Cricket vs. Football: A Comparative Analysis of Live Betting Odds in India’s Top Leagues

Here is a comparative analysis of live betting odds between some of India’s top cricket and football leagues.

Live betting odds at today’s most trusted sites are calculated in real-time as the action unfolds, which means they are subject to change a great deal throughout the match.

Live bets (aka in-play bets) can be placed from the start of the game right the way up until just before the match ends, unlike pre-match betting odds that are set before the event gets underway and can only be placed before the event starts, not during.

Here is a comparative analysis of live odds in online betting in India’s top football and cricket leagues.

What are the most popular sports to bet on in India?

In India today, the most popular sport to place, spectate, and bet on is cricket, with the second most popular sport to bet on being football (soccer).

The Indian Premier League (IPL) is the most popular cricket league to bet on, and some of the other popular cricket events people living in India can also place wagers on are the following:

Pakistan Super League
Cricket World Cup
Caribbean Premier League
T20 Blast
Big Bash League
Bangladesh Premier League
SA20
Lanka Premier League
International League T20

The English Premier League is the most bet on football league, and frequent bets are also placed on the top flight of men’s professional football in India – the Indian Super League (ISL). Other top football leagues and tournaments commonly bet on in India are the following:

La Liga (Spain)
Serie A (Italy)
Ligue 1 (France)
Bundesliga (German)
FIFA World Cup
UEFA Champions League
UEFA Europa League

People over the age of 18 can place pre-match and in-play bets on these events, and there are usually hundreds of individual bet types (aka markets) per event.

What are the main differences and similarities between the live betting odds in the IPL and ISL?

There are some similar bet types between the IPL and ISL. However, they are two completely different sports (football and cricket), meaning there are many different bet types.

For example, some of the similar bet types in both sports are match winner/outright winner, over/under score, and player/man of the match.

In cricket, you also have things like most run outs, most sixes, most fours, first player/team to score 50 runs (half-century), first player/team to score 100 runs (century), series winner, top bowler/batsman, toss winner, and dismissal method, to name a few.

In football, popular bet types include first yellow/red card, first goalscorer, correct score, half-time/full-time, scorecast, win/draw/lose (1X2), first corner, total number of corners/throw-ins, hat-trick, individual player markets, and many others.

In pre-match betting, expert analysis carefully calculates the odds based on historical performance, previous results, current form, injuries, etc.

Live betting services and markets become available as soon as the event gets underway. Throughout that event, whether it’s a cricket or football match, the bookmakers monitor the action closely and then adjust the odds accordingly. This is done by using experts and advanced mathematical algorithms, which gather and analyse huge amounts of data.

This is why the betting odds live in both sports can fluctuate a great deal before the game ends. Some of the major factors that will impact the odds are the current time/minute of the game, the score, players’ injuries, bookings, public betting patterns, the flow/momentum of the game, and even weather conditions.

Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) tools are helping online bookmakers give punters the best possible odds, and they are adjusted far quicker than ever, thanks to this emerging technology.

It has also made sports betting more popular than ever, and the fact that cryptocurrencies are now accepted at trusted iGaming sites, playing online casino games and placing sports bets is now more accessible to a broader global audience.

Things to remember when placing cricket or football bets

Before placing a bet on any upcoming cricket or football match, it would be a good idea to carry out your own research into an event. Try to find out the latest team news, if there are any injuries, who is in the starting lineup, etc.

It would help if you also tried to understand what the odds are telling you and the different available odds formats. For example, the three main odds formats are American/moneyline, fractional, and decimal.

Some people prefer one format, and others prefer another. All you have to do is choose a format you feel most comfortable with. For example, a 1/5 (fractional odds) bet is the same as 1.20 in decimal odds or -500 in American/moneyline odds, meaning there is an 83.30% chance of this occurring (also known as the implied probability rate).

A 50% chance of winning/implied probability rate would look like 1/1 in fractional odds (or EVENS, as they say), 2.00 in decimal odds, and +100 in American/moneyline odds.

A betting market with only a 2.00% implied probability rate would look like 50/1 in fractional odds, 51.00 in decimal odds, and +5,00 in American/moneyline odds, and so on.

Take the time to learn the live odds in online betting to give you a better chance at placing strategic bets that are more likely (but far from guaranteed) to return you a profit.

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Tags: Cricket, Football, sports

About the Author

Dr. Jerry Doby Editor-in-Chief of The Hype Magazine, Media and SEO Consultant, Journalist, Ph.D. and retired combat vet. 2023 recipient of The President's Lifetime Achievement Award. Partner at THM Media Group. Member of the U.S. Department of Arts and Culture, the United States Press Agency and ForbesBLK.