Volleyball might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but it is actually a hugely popular sport around the globe. On top of that, it is played all year round, meaning there are plenty of opportunities to bet on this sport.
Many of us aren’t exactly experts, but if you follow a few basic rules there’s no reason why you can’t bet on volleyball intelligently.
Perhaps the most important thing to understand before you begin betting on volleyball is the importance which different events on the calendar hold. This is the case in many sports, but it is particularly pertinent in volleyball. Throughout the year there are various leagues played around the globe, but often these don’t hold as much authority as the more globally recognised events. The Olympics, held every four years, is unsurprisingly the top priority for many athletes, while other events like the World Championships and World Cup volleyball also take precedence over the leagues.
As a rule, tournaments in which players represent their country generally hold more importance than those in which they represent a team. So what’s the point in all this explanation, you might ask? Basically, stay away from the smaller leagues wherever possible. These will generally be much more unpredictable given the comparative lack of motivation players have to perform to their best, certainly in relation to events like the Olympics.
Another important thing to understand about volleyball is that a team is much greater than the sum of its parts. That is to say, rather than other sports where you can look at the squad and determine fairly comfortably which team is stronger, team performance in volleyball is much more closely linked to the cohesion of the squad in its entirety. As a result, looking at how many matches a team has played together can give you a good understanding of how they are likely to perform, with teams more accustomed to playing together often performing to a higher standard.
A final factor which is particularly important to know prior to betting on volleyball is the impact of fatigue. While it isn’t the most physically demanding sport in the world, it is still extremely hard on the body, and playing a number of games in a short period of time can have a significant impact on a team’s performance. Considering volleyball teams regularly participate in a huge number of games within a relatively small time frame, this can be another area in which you can get a leg up. In the Olympics, for example, teams can play virtually two games every three days over a two week period. Invariably this will impact performance, but given all teams are playing lots of games, it can be difficult to identify who will be impacted the most. At this stage, it’s important to look at things like: how many games have each of the two teams involved played in the last three or four days, how did they perform last game, how much motivation do they have to perform well in this game, and how far have they had to travel?
All of these things can have a major impact on the outcome of a volleyball game, and if you consider them all then you can certainly make informed bets on volleyball. Considering it is a less popular sport than, for example, soccer, there is also the possibility to make money if you’re well informed as the betting agencies will generally have less information at their own disposal. As always it’s key to gamble responsibly, particularly if your level of knowledge of the sport isn’t extremely high, but if you follow these key steps, it is possible to
