports fans love to bet on sports that they are emotionally attached to. However, if your goal is to make a profit in betting, you can do that by betting on other sports as well. Although it will involve some analysis and getting your hands on statistical trends, you can make the job easier by following betting experts.

In a bid to make sure that you always profit from betting, we have compiled a list of other sports you can bet on when football events are on break.

ADVERTISEMENT

Tennis events are almost always available to bet on all year round. It is the most popular individual sport in the world and features over 90,000 matches every year.

The major grand slams receive the most attention, but there are close to 1,500 other tournaments that happen in tennis every year. The ATP Tour (men’s tennis) and WTA Tour (women’s tennis) offer good odds for bettors and can be turned into a steady flow of winnings.

The most popular markets for stakes include:

The Moneyline: In simple form, this means betting on a player to win the match. You can also place a bet on a player to win an individual set (e.g., 1st Set Winner, 2nd Set Winner).

Over/Under: this could be a bet on the total number of sets or the total number of games played in a match. For example, if you place a bet on over 3.5 sets in a match, that simply means the least number of sets must be four in that game.

ADVERTISEMENT

However, if your bet is on total games, then the points will be valid rather than the number of sets played. If you bet on over 22.5 games for a 3-set match between Jack Sinner and Novak Djokovic, and Djokovic wins (6-7, 4-6), your bet will be won as the total number of games is 23.

Basketball

Although the most popular basketball league on this side of the world is the NBA, there are other basketball leagues and tournaments that are held all year round. Consistency is the key to consistently and tangibly gaining money when betting on basketball.

Slip-ups, mistakes, and moments of brilliance frequently determine the outcome of basketball games. This indicates that a lot of individuals believe it is impossible to place bets consistently as there are many factors that decide the game.

However, consistency in your betting strategy will increase your chances of success when you bet on basketball over the duration of a league or tournament.

ADVERTISEMENT

The most popular basketball betting markets include:

Totals: This is a bet on the total number of points that will be scored in a game. The trick is to discover the total number of average points that occur in a league or tournament. On average, league basketball produces higher totals than tournament basketball.

For example, the NBA produces a total of 180 to 220 points on average, while the average is lower in Olympic basketball. You can also bet on individual team totals, e.g., the New York Knicks to score over 80.5 points.

Moneyline: A moneyline bet is the same thing as betting on a team to win the game.

Spread Bet: This is the equivalent of handicap betting in football, where you either give a team some points ahead or deduct some points from their final score line.

ADVERTISEMENT

For instance, the Boston Celtics (+5.5) vs. the Los Angeles Lakers (-5.5).

In other words, the Lakers must win by a margin bigger than 5.5 points, or more specifically, a margin of 6 points or more, if you bet on them to cover the spread. To cover the spread, the Celtics must win the game outright or suffer a loss of no more than 5 points.

Esports represent a completely new school of betting and have made sports betting accessible to a huge number of new enthusiasts, which has led to the creation of websites solely devoted to these games.

Despite this, esports betting is still in its early stages, and we anticipate that fresh markets will emerge at a rapid rate. More importantly, esports offer a year-round betting option for you to cash out as there are always games to bet on.

ADVERTISEMENT

Match Winner: This bet is placed on who will win a specific game.

Round/Map Winner: You might be able to wager on the outcome of a particular round or map depending on your game.

Correct Points/Score: This is about choosing the right score rather than choosing the winner, although you can utilize this market if you're truly confident in your ability to predict the outcome.

Over/Under: You can also wager on the score being above or under a specific amount if you don't know the exact result.

Time: You can wager on whether or not a time-limited game, like Overwatch, will go into overtime.

ADVERTISEMENT

Group/Event Winner: This is a tournament stage or individual group winner.

Handicap Bet: This is a weighted wager that imposes additional restrictions on teams that have an edge in order to make it more equal. To still win this wager, a team will need to overcome the handicap.

First Blood: Which player will score the first kill is a rather popular betting market in a few different shooting games, such as CS GO.

There are a ton more markets for each esports game. They frequently adapt to the gameplay's happenings. These esports betting markets are, nonetheless, accessible for the majority of games out there.

JOIN OUR PULSE COMMUNITY!

Unblock notifications in browser settings.
ADVERTISEMENT

Eyewitness? Submit your stories now via social or:

Email: eyewitness@pulse.com.gh

ADVERTISEMENT