The US is perhaps the only country that celebrates college sporting events in the way it does as the various leagues and conferences have a huge audience, often times even surpassing viewership and popularity of traditional sporting events too – last year saw some of this popularity come to a halt with the cancellation for many big leagues as fans instead turned to online gambling options like slots for example, but with the leagues getting underway again the popularity is back in full swing – what is it about college ball that punters love so much?
Dominant top players – In the college leagues it’s certainly easy enough for one player to stand out amongst the rest – and there are some that dominate so completely if they’re out on the court or out on the field it’s almost a guaranteed win. An example in recent years has been for the NCAA and how teams had to change their entire game plan because Chase Young from Ohio State had been so dominant. Whilst it provides a somewhat sure thing from a betting perspective for punters, but also the exciting opportunity to wager on a young player rising through different divisions and into the pro scene too.
Variety in wagering – With so many different leagues and conferences, a huge number of different players, and all of the variables involved with college sports, it provides a lot of variety in wagering options that different from what is usually seen in the pro leagues – it gives a lot more coverage to bet across multiple options and often providing great odds and pay-out rates too. This has been a contributing factor to why different college sports have started to overtake professional sporting events as a betting option too, as more wagers can be placed over the course of a season.
Results can be more predictable – Whilst there are always upsets in the pro scene and days that don’t go in favour of the experts predicting the odds, at the top level with two evenly matched teams there are still a lot of unknowns with how certain approaches to the game can have an impact. In college sports it’s a little different, with certain schemes and approaches working out and being consistent through a season, if evenly matched teams face off then these schemes can often dictate who wins, it becomes much easier as a punter to predict and bet accordingly and has helped college sport grow too.
Often outside of that it is just a local factor too, the ability to go and watch your local team and watch the young up and comers carve their future into the pro scene is just as exciting, and certainly helps fans cheer for a local rising star through betting.