To bet or not to bet on your favorite team, that’s a question many football fans struggle to answer. Most people say you shouldn’t wager on franchises you love. It makes sense because after all, following your emotions when betting is a dangerous way to gamble. You’ll lose money most of the time.
Still, it’s possible to bet on a team you love and win. You know its strengths and weaknesses. You know opponents your favorite club beats regularly and those it loses against consistently. Of course, there are pros and challenges of betting on your preferred NFL team.
On the bright side of things:
- You know your team better than all others
Although you probably know the entire squads of a few NFL teams, you understand your favorite team the most. You can name the starting lineup, the backup squad and probably players who left the franchise five years ago.
You also know your team’s stats of several seasons, how it performs against divisional opponents and in the playoffs. With such a comprehensive understanding of one side, you can bet on it correctly.
- You stay updated about team news
If you’re a true football fan, you never miss out on your favorite team’s announcements. You probably follow the franchise on social media and the web. That way, you receive real-time updates when a player gets injured, transferred, or benched.
If there is in-fighting that can affect team performance, you learn about them before most people that don’t like your team. Knowing the latest updates about teams can make a massive difference between winning and losing your bets. You can cancel the entire bet after learning the coach was sacked or change the wager depending on current news.
- You can do Comprehensive Analyses Faster
Analyzing NFL teams before you can take hours. When wagering parlays, in particular, you must examine each game for 20 to 60 minutes, depending on multiple factors. You may have to find out about team injuries, motivation, and head to head records.
When betting on your favorite team, though, you already have most of the data in your head. You know who is out, who will start and how your team fairs with the upcoming opponent. As a result, it only takes a few minutes to confirm things you’re doubtful about before placing a bet.
- It Makes Watching a Game extra Exciting
If you think watching your beloved NFL team play is thrilling, find good odds on an odds comparison site like oddspedia.com and bet on it to win. You’ll stay at the edge of your chair throughout the game.
Each decision match officials make will catch your attention. You’ll be frustrated when the wide receivers fail to catch essential passes and get excited when quarterbacks complete incredible touchdowns. Even when the match becomes boring, you’ll still want to witness the action.
Reasons against betting on your favorite team
- The risk of involving Emotions
Can you resist betting on your team after a three-game winning streak? How much analysis do you do before wagering on your favorite franchise? If you quickly back your team on the bookmakers because you love it, you’ll lose lots of bets. To avoid favoring their favorite teams unnecessarily, most people choose not to bet on them.
- You’ll underestimate opponents
Even when you do detailed research about your favorite team’s opponents, you’ll probably be biased against it. You may concentrate on its weak points or find reasons to justify betting on your home team. And by doing this, you may end up losing your bet.
- Affects how you Enjoy Games
When you have no bets to worry about, you probably watch football with friends while having drinks. If your favorite team wins, you rejoice. If it loses, you vent out your frustrations at the defensive or ‘O’ lines and call it a day.
But when you bet on your favorite team in a simple game, and it loses, you can get angry at players and coaches pretty fast. If the team costs you plenty of money over time, you may even develop hatred towards it. Of course, this all depends on how well you can control your emotions when betting on a team you like.
- Easy to Make Poor Bankroll Decisions
When you involve your emotions and put too much trust on your favorite team, it’s easy to justify betting $1000 on them. You’ll be overconfident at the decision after all. When you lose, you might bet an even more significant sum of cash on the team. Within a short period, you could drain your bank account completely.
If you decide to bet on a football team you love, ensure:
- You have all the information you need
Find information about injuries, records, and playing styles before making any football wager. Data helps you find patterns in how teams fare against their opponents. It enables you to compare defenses versus offenses effectively. By the time you decide to bet, you’ll know which side statistics favor.
- Get your Emotions out of it
You could bet against your favorite team. There’s nothing wrong about it. But before you do, ensure you’re not making a bet because you want it to lose. Similarly, don’t support your team with a wager because you believe in it. Let statistics help you pick the team to bet on always.
- Get Second Opinions
No one knows everything in betting. There are minor details you can’t find on statistic websites, but you’ll learn about by listening to a more experienced bettor. Maybe it’s a trick a coach uses to change a game’s momentum or a player dispute issue that may affect their performance.
Compare your predictions with those of experts. Understand why they made their predictions and consider fine-tuning your bets if you believe there’s something you had not considered.
To Conclude
Should you bet on your favorite football team? There are numerous advantages to it. But it’s the losses you should worry more about. You can lose bets quickly when you use your emotions to bet. But if you’re able to control them, there’s no reason not to bet on your favorite NFL team.
