According to Grand View Research, the global sports betting market was valued at $83.65 billion and is projected to grow at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 10.3% from 2023 to 2030.
Besides the significant global gambling regulatory landscape shift, technological innovations and internet penetration are major drivers behind this astounding growth. Thanks to the proliferation of online sportsbooks, sports betting has become more flexible and profitable than the traditional brick-and-mortar system.
Today, sports betting is a popular pastime for people in the UK and potentially a way to make money. However, statistics prove that most bettors end up with losses. It is because many bettors approach sports betting without a strategy; hence, they commit costly errors.
Like other forms of gambling, there is no 100% guaranteed success in betting. However, standing out from the crowd by avoiding common mistakes will increase your chances of winning. Therefore, we at InterPress Services interviewed Jimmy Daytona, a betting expert from BetZillion, to discuss the most common mistakes affecting the success of bettors and how to avoid them. Let’s get into it!
Not Managing Your Bankroll
Your bankroll is the total amount of money you have set aside for betting on sports, and effectively managing it is crucial to maximizing your chances of long-term success. According to Jimmy, this error is first on the list because it probably is the most common error sports bettors commit. It has also caused more damage and ended more betting dreams than all other mistakes in this article.
Before betting on sports, you must have a predetermined budget based on your financial situation and gambling goals and develop a staking plan. However, sticking to this budget and strategy is more important regardless of the results you see. Bankroll management prevents you from chasing losses on a losing streak, resulting in more casualties. It also protects you against getting overconfident when on a winning streak and losing all your winnings.
Every sports bettor is bound to lose some wagers. However, having a fixed budget and sticking to a staking plan can help you sustain multiple losses without running out of money. It also enables you to make more rational betting decisions that significantly improve your chances of success.
Not Shopping for the Best Odds
Often, different sportsbooks offer different odds on the same sports event. Therefore, shopping around and finding the best odds for your wagers is essential to increase your potential payout. According to Jimmy, settling for any odds that come your way is a costly mistake because even minor discrepancies between these odds can significantly impact your winnings when they add up in the long term.
For example, say three sportsbooks A, B, and C, offer 1.83, 1.75, and 1.70 on the same football match. These differences seem insignificant at first glance. However, if you wager $100 across all the A, B, and C, your potential payouts will be $83, $75, and $70. These results show a $13 difference in a possible win between the best and the worst odds. You’d agree that this difference is significant if it increases over time.
To avoid this mistake, shop for the most competitive odds at different sportsbooks. Also, several online tools allow you to compare odds across multiple sites, making it easy to find the best odds for your wagers.
Using the Wrong Betting Sites
With new betting sites springing up almost daily in the UK and worldwide, it is easy for bettors to make the mistake of choosing the wrong. This mistake is costly, as success in sports betting largely depends on bettors’ choice of sportsbooks. The first step in avoiding this mistake is looking for a sportsbook with a valid license. It validates that your preferred betting site operates legally and offers fair and transparent services. For instance, the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) licenses every sportsbook operating within the UK, providing a secure gambling environment for punters.
In addition, you must also go for sportsbooks with a good reputation and a track record for excellent services. It is because scam sportsbooks are out there looking to defraud unsuspecting bettors. Some sportsbooks also have issues that affect bettors’ chances of winning, including poor odds, limited betting options, strict bonus wagering requirements, and unreliable payment methods.
Therefore, Jimmy advises that you conduct in-depth research and read reviews from other bettors to ensure that a sportsbook is a good fit before signing up. Below are reliable sources to get unbiased reviews about betting sites:
- HLTV
- Askgamblers
- Trustpilot
- Twitch
Not Finding Value Bets
According to Jimmy, value betting is a proven strategy to make profits consistently in sports betting. Value betting is when a bettor identifies a situation where the odds offered by a bookmaker are higher than the actual probability of the event occurring. In other words, a value bet has a greater potential payout than the risk involved. Therefore, for every value wagers you place, you beat the bookmaker and get better odds than average.
Both novice and experienced bettors often make the mistake of only placing wagers on outcomes with a high probability of winning without considering the value of the offered odds. It can result in missed opportunities to make profitable bets and can also lead to losses in the long run. For example, a team that is the underdog may have a better chance of winning than the odds suggest. In this case, betting on the underdog could result in a significant payout if they win.
To identify value bets, you must understand betting odds and how they are calculated. Below are other some other helpful tips for finding value bets:
- Wager on what you know
- Consider multiple factors, including stats, injuries, team form, head-to-head records, etc
- Assess probability before considering the odds offered
- Don’t disregard heavy favorites
- Shop around between different bookmakers
Betting with Emotions Instead of Logic
Betting with emotions is a common sports betting mistake that many people make. When you bet with your emotions, you allow your feelings to influence your decision-making process instead of making rational, objective decisions based on facts and analysis. For example, a fan may be attached emotionally to their favorite team and, as a result, bet on them regardless of their chances of winning. This type of personal bias usually results in poor decisions and losses. If you can’t bear the thought of your favorite team or player losing, it is better to avoid the bet entirely.
Many bettors also make the mistake of placing wagers based on gut feelings. Emotions such as excitement, fear, or overconfidence can cloud a person’s judgment, causing them to make irrational decisions. Relying on anything other than empirical facts, such as team statistics, head-to-head records, player stats, tables, standings, etc., will result in losses in the long run.
Lastly, understand that trends can be misleading, and blindly following them can be a recipe for disaster. Also, avoid following popular opinion or the media when making betting decisions instead of using sound analysis and research.
Placing Too Many Wagers
Betting on several sports or events can seem like a good strategy, but it usually results in an inability to make informed decisions. When a bettor places too many wagers, they don’t have enough time to thoroughly research and analyze each event. Instead, they rely on intuition or impulse, which results in poor decisions. Betting on too many games also means that a bettor’s bankroll is spread too thin, making it difficult to manage and leading to potential financial losses.
Some bettors are also carried away by parlays and accumulators as they promise colossal payouts. However, these kinds of bets are usually dangerous, especially for newbies, as one missed prediction will result in a loss of the whole wager. According to Jimmy, bookmakers make most of their profits on parlay bets. That should tell you something. To avoid this mistake, it is essential to have a clear betting strategy. Focus on a few select sports or events and thoroughly research each one.
Conclusion
Sports betting is a popular pastime that can be both fun and lucrative. However, venturing into the activity without a clear plan, strategy, and skills will result in losses and frustration. Taking note of the common betting mistakes discussed in this post and how to avoid them will help you stand out and increase your chances of success.
To round up, below are some other common errors that Jimmy couldn’t cover in this article:
- Overvaluing favorites
- Having unrealistic expectations
- Forgetting to use the cash-out option
- Blaming bad luck
- Not cross-checking your picks
- Placing wagers under the influence.
