Betting on the Olympics
Unlike most forms of sport betting, betting on the Olympics is almost as hard as actually competing in an Olympic event. As you may know, sports betting tends to be illegal in many parts of the world. When it’s not outright banned, it’s so ill defined that most people don’t understand the law. Even Nevada, the usual oasis for thirsty gamblers, doesn’t accept bets on the Olympics. Think about that for a second and let it sink in. The poster child for liberal gambling policies isn’t accepting Olympics bets. Why is Olympic betting different?
Some say the ban on Olympic betting is an attempt to protect the integrity of the game. Others suspect the recent scandals of athlete doping, judging scandals, and briberies are too distasteful for even Vegas to handle! Now there’s something you don’t hear too often. Las Vegas is shying away from betting. Unless you are in a country where some Olympic betting is legal, you might have difficulty placing your bet.
Of course we live in an Internet age, so there are plenty of online sites for Olympic betting (or even legal options.) Just search, and you’ll find one. Once you do find a place to take your Olympic bet (thus making you deserving of a gold medal for effort) you have to deal with nationalism (maybe this is why many places don’t like Olympic betting – too much emotion).
If an unpopular country is favored to win, that presents a problem for the Olympic betters. Some betters might be loathe to place a bet on the “Villain of the Moment” to win. Many bookmakers, on the other hand, don’t want to root for the bad guy to win, if most of the bets are against that country. Who wants to root against their home country even when money’s involved? Imagine placing a bet on Russia to win during the 1960’s in the USA (or even the reverse). Many bookmakers will refuse to take bets or just make the betting so unattractive that betters will move to other action. Again, emotion.
However despite the issues, it’s not impossible to find people wanting to bet on the Olympics. It’s just not going to be as easy as betting on the local baseball or football game. Jump online and find a neutral party that doesn’t care about two countries (or can sooth themselves with profits from worldwide bets).
There is one advantage to Olympic betting. There are so many events to choose from. Bet on the Long Jump, Swimming, or even Curling if you like. It’s a wide world of sports out there.
Most bets take on moneyline format (+$250, -$140), although some sports like Basketball use a point spread. Also, the odds could vary, depending on the home country offering the betting (most of Europe uses decimal odds, for example, instead of the moneyline).
Good luck on your bet and may you never experience the agony of defeat (congratulations if you get the reference).
