Sports Betting: The Value of Niche Sports

by Scott Rickenbach

Sunday, Nov 28, 2021
The Value of Niche Sports in Sports Betting

This article is being written right at the tail end of Thanksgiving weekend in the US. That means it was an extremely busy weekend with a ton of sports action. This time of year you have NBA and College Basketball going and also NFL and College Football still going on. 

Football – College and Professional along with Basketball – College and Professional are the Big Four in sports wagering. However, handicapping other sports is a key to year round profit opportunities. One of those is still quite big as it is Major League Baseball and that keys the livelihood of year round sports bettors during the summer months. 

The key though is more than just baseball to think about when you think of other sports. Hockey is not followed by nearly as many bettors but, a money line sport just like baseball, there are plenty of opportunities on a nightly basis during the season and, including post-season, this is a sport with a full schedule that has games occurring in all but 3 months of a typical year! 

The covid pandemic has impacted our world greatly and it resulted in a complete sports shutdown for a period of 4 months form mid-March to mid-July in 2020. During that time I started studying the Premier League and have now added that version of “football” from across the pond to my sports wagering repertoire as it was one of the first leagues to come back after the sports shutdown.

The 8th and final of 8 sports I handicap is Canadian Football. Why? Well normally a good chunk of the season is during the slower time of year in our sports wagering world as the season usually begins in June and is running strong through the slower months of July and August when the big sports like American Football and Basketball are in their off-seasons. Keep in mind also that there are just 9 teams currently in the Canadian Football League. You can very closely keep up with all 9 of these teams and find solid value on a week to week basis.

In summary, the key point here is that the “other” sports can absolutely be a “value add” to your year-round bankroll pursuit and I personally have found the niche sports to be quite special in that regard. Yes, football (college and NFL) and basketball (college and NBA) will always get the most attention but don’t forget that attention also leads to tighter lines from the odds makers as well! That is why sometimes the best value is often found in the niche sports which is why I am always sure to focus attention on those sports too as it can truly be a big bankroll booster! 

All photographic images used for editorial content have been licensed from the Associated Press.

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