The World Cup is now only a few short weeks away.  Despite our American centric views leading us to believe the world’s sports gambling revolves around only the Superbowl and March Madness, the Copa Mundial is the single largest sporting event for bookmakers around the world.  To help get you geared up for the tournament, we’ve got the gang back together…kind of.  Trusted host of the OTL podcast Drew Collins and savvy soccer punter James Kempton along with myself will be with you every step of the way breaking down the groups, identifying over/undervalued sides, and trying to find every angle possible to make you money this summer.  To kick things off the right way on our maiden voyage into soccer podcasting we covered different bet types, futures, props, and plenty of general discussion to get you started If there are things you’d like us to include in future editions, please contact us here Key Terms for betting soccer: 3 Way Line – Soccer’s version of a moneyline wager, this bet is for regulation time only (does include stoppage time) and requires bettors to pick either of the 2 sides side or that the game will end in a draw.   Typically the draw is the bookmaker’s best friend, especially in games of this magnitude, where teams are more than happy to get a result and bettors ignore the possibility for a tie.  Remember this bet will still be offered during the knockout stage (despite one team needing to advance) but has been known to cause confusion among novices when games to go extra time or a shoot out. 2 Way Line – The easiest line to understand in all of soccer because it’s a pointspread.  Yes, most lines will only be -.5 (with juice attached)...

Soccer’s final 4 kicks off later today and we brought in a hired gun to share his breakdown of the first leg.  For those just starting to get their feet wet with soccer there are a few different betting options worth understanding before you even read this column and should be well aware of before heading blind into the World Cup this June from Brazil. 3 Way Line (Moneyline): This is the moneyline and a bit confusing to newer bettors because there is no refund if the game ends in a tie.  You have 3 options: favorite, underdog, or draw.  Yes, nothing says investing in a game hoping it ends in a tie but there is often a ton of value to be found here because the casual gambler avoids it like the plague. 2 Way Line (Pointspread): The favorite price on this bet will reflect the prices being offered on the 3 way.  However just like more traditional American sports the higher the moneyline the “pointspread” will go from -.5 as high as needed to offer a secondary option to bettors.  On these bets note they only include regulation so if a game goes to extra time (not stoppage time) the bet would be graded. Asian Handicap: Probably the most confusing bet type for those that haven’t seen it before but picture having 1 bet at 2 different prices.  For example if you see -.75 that means half your wager is at -.5 and the other half at -1.  If you lay -.75 (-110) and risk 100 for a game that ends 2-1 you’d actually make 50 bucks while 50 bucks would be refunded. For further soccer questions as we all prepare for the world’s greatest sporting event send them here Without further...

With groups draw earlier today, here are your up to the minute odds to win the World Cup courtesy of the LVH. 2014 WORLD CUP   VARIOUS LOCATIONS THROUGHOUT BRAZIL JUNE 12 – JULY 13, 2014   ODDS TO WIN: BRAZIL 5-2 ARGENTINA 4-1 SPAIN 6-1 GERMANY 5-1 NETHERLANDS 20-1 ITALY 20-1 ENGLAND 30-1 FRANCE 20-1 PORTUGAL 25-1 URUGUAY 25-1 CHILE 40-1 USA 125-1 MEXICO 80-1 IVORY COAST 100-1 RUSSIA 40-1 CROATIA 125-1 GHANA 100-1 ECUADOR 100-1 CAMEROON 500-1 COLOMBIA 20-1 JAPAN 100-1 AUSTRALIA 500-1 NIGERIA 200-1 SOUTH KOREA 250-1 BOSNIA-HERZEGOVINA 150-1 SWITZERLAND 80-1 GREECE 200-1 ALGERIA 1000-1 BELGIUM 12-1 COSTA RICA 1000-1 IRAN 2000-1 HONDURAS...

With the World Cup draw a few short weeks away, being prudent with your futures investments might not be a bad idea.  There will inevitably be a few longer shots cast into dangerous groups changing their prognosis for knockout qualification. In the meantime, here are the prices currently being offered at the LVH and a list of teams I currently believe warrant actual investments. 2014 WORLD CUP VARIOUS LOCATIONS THROUGHOUT BRAZIL JUNE 12 – JULY 13, 2014 * Denotes Bet I’ve personally made Odds to Win Brazil 5-2 Argentina * 5-1 Spain 5-1 Germany * 9-2 Netherlands 15-1 Italy 15-1 England 25-1 France 25-1 Portugal 25-1 Uruguay 25-1 Chile  * 40-1 USA 50-1 Mexico 60-1 Ivory Coast 100-1 Russia 50-1 Croatia 100-1 Ghana * 100-1 Ecuador 150-1 Cameroon 250-1 Colombia * 25-1 Japan 125-1 Australia 250-1 Nigeria 200-1 South Korea 250-1 Bosnia 150-1 Switzerland 125-1 Greece 200-1 Algeria 1000-1 Belgium 12-1 Costa Rica 1000-1 Iran 1500-1 Honduras 1500-1...

World Cup Berths On The Line Once again, the world’s best players have left their clubs and joined their national squads, but this time there is a more on the line.  Over the next two weeks, teams that failed to qualify outright for the World Cup will engage in two-leg playoffs to determine who the lucky countries will be that get to travel to Brazil this coming summer.  For those of you not familiar with the two-leg playoff system used in different soccer competitions, it provides an extra betting option.  Under this system, two games are played between the competitors, one at each team’s home stadium.  The team that advances to the World Cup is the one who scores the most goals over the two legs, and if both are tied after 180 minutes of play, road goals is the tiebreaker used.  If the tiebreaker can’t break the tie, the teams will play two periods of extra time, and if there is still dreadlock after those thirty minutes, the dreaded plenty kicks will determine who is going to Brazil.  Thus, before the first game is played you can bet not only the usual wagers offered on every soccer game, but can also make a wager on the team to advance from the two-leg playoff.  With that explanation out of the way, let’s get into some of these matchups. Written by Garrett Yancey Sweden vs. Portugal First Leg in Portugal, 11/15 2:45 PM EST Second Leg in Sweden, 11/19 2:45 PM EST When these two teams were drawn against one another, one thought crossed every soccer fan’s mind: Cristiano Ronaldo or Zlatan Ibrahimovich will miss the World Cup.  Indeed, it is a shame that one of these two will miss the tournament in Brazil, as...

2014 WORLD CUP VARIOUS LOCATIONS THROUGHOUT BRAZIL JUNE 12 – JULY 13, 2014 All odds courtesy of LVH ODDS TO WIN: BRAZIL 11-4 ARGENTINA 9-2 SPAIN 5-1 GERMANY 9-2 NETHERLANDS 15-1 ITALY 15-1 ENGLAND 25-1 FRANCE 30-1 PORTUGAL 40-1 URUGUAY 25-1 CHILE 50-1 USA 50-1 MEXICO 60-1 IVORY COAST 125-1 RUSSIA 50-1 CROATIA 100-1 GHANA 100-1 SWEDEN 150-1 ECUADOR 100-1 CAMEROON 300-1 UKRAINE 200-1 COLOMBIA 25-1 JAPAN 150-1 AUSTRALIA 300-1 NIGERIA 200-1 SOUTH KOREA 250-1 EGYPT 5000-1 BOSNIA-HERZEGOVINA 125-1 SWITZERLAND 150-1 GREECE 300-1 ROMANIA 500-1 SENEGAL 1000-1 ALGERIA 1000-1 BELGIUM 12-1 COSTA RICA 500-1 IRAN 2000-1 HONDURAS 1500-1 NEW ZEALAND 2500-1 ICELAND 2000-1 BURKINA FASO 1000-1 JORDAN 5000-1 ETHIOPIA 5000-1 *ALL BETS ARE ACTION DESPITE NOT...

The wheels of club soccer have begun to spin, transfer deadline day has come and gone, but soccer fans this weekend won’t have their eyes on the Barclays Premier League, La Liga, or Serie A.  Instead, fans around the world will be tuned into the penultimate round of World Cup Qualifiers, cheering on their countries as teams look to seal the deal and punch their tickets to Brazil.  While there will certainly be many great games across the globe worth analyzing and watching, the two most important (for obvious patriotic reasons) are the ones our USMNT will be playing.  Both contests should be tough hard-fought matches but other than that you will be hard pressed to find any similarities between the upcoming US qualifiers against Costa Rica and Mexico.  Before we delve into the differences between the matchups, lets first take a glance at the roster (with projected starters italicized) Jurgen Klinsmann has called up. Written by Garret Yancey Goalkeepers: Tim Howard (Y), Brad Guzan, Nick Rimando Defenders: DaMarcus Beasley, Matt Besler, John Brooks, Geoff Cameron (Y), Edgar Castillo, Michael Parkhurst, Omar Gonzalez, Michael Orozco Midfielders: Kyle Beckerman, Alejandro Bedoya, Michael Bradley (Y), Mix Diskerud, Fabian Johnson (Y), Jermaine Jones (Y), Graham Zusi, Forwards: Landon Donovan, Jozy Altidore, Clint Dempsey (Y), Aron Johannsson, Eddie Johnson (Y) Without a doubt, this is one of the most talented and deepest lineups our country has ever fielded.  Combine the pace at which Jozy Altidore has been scoring goals with a revived Landon Donovan reuniting with Clint Demspey, and our players up front should cause havoc for any team’s back line.  That being said, there are some things to worry about with this roster, and some tricky issues for Klinsmann to navigate.  First, seven players are carrying yellow cards...

The dawn of a new EPL season is upon us and this could be the best ever as the only thing we can be certain of is the uncertainty that faces many of the sides this season. Managerial changes at the top end of the table should see this a much closer race for the title and coupled with increased parity from the mid table positions downwards we will be presented with plenty of opportunities to cash tickets through the course of the season. Written by James Kempton As with any sport, opening day schedules present bettors with unique problems. With no current form to review we have a couple of options. Do we use the performance in pre season match ups as a tool to predict future performance? Do we use historic data from the teams’ performances to project forward? We all know that both are potentially flawed as who really cares if you win or lose friendly encounters and old data is exactly that, old data full of the problems use of such aged information presents. So what can we use? Well how about he we use the books’ ability to manage those very same problems that we face to try and locate the value? How’s about that for an idea! Over the last five seasons there have been 49 games played on the opening weekend (the anomaly is due to the postponement of Tottenham v Everton due to the London riots of summer 2011).  The outright market favourite has gone just 24-25 in those fixtures and many of those wins were at very short prices.  Eleven of those losses were at odds of shorter than even money so you must be guarded when siding with a favourite this first weekend.  The...

England may have added a member to the Royal family this summer but the country will be without their King entering football season.  After 27 years at the helm of Manchester United, Sir Alex Ferguson’s departure adds another level of intrigue to the already compelling 2013 season. Manchester United isn’t the only club atop the table with a change in manager. Co-favorites Chelsea and Manchester City will also enter this season with fresh faces on their respective benches. The uncertainty at the top of the league has all three sides listed at 11/5 to win the Premiership at the LVH, making for the most fascinating build-up to a season in recent memory. While managerial changes may be settled already, there’s still much debate regarding where 3 of the league’s biggest stars will land. Gareth Bale, Wayne Rooney and Luis Suarez remain the subject of major transfer talk. Of the three, only Rooney doesn’t appear to factor into his current team’s plans because Manchester United possesses more than adequate depth to replace the now disgruntled superstar.  Man U has held their ground that they won’t deal the English striker despite multiple bids from league rival Chelsea. Liverpool and Tottenham don’t have the same luxury as United when it comes to replacing top tier talent because losing Suarez and Bale respectively would end their seasons before they started. The byproduct of uncertainty is neither Liverpool nor Tottenham are taking substantial money in the futures market overseas. The retirement of Sir Alex Ferguson will reduce the chances Manchester United has of retaining their league crown. After speaking to one of the most respected soccer oddsmakers in the UK, I came to find out industry pundits believe Man U will experience a 10 pt dropff in production without...

The EPL is coming to NBC Sports Network this fall. Obviously there are sure to be adjustments for the casual fan so this brief training video should go a long...

There are very few teams in sports I openly claim a sentimental attachment to as a bettor at this point in my career.  The US Men’s National Soccer team is the last frontier, making objective analysis hard to produce at points. While handicapping Sunday’s championship, I did happen to stumble across a bet that offers too much value for me to pass up but it definitely won’t leave anyone calling me patriotic. At the time of shooting Manager Jurgen Klinsman’s status for the game was in flux but with him being ruled out for the red card vs Honduras, I like my wager even...

Grant Wahl took the opportunity to interview a soccer tipster from the UK named George Dempsey. It’s not so much the article itself that peaked my interest (we hear supposed success stories about pro bettors all the time) but rather a keen observation Wahl made about sports in general and it’s interconnectedness with gambling. I started out this tale with a simple question: Is there anyone out there that makes genuine money betting on Major League Soccer? It’s an important question for any league that wants to make it in America. Whether you advocate gambling or not, the betting industry — legal and otherwise — is a huge factor in the success of the NFL, international soccer and plenty of other sports around the world. Until I started working on this piece, I had never met anyone who bet on MLS games. Granted, I’m not a gambler, but I was still curious. Who out there is betting on the U.S. soccer league? And does MLS’s single-entity system and tight salary cap (read: institutionalized parity) make it even harder to make money betting on games? Read full article here: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/soccer/news/20130625/mls-gambler-george-dempsey/#ixzz2XxfrIzAG   Todd’s Take: Wahl’s second paragraph hits the story out of the park, answering the most important question of all. He directly ties the popularity of sports to gambling and the resulting increase in fan interest that comes from pervasive betting (are you listening Roger Goodell???).  Ratings are a byproduct of fan involvement which of course is stimulated by emotional and financial interest. Now, financial involvement can stem from fantasy sports, pools, or a laundry list of other possibilities but the root of it all is gambling drives popularity.  I know others commenting on the article yesterday took a much different point of view from...