Football fans are keen to make predictions about soccer as well as betting on the team they believe has an edge in the match. On the other hand, players are betting on their hand in poker when they believe they have a good chance of winning. What do these two endeavours have in common then? Let’s go over the major similarities:
You need a lot of patience for betting and poker
According to gambling experts at Beastsofpoker.com, poker is all about strategy and waiting for the right moments to bet or raise. You need good hands to win – or a plan on how to bluff your opponent with a high certainty. Similarly in football betting, you might need to wait for several matches before you find appealing odds on a team. You shouldn’t bet just for the sake of betting – there should be a clear opportunity to make a profit!
The skill element is hidden
You can be a great poker player and still have a losing month. Same goes for betting – sometimes the matches don’t work out in your favour, even if your pre-game analysis was on point and the odds were fantastic! It’s often said that the skill element in poker and betting are hidden from plain sight – it only comes visible over a long series of bets and hands played. You cannot know for sure until you’ve been at it for several months or even years – being a winning poker player or bettor needs serious preparement.
Both can be profitable endeavours
How profitable you can play poker or bet on sports comes down to your skill edge in the long run. If you have an edge against the bookmakers or the other players, the odds will make sure you can eke out a profit after a series of bets or poker hands.
This means there are both professional poker players and football punters who make their sole income from gambling. But to them, it’s not really gambling – they have a statistical edge that they leverage over and over again to make money.
You can enjoy both by playing recreationally
There are many players who enjoy socializing at the poker tables or watching a soccer match in a pub with their friends, betting on their favorite team (without too much consideration for the odds). These folks are not necessarily playing to win – rather, they play and bet for the thrill of it and to have some fun.
You should take into account that both betting and online poker can be somewhat addictive. Therefore, it’s important to enjoy them in moderation. For the professional punters, it’s obviously a different case, as you need to spend a lot of time analysing and honing your skills to make a profit.
