In a fast-paced game like soccer, the result of a match can easily appear random.
At the same time, all soccer fans know it’s not – some skilled teams consistently beat others, and the importance of a team’s trainer emphasizes the role of strategy in winning. But sometimes unfortunate things happen, like a good player getting hurt, and then we can’t help thinking that the situation was simply unlucky.
Similarly, betting on soccer is based largely on skill, while luck still plays an undeniable role. Today, we’re looking at the role of both.
Luck’s Role in Sports Betting
Let’s talk about luck first. In sports betting, luck is a big factor that you simply can’t control. And clearly, it’s not just in betting. It plays a role in most everything we do, including the life circumstances we’re born into. As the saying goes, you play the cards you’ve been dealt.
And luck is actually one of the reasons many people bet in the first place. Throughout history, people have always loved games of chance, and it’s part of what makes soccer betting so exhilarating. That’s evident when you consider the fact that many people who enjoy betting on sports also enjoy gambling at casinos. For those people, sports betting isn’t different from enjoying casino games like roulette on a reliable casino from the PokerStrategy UK casino list – the thrill is in the unpredictability, and the games are pretty much unlimited.
Yet the result of soccer betting isn’t nearly as close to pure luck as most casino games are. With the right strategy, it is possible to improve your chances a lot. Since you’re essentially betting against other bettors rather than the bookmaker, there’s not the same kind of built-in house edge needed for profitability. This means you have a fair chance.
Why Skill Always Trumps Luck
When it comes to lots of things, skill can make your luck work for you. There’s a famous quote, often attributed to the Roman philosopher Seneca, that goes, “Luck is when preparation meets opportunity”.
And so, preparation in the form of safe strategies that protect against large losses, research on players, careful comparison of odds, and looking for misplaced ones will often pay off. Skill increases your chances, even if the chances can never be guaranteed. A skilled bettor never risks it all because he or she knows that the factor of luck is always there.
Although diversification is more commonly known as an investing strategy, it also applies to betting on soccer or other sports. Even if an opportunity looks incredibly good, a wise bettor knows to bet moderately on it, always allowing for a loss. And that’s largely what betting strategies are about.
At the end of the day, a successful strategy is not where you win as much as possible – that can happen to anyone without any skill – but one that consistently brings more wins than it does losses.
Focus On What You Can Control
The only thing that you can control is your skill and strategy. Whether you’re going to be lucky or not, you can’t predict, which means as a bettor and spectator, the only thing that’s in your hands is your skill level.
While defining skill in betting can be pretty hard – especially since luck might temporarily mean that even a skillful decision ends in a loss – a good strategy will always reveal itself by consistent wins in time. By diversifying bets and never gambling small amounts, you can comfortably lose, and you can slowly grow more confident in your decisions.
And accepting that you can’t completely control or predict the outcome can be thrilling if you let it.
