One of the most important advances in sports betting in the last decade has been the introduction of live betting. These bets sometimes referred to as in-play betting, allow you to place bets while the game is happening in front of your eyes. In the world of ubiquitous smartphones, we take this for granted, but it is an incredible technology that allows this real-time interaction with a sporting event.
But which sports are best suited for live betting? That’s an interesting question because the key to successful live betting is being able to sense fluctuations in the game’s action. Sports fans know that things can go differently once a game has started. All the plans made before the game can go to shit, and that’s why live betting is so popular. It’s all about being able to react to changes in the course of the game.
The choice of the platform is important
Before we talk about the best sports for live betting, we should emphasize that the platform is important. A reliable live betting platform online like William Hill is desirable because you can place bets quickly and at the crucial moment. Platforms that lag can be frustrating for bettors. The point is that you want to place your bets in real-time and without software issues.
So which sports are best for in-play betting? As we mentioned earlier, momentum is key. And there are certain sports where momentum changes are more noticeable than in others. Basketball, for example, is a good example of a fast-paced game where you can feel things changing in favour of one team.
Therefore, it is perhaps not surprising that soccer is the most popular sport for live betting. Like basketball, you can feel the momentum changing. If you’re looking for proof of this, look at the 1999 Champions League final between Bayern Munich and Manchester United. Bayern led until the final minutes of the game but then collapsed when United scored two late goals. The thing is, you could feel that twist of fate in the final minutes before United struck.
Information for all the sports fans
Live betting didn’t exist in 1999, but since then there have been several similar examples. For example, in the 2014 World Cup, when Germany beat Brazil 7-1. Before the game started, everyone thought that this was a meeting of like-minded people. Brazil was probably the favourite. But within the first few minutes, you could tell that something was wrong with the Brazilian team. This is a perfect example of the benefits of live betting.
Other sports that are suitable for live betting are rugby (a real example of a game where momentum matters), tennis, American football, ice hockey and baseball. Although the latter sport, baseball, is not very popular among European bettors, we would probably cite it as the best example of a live betting sport. In baseball, it often comes down to the pitcher, and there are signs that this player is getting tired and losing control of the game.
Among the sports that are not suitable for live betting, we would perhaps refer to events that depend on a single incident, like golf or snooker. The point is not that these sports are bad for live betting per se, but rather that there is no discernible advantage to betting during the game. Whatever you do in your live betting strategy, remember to bet only as much as you can afford to lose and always bet responsibly.