3 Unconventional Sports to Place Bets On

Sports betting is by no means an unpopular pastime and is constantly expanding to cater to potential customers. Gone are the days when sport betting meant solely betting on the races or on football – now there are a large number of sports available to place your bets on, some of them more unusual than others.

Ice Hockey. In the UK, where the appearance of either sunshine or snow is somewhat hit and miss, ice hockey is often imagined to be limited to countries where ice is commonplace, like Canada. However, the International Ice Hockey Federation sees to it that the sport is not confined to a few countries alone. In fact, this month has been a critical period for ice hockey fans as we are in the midst of the IIHF World Championship – a huge tournament with teams from all over the world, including Germany, Sweden and Italy. The 16th May will see Russia playing Finland (Russia favourite to win at 4/6 odds), and Canada vs. Sweden (Canada favourite to win at 1/2 odds), from which the two winning teams will go on to play in the final on the 18th. If you’re looking for something a bit different to bet on, ice hockey may well be the answer.

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). For those who like a little more brutality in their sport, the UFC provides fast paced, tough fights between the strongest of competitors. The UFC features mixed martial arts, and competitors can pick and chose from different styles like jiu-jitsu, karate, judo, boxing, kick-boxing and wrestling. If you’re interested in placing a bet on a UFC fight, the 24th May sees BJ Penn fighting Sean Sherk, Wanderlei Silva vs. Keith Jardine, and Tito Ortiz against Lyoto Machida. Favourites to win are BJ Penn at 4/11 odds, Wanderlei Silva at 8/13 and Lyoto Machida at 4/9.

All Ireland Senior Hurling. For something a bit different, you may choose to investigate the world of hurling. This month sees the start of the 2008 All Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, a fast-paced tournament that has been going for 120 years, and encourages fierce support from fans. Hurling, a Gaelic game played mainly in Ireland, requires a huge amount of skill and quick thinking, as the players use hurling sticks to hit a ball, aiming to get it into the other team’s goal. Kilkenny are the favourite team to win for 2008, with odds at 8/11, though Cork, Tipperary and Waterford have also proved to be strong in the past. A traditional sport that encourages a great deal of team pride amongst fans, hurling may just be that ‘something completely different’ that makes a nice change from betting on football and the races.

Whilst there is nothing wrong with more conventional forms of sport betting, every so often it can be interesting to investigate what else is out there – who knows, you may just find a brand new favourite sport in the process.

Odds provided by www.bluesq.com