At times, football can be very difficult to predict. Everyone remembers Leicester’s ridiculous run to the Premier League title in 2016, but very few fans would have backed the dream to come true (odds of 5000/1 were available).

While Man City’s charge to the title was much more predictable last season, there were plenty of shocks: Burnley nicking a Europa League place and Crystal Palace escaping relegation were among the unpredictable outcomes.

Below is an attempt to list next season’s Top 10 (in reverse order), with some reasoning thrown in for each. The latest odds are supplied by William Hill. If you want to back any, check the latest bonuses for some extra value.

10. Wolves

A team transformed in recent years and one with big ambitions for the future. Not everything is without controversy, including Wolves’ links to agent Jorge Mendes. But they are going to spend and build something lasting at Molineux. At 11/10, Wolves to finish in the top half looks decent value.

9. Crystal Palace

Has any manager redeemed his reputation as quickly as Roy Hodgson? He deserves more recognition for the job he did at Palace last season. They had no points when he joined and looked certain to be relegated, but ended up in 11^th. 9/4 they finish in the Top 10 looks a steal. One caveat though: they must keep hold of Wilfred Zaha.

8. West Ham

Despite tumultuous times at the club, the Hammers will spend big in the summer. They have also appointed one of the world’s most underrated managers in Manuel Pellegrini. Should the fans, unlike last season, get behind the team, the a Top 10 finish (9/4) is within sight. [Read more…]

Choosing a sportsbook that fits with your wagering style and limits is paramount. There are a plethora of sportsbooks online – Each of them competing for your business.

Just as every bettor is different, sportsbooks set themselves apart from each other. From the high roller to the recreational bettor, it is important to find the right sportsbooks for your wagering style and wagering amount.

To see all of the available sports bookmakers in one place we’d recommend taking a look at The Winners Enclosure. They have a page dedicated to bringing you the latest bookmaker offers for horse racing so that you can choose the one that’s right for you.

Sign-up & Reload Bonuses

Since each sportbook is competing for your business, they all offer special promotions. Though these promotions might change from time to time in amounts and percentages, you can usually obtain free money for betting with you first sign up. Other sportsbooks also offer bonuses called reload bonuses when you reload your account after your initial deposit.

There a few stipulation that you will want to look at when review and comparing sign-up bonuses and reload bonuses.

Sign-up bonuses

Of course you want to look at the amount of the bonus offer. Typically a sign up bonus is a percentage of your initial deposit, usually around 20-50%. Some sportsbooks offer special 100% bonuses from time to time. But all these bonuses have stipulations called rollovers. A rollover is the amount you have to play before being allowed to withdraw the bonus from your account.

A rollover is usually so many times the bonus. For example, netbet.co.uk  is offering a 50% deposit bonus when you open a new account. The rollover for this bonus is 6x the deposit and bonus amount. If you deposit £100, you will need to place £900 in wagers (6 x £150 (£100 your deposit + £50 bonus)= £900), win or lose, before you can request to withdraw the bonus. [Read more…]

These are common techniques used by sports handicappers. Handicapping sport games means just what it implies. Trying to find which team has an advantage for any reason whatsoever. The teams who are at the highest advantages are the ones you bet on.

Injuries

Key injuries to key players is very significant. Obviously if a star player on any team goes down it’s going to hurt the team. However, some teams have many star players and even though it still affects them, they can still win. On the other hand some teams look for that lone player to win them games.

An injury to key positions is probably the most important kind of injuries. In most sports there’s always that one position that can make or break a game for you. For Football it’s your quarterback, for Hockey it’s your goaltending and for Baseball it’s your pitcher. Injuries to these positions are important. Let’s say that an NHL goalie gets hurt which is a reasonable assumption. The team resorts to putting a rookie playing his first ever game in net. They are playing the highest scoring team in the league next. This is a horrible situation for the team and the goalie. The end result would be a very lopsided game. The same can be said about a 2nd string quarterback who must face a very tough defense. These are major disadvantages that should be taken advantage of.

Traveling

You want an easy winner for the night? Any teams traveling schedule can be extremely helpful. There are long 5, 6 or even 7 game road trips all the time in every sport by every team. You have to catch teams when they are most vulnerable.

If you look at the stats, you will find that home teams are a much more reliable bet. Few years ago, in the NBA, 65% of games won were by the home team, and only one team had more wins on the road then at home. In the NHL 60% of all games won were on home ice with only 2 teams in the entire league with a more road wins then home wins. The MLB produced 59% of all wins at home, with 2 teams having more road wins. In the shorter NFL season 57% of all wins were at home and 8 teams had better road records. The numbers don’t lie.

So they are on the road and tired. Does that mean they are going to lose every game? No, not necessarily. What if they are playing back to back road games, game 4 and 5 of a 7 game trip? I will bet them to lose game 5. They have already played 4 road games, been in 4 different cities and just played the night before. They have a lot of things going against them. You could also check there opponents schedule. What if the home team hasn’t played in 3 days? They have been at home in their comfortable beds just waiting for this tired battered team to enter their building. And believe me the home team knows the other team is tired and want to capitalize on it. That is one of the reasons that teams home record is usually much better then their road record.

There are a few long road trips and tired teams every week, so you must be on the lookout. You must be careful about a few things when looking at a teams traveling situation. Gambling trends usually indicate a team will usually win in its first game of a long road trip. The reason for this is they know the trip will be tough and they are going to run into some disadvantages along the road. So they try to get that first win so that they can get at least something from the road trip and the first one is their best chance.
Finding a really tired team on a long road trip is only half the battle. Make sure you check out what the opponent has been up to. A lot of times you see a team playing their 3rd game in 4 nights and you make the bets. Then you find out the team you bet on has also played 3 games in 4 nights and now there are no advantages.

You don’t have to always look for the tired road team. Home teams get tired too. Playing a lot of games in a lot of nights, even if at home can be tough. Especially against a team that has been off a couple of days. Another gambling trend is that home teams usually lose their first game back home after a long road trip. It makes sense. You are away from your wife for a couple of weeks; you waste all your energy on taking care of her rather then the game. [Read more…]

Going to place some bets to spice up your upcoming sporting events? You’ve come to the right guide. It’s best to make sure that you have the most current information before you put your hard earned money on the line. We didn’t want to limit your choices in terms of where you bet, so we came up with three common aspects you’ll find in the best online betting sites. Check out the guide below before you make a decision on where to play.

1. Ease of Navigation

The best sites will also have the best ease of navigation, because if you can’t find where to place your bets with ease, chances are good that you won’t stay very long. We think that ease of navigation was worth listing first because it’s one of the top complaints that seasoned bettors have. They want to know the odds of every match they’re considering, and they also want to know how to access premium services. Knowing the sharpest numbers is critical to getting better outcomes. Just betting from the gut isn’t enough. In fact, emotional bets leave you with a very small bankroll…if you get to keep any bankroll at all.

2. Incentives Offered

Not only do you need to find good odds, but it’s also nice to have some incentives. Free bets, bonus money…no matter what you call it, an incentive is an incentive. And when it comes to the best online sites, they all know one thing: it’s a tough, competitive world out there. This means that the sportsbooks need to compete for your business, and come out with ways to show that they appreciate you. Look for those bonuses carefully, as they change quite regularly. Free bets are definitely a wonderful thing.

3. Solid Support

At the end of the day, you need to feel like the site that you’re going to frequent has solid support. This means that if you do run into problems, that there is someone that can support you at every turn. We think that the best online betting sites will give you clear support when you need it, and stay out of your way when you don’t need them.

Overall, the best sites all follow similar patterns. If you want to place bets at the top places online, these aspects will be incredibly valuable in your search. Good luck!