Betting that sports betting has been around for a lot longer than historical sources can show? Not surprising at all, because what could be more fun than to make a game even more exciting by placing a bet on it? Thousands of years ago, many sports were gambled all over the world, from gladiator fights to running races. Nowadays people bet on the most diverse sports, including betting on rugby. Although football is the Dairy cattle for sports betting sites, other team sports such as rugby, basketball, handball and other sports are very popular nowadays. You can also try betting on virtual rugby matches and get more chances to win.
Betting on Rugby: Very Interesting
Compared to, for example, a sport such as running, rugby has not been played on a large and organised scale for very long. That is what makes betting on rugby very interesting.
Rugby has become very popular in recent decades and this is immediately reflected in the number of bookmakers where you can bet on rugby today.
Do you also want to bet on rugby? Then it is always wise to first thoroughly immerse yourself in this special sport. For example, did you know that there are different varieties of rugby and that the rules of these different types of rugby are quite different?
And that all these variants all have their own competitions? Read on to find out everything about the fierce and very exciting sport of rugby!
A Brief History of Rugby
To get straight to the point: the history of rugby is a bit unclear. As early as the Middle Ages, a game was played in which a group of players chased an oval ball and tried to score on the other team’s half. It was the task of the opponents to stop this group of players.
There were hardly any rules to this game, except that deliberately injuring each other was not allowed. This game was also widely played at boarding schools in England in the 19th century, such as Rugby School, one of the oldest boarding schools in that country.
In the mid-19th century, students of this school wrote down some rules for the ball game from which rugby later evolved. This resulted in the creation of several independent football clubs in England and the establishment of the Football Association in 1863!
Setting Rugby Rules
Various clubs entered into a conclave to establish some valid rules of the game, but this all went awry. Nevertheless, several clubs managed to agree on the rules and the Rugby Football Union was founded in 1871.
As a result, there was finally clarity about the rules in England, but internationally there were no rules and that naturally led to bumblebees. So an International Rugby Football Board was set up to regulate and enforce the rules worldwide.
The stocking is not over yet. Until 1895, rugby was a real amateur sport. In the south of England, the sport was mainly practised by the elite, but in the north, the sport gained popularity among the working class.
Scoring Points in Rugby
The main way to score is to make a try. You do this by pressing the ball down in one movement in the area behind the posts on the opponent’s piece of field. After a violation, the referee can also give it a try as a penalty. A successful try is worth 5 points.
When a player has made a successful try, his team may attempt to kick the ball between the posts and the crossbar of the goal. This is called a conversion and yields 2 points.
You can also score by kicking the ball between the vertical posts and above the crossbar in the opponent’s defence area during play. This happens when the referee awards a penalty after a foul. From an open game situation, a so-called drop kick or drop goal may also be performed. This yields (with the Union variant) 3 points.
Rugby Betting Tips
In rugby, you can bet on different outcomes. Betting on the winner of a major tournament is an obvious choice, but since a few countries (the participants in the six-nation tournament) always dominate the rankings, it is rare for an underdog to win a championship. This is more common in other sports than in rugby.
In rugby there is always tension between the best teams and the differences can be really small. That can also make betting on the big rugby teams very exciting.
Rugby is often bet on other aspects as well, such as the first or last player to score a try.
There is also often betting on the number of points scored during a half, or on the difference in points.
You can also bet on the team that will be the first to score a certain number of points.
Betting on the number of even and odd points is often an option that many online bookmakers offer.
If you are going to bet on rugby, it is also a good idea to spread your chances of winning and bet on multiple elements.
An Example
You want to bet ten euros. Divide this ten euros between two types of bets. For example, bet three-quarters of your bet on the team that you expect to get ten points first. Then place the rest of your bet on the team you think will score first. This is how you spread your chances!
Always do extensive research into the teams and the composition of the teams. Are certain players more prone to injury due to an earlier injury in the season? Are there new players on a team? There are a lot of statistics to be found online, take advantage of them!
Last but not least: the weather conditions! Rugby is always played outside. In dry weather, the game will usually run a lot faster than when the field is soaking wet and muddy. Some teams have more experience playing in difficult weather conditions than others.
In the past, it has even happened that neither team managed to get 10 points due to the difficult weather conditions. In this case, betting on the bet that no team would make the 10 points could have netted you a hefty win!