The bettors like the favorites. Bookmakers set the odds (coefficients) for the games. And of course the tendency of most, even “skilled”, bettors is to think that it defines the real power of a team, or how a team is “approved” by a bookmaker to win the game.

In fact, it often appears to be not the truth, as bookmakers set the odds, which is based on the social perception, with only one aim “to divide the bettors into two parts”, i.e. force 50% of bettors to stake on the opposite team (the said above is applied to the American stakes on baseball and football with the equal chances), so the bookmakers will receive some profit regardless of the winner (whether the favorites win or underdogs).

Real Example of Baseball Betting Strategy

The main example is Super Bowl in 2003, during which the bookmakers of the whole country adjusted the odds, which were oriented on the offensive playing of Oakland Raiders with -4.5 points against the defensive Tampa Bay Buccaneers team. The competent football fans saw a great value in this offer, knowing that the defense in most cases wins the big competitions. But the most fans like the attackers, not the defenders, and the fans of betting like favorites.

In the end there were too many bettors who staked on Raiders.

Some bookmakers announced about the bets on Auckland -4.5 against the stakes on Tampa +4.5 with superiority of 9-1. In the end Tampa Bay blew the Raiders, and most bookmakers like bandits, as there were too many bettors who staked on underdogs.
Tampa (odds +4.5), in fact, settle the matter before the half-period, leading with 17 points, at the first time since 1988, when Washington won the Denver team in the final with a score 42-10, a team in Super Bowl could save itself with the deficit of 10 points.

Of course the sport fans and bettors can be forgiven if they have an inveterate wrong view on the fact, how bookmakers adjust the odds.

Remember that mass media, especially television and radio journalists, should be happy about the problem of gambling, as it is illegal in the 99% of the USA. In fact, when the journalists mention about the coefficients (chances) of teams in general, it might look like this: “Vikings is the favorite team in the match versus Packers.”

But this is a great hypocrisy, as the coefficients (chances) of teams, especially football and baseball teams, can be found almost in every newspaper of the country, even thousands miles away from the nearest legal casino or bookmakers’ office.