Sports betting? Where do they come from and what can you do with them?
We cannot ignore the fact that sports betting is a hot topic in Belgium. The controversy about these bets regularly makes the media and many sports teams have a logo of a gambling company flashing on the chest. But how did sports betting actually originate and what options are there to participate in it. We will briefly list it for you. Remember: the possibilities are almost unlimited!
Dive into the history of sports betting
Humans are competitive creatures and like to take a gamble, that is timeless. The first traces of sports betting were already found in the ancient Greeks. Sports betting is thus at least 2,000 years old. Whether there was already so much fuss around then? We dare not gamble …
With their great sporting tradition, just think of the Olympic and Corinthian Games, the Greeks of course had a lot of sporting events to bet on. The Romans, who not much later took over the rule of the Greeks, took over the tradition. There was a lot of bet on the fighting gladiators in the arenas, that’s for sure. It was certainly not just a thumbs up or down.
In more modern times, betting became especially popular in Great Britain, but now almost all countries are turning to sports betting. It is a booming business and gives a lot of people diversion and an extra reason to get completely absorbed in a sports competition. The advent of the internet made betting on sports matches even more accessible. It meant the big breakthrough and nowadays a gamble is therefore a piece of cake, it can be done from the lazy seat.
Here we already give a brief list of the providers of sports betting in Belgium
Legal sportsbetting
What sports bets are there?
Do you have about five days? What once started with a simple 1,2 or an x has now grown into a flourishing business with hundreds of possibilities. Not only can you bet on just about every sport and competition in the world, the number of options you have per game is also immense. You can bet on just about any possible event. Just think of the first throw-in at a football match, the first ace at a tennis match or who will cross the finish line first in an F1 race. Although most gamblers still stick to a win, a loss or a draw, anything is possible.
To give you an idea, we have listed 3 popular variants:
- Double chance: Here you not only bet on a win, but also on a draw. For when you are not entirely sure. Of course you can earn less profit with this, but your chance of winning increases.
- Win to nil: Not only do you indicate which team wins, but you also indicate that they do not take a goal against. Less chance, but more profit.
- Both teams to score: Are you sure that both teams will score a goal? Then this option is for you.
Note: this is only a very small selection of the options. Do not hesitate to browse through all the options, it will take you a while! And start figuring out when you think Hamilton will be in the pits his first time.
How does such a bet actually work?
Undoubtedly you have already seen those numbers with a quotation in sports betting in Belgium, but how does that actually work? Well, to begin with, you should know that there are always two parties: the one who is going to bet and the bookmaker who offers the bet.
The next step in the process is that the person who is going to bet decides what to bet. In technical terms this is also called the “stake”. This is literally and figuratively what you are risking.
Another term is “odd”. Here we come to the previously mentioned quotation. It is a kind of probability calculation performed by the bookmaker. There are all kinds of factors that play a role in the realization of this probability calculation, but feel free to consider them as a black box.
What can you win? Your wagered money x the odd is what you can eventually pocket, if you are right of course. For example, if you bet 10 euros and the odd was 2.00, you will eventually receive 20 euros. A nice profit, right?
So, it is not more difficult in the end. It is therefore logical that many people enjoy sports betting in Belgium and the extra adrenaline rush it brings.
The most popular sports to bet on
Are you sitting in your chair? Great, although we dare to bet money on that you can guess a lot of the most popular sports that are bet on.
In Europe, football stands head and shoulders above the rest. Certainly at major championships such as European or World Cups or the Champions League, the stake and the number of players go up with a jerk. Second, we find tennis, which may come as a surprise. Other popular sports that are regularly gambled on? Equestrian sports, which was the most popular sports bet in earlier times, completes the list.
If we look at it worldwide, a lot of money is of course also used on American competitions. Just think of the NBA, the NFL and Major League Baseball. Perhaps less expected in the top 10 is cricket, which is especially popular in Asian countries. Asians are solid gamblers anyway. Golf, Formula 1 and boxing also remain popular sports bets.
You notice a lot can be said about sports betting in Belgium. Betting on sports is therefore timeless and if you use it wisely, it gives that little bit extra to the match. Regardless of the fact that you can earn a nice penny with it. Place your bets!
