betHQ
July 20, 2015
When most people think of summer, they think of Pimms and lemonade, seaside rambles, sunny skies and barbecues.
If you’re a serious punter, however, you probably double up on the Pimms and contemplate three long, bleak months without any club football, jumps racing or domestic rugby to bet on. It’s not the happiest time of year for bookies either, with far less activity at betting shops around the country.
However, there’s no need to be despondent. The British summer has a fair share of betting highlights. Here’s our pick of the top summer sports to bet on.
Royal Ascot
From a punter’s perspective, Royal Ascot is notable for the eight Group 1 races on the card. There’s no other flat meeting in the UK that draws as many top-class thoroughbreds.
Also, if you know what you’re doing, feature races offer great value on serious contenders – thanks especially to less educated bets that jumble up the betting markets and will tilt the odds in your favour.
Wimbledon
Betting on Wimbledon may give you a reason to watch the tennis. It also offers punters the advantage of genuine predictability. The last time one of the top three seeds failed to win the title was in 2003, when Roger Federer won the first of his seven Wimbledon titles.
Even better, a player outside the top two seeds has won just once during this period. When you can reliably restrict your betting choices to two options, you’re onto a good thing.
June Rugby Union Tours
Test rugby in general tends to produce victories for the higher ranked team in any given contest. Anyone who consistently bet on the favourite in every rugby match since 1995 would probably be sitting on a small fortune by now.
This is doubly true for the June tests, given the dominance of the southern hemisphere teams when playing on their own turf. Just don’t try to apply this rule of thumb to the French – you’ve been warned.
The Ashes
That said, when it’s England’s turn to host the series, it tends to take centre stage as the biggest sport event of the English summer. It’s also worth noting that England has won the Ashes on home soil three times in succession, and statistically, has won half of all series played in the UK. This means that patriotically minded English punters can support England and bet on Australia, and win either way.
England football friendlies and qualifiers
So if you’re really in need of a footie fix, you can rely on at least a couple of games a month during the summer. Even better, you can attend live matches without risking frostbite. Just keep in mind that betting on random international encounters is a lot trickier than betting on teams in a league you’ve been following closely for months – and if in doubt, lay Scotland.
