Football Ground Map
Football Ground Map
The beautiful game attracts fans from every corner of the globe. The biggest leagues in the world are now multi-billion-pound industries with incredible talent on the pitch and a massive following off it.
TV rights, ticket sales, advertising and merchandise bring the teams vast amounts of cash to help them run their clubs. But there are other areas connected to the sport that also enjoy massive financial coverage. And one of the biggest of them all is the sports betting industry.
Sports betting, in general, has been around for centuries. It's impossible to say where it all began. But the first signs of organised sports wagers were focused on horse racing in particular. These began trackside and made their way into high street bookies in the late 1700s.
This idea grew over the next 200 hundred years. And there were tens of thousands of physical bookmakers in the UK at its peak. However, this number has fallen gradually over the last 2 decades. And this is due to the rise of online gambling sites such as casinos, bookies and bingo operators too.
As of March 2021, there were 2439 licences in use in the UK alone. Moreover, many of the operators have multiple betting sites online across the country and beyond.
What was once a case of simply betting on the winner has grown into a far more complex beast. You can now find markets that cover almost every eventuality. And no sports betting is more varied and exciting than football. It enjoys the lion's share of the sports betting cash in the UK with nearly 50% of all sports wagering revenues coming from football matches.
The number of variables that may change during a football match is immense. The most popular bets are on simple outcomes such as the match winner or the first goal score. But it doesn't have to stop there.
Everything from yellow cards to the number of corners can become a chance to place a bet. And with such huge demand from the customer, betting sites are more than happy to oblige. However, not all bookmakers offer the same betting markets, so researching betting sites is something you should do.
When it comes to the quirky bets, football betting websites have some pretty weird and wonderful stories to tell.
Some big-money payouts at the best betting sites have come from the obscure actions of the 22 players on the pitch. And even the ref and linesmen too! But from the standard markets available, these 3 definitely stand out.
Asian handicap betting gives you a chance to bet on the underdog. The team that is less likely to win will get a boost even before the game starts. This might be 0.5 goals, for example. It removes the chance of a draw. And if the real score is a draw, then your underdog team will still win by half a goal.
Some bookies will give you a chance to pick various players during a match who are generally unlikely to hit the target. But you never know when a defender or even the goalie coming up for a last-minute header might come close. They don't have to score, just hit the target.
Most football fans agree that VAR is doing a great job to improve the beautiful game. However, it isn't perfect. And it can have a big impact on the payouts for punters. Luckily, some operators will now payout on a goalscorer bet even if VAR overrules it. Fantastic!
Taking my son to his first football match was one of the best experiences I've had as a father so far. I've written this article for Alex to read when he gets older.
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My daughter's first ever football match - Orlando City v Atlanta United, August 2019. Written for Izzy to read when she gets old enough. Vamos Orlando
