Brits and Americans have a lot in common. Take sports betting as an example. In the UK, it is so popular that it supports countless online betting sites and land-based betting shops. It’s a similar story in the United States although online sports betting has only been legal for a few years in most parts of the country. Despite this shared love of sports betting, Americans and Brits tend to have different tastes in sports. Whereas soccer is the undisputed favorite in the UK, Americans haven’t embraced it quite as warmly. Many of them would prefer to watch NFL games, baseball, or basketball.
So, are the most beloved American sports harder to predict and more difficult to analyze than the most popular UK sports? Is it the other way around? Before we dive into this topic, it’s important to understand that analyzing and betting on professional sports is not easy. If it was, the bookmakers would not offer odds on them because they would get creamed. While some sports may be a tad easier to analyze than others, beating the bookie on a consistent basis is a near-impossible task.
Predicting American Sports vs. UK Sports
If you are a UK bettor that loves betting on English Premier League games, then you may find that your bookie offers over 1,000 unique betting options on each one. Let’s say you claimed a Bet £5 Get £30 betting bonus and did a decent job with your analysis. Then, you should have no problem picking out several strong wagering opportunities. It boils down to many-many choices. Don’t forget that soccer betting menus usually offer odds on such things as yellow cards, corner kicks, and throw-ins, which are arguably much easier to analyze and predict than player and team performance.
As an American wagerer you look at the bookie’s NFL betting menu and see that each game offers about 400 betting options. You notice that the average NBA menu has 300 options and MLB menus give you about 100. If you have analyzed all of these sports and individual matchups, then you are likely going to have a better shot at finding a prime betting situation with NFL games. Why? Simply because you have more betting options to choose from. It’s easier to zero in on one or two very strong picks when you have so many more choices.
The Easiest Sport to Analyze
Many American and UK bettors believe that tennis is the easiest sport to analyze and predict. For starters, it’s theoretically easier to analyze an individual player’s performance than that of several players. Furthermore, tennis offers a fairly consistent playing environment. And while the officiating in tennis is far from perfect, it doesn’t receive nearly as much criticism as it does in major sports leagues like the NFL, MLB, and EPL. As such, that pesky X-factor carries much less weight in tennis.
Basketball is also thought to be easier to predict and analyze than other major team sports. Because the games feature so much scoring, it’s unlikely that a single score will affect the outcome as much as a single score in soccer, hockey, or baseball. Basketball also features a lot of individual matchups that aren’t too hard to assess. Furthermore, weather is never an issue as all games are played indoors.
The Toughest Sport to Analyze
A lot of American and UK punters will agree that NFL football and EPL soccer are both tough to analyze. There are so many angles and variables to consider. In addition to having to assess player and team performance, bettors need to factor in such things as the weather, strengths and weaknesses at certain positions, and those dastardly refs. One bad call or unfortunate bounce can make all of the difference in an outcome. It’s nearly impossible to predict such impactful events. Even artificial intelligence and machine learning haven’t come close to consistently achieving accurate predictions on a consistent basis.
American and UK Sports are Equally Difficult to Properly Analyze
The truth is that American sports are just as difficult to analyze as UK sports. This applies to team sports in general, and especially true for sports like American football and soccer which are usually played outdoors in the elements. Yes. Some sports involve less analysis than others. Still, that doesn’t make them easy to predict. It doesn’t matter if you are a Brit who is planning to wager on Euro 2024, or an American preparing to bet on a tennis match. Analyzing the predicting the outcome is going to be challenging.
