Volleyball has been a popular fun team sport across the globe for many years, but the recognition and popularity of competitive volleyball have seen a huge increase in the past couple of decades. Here in South Africa, this was shown by the introduction of the National Volleyball League (NVL) in 2018.
Best online sportsbooks have also taken note of this and are now starting to offer specialist betting markets on the tournaments taking place around the world each year.
Usually, when it comes to betting on sports online there are several major tournaments. The main volleyball tournament in South Africa is the men’s and women’s NVL.
The men’s indoor NVL is competed by a total of 9 teams with the KZN Rhinos being the current champions, whilst the women’s NVL comprises of 4 teams and the Western Cranes hold the recent title.
The NVL also holds a men’s and women’s beach volleyball competition.
Other notable tournaments across the globe are detailed below:
The indoor volleyball tournament held at the Olympic Games every four years is the biggest competition in world volleyball. A total of 12 countries compete to earn the gold medal.
Beach volleyball was introduced to the Olympics in 1998 and continues to be popular amongst the viewers.
The majority of money wagered on volleyball competitions occurs during the Olympic Games. These tournaments attract bettors because of the level of competition and skill level of each player competing.
FIVB is the world governing body for volleyball. They hold a tournament every four years which involves the top 24 nations across the world competing for the title.
The world championships consist of both indoor and beach tournaments. Los Angeles was the host of the inaugural beach volleyball tournament in 1997, a year prior to it being introduced into the Olympics.
With 24 nations taking part, there is a larger number of games throughout the tournament creating more betting opportunities for us to win money.
The World Cup acts as a qualification tournament for the upcoming Olympics. It is held every four years prior to the Olympic Games.
With volleyball betting gaining more recognition, it has resulted in a greater number of markets being offered by top South African sportsbooks. We will now highlight the most popular markets that you can bet on.
Set Handicap:
Gauteng Thunderbolts (-1.5) vs Free State Giants (+1.5).
If you back the Thunderbolts at -1.5, then they will have to beat the Giants by 2 or more sets. The Giants with a handicap of +1.5 gives them the chance to either win outright or lose the game by 1 set for your bet to be successful.
Points Handicap (Set 1):
Easter Cape Eagles (-4.5) vs Mapungubwe Warriors (+4.5).
Placing a bet on the Eagles handicap means that they would need to win the first set by 5 points or more. The +4.5 handicap on the Warriors allows them to win the first set or lose it by a total of 4 points or less to win your bet.
Our first tip when betting on volleyball is to carry out extensive research into the upcoming matchups. Make sure you understand the current form of both sides and how they have been performing home or away, depending on where they are playing their next game. You should also wait until the line-ups have been announced before you place your bet, if a star player is not in the starting line-up, then this could have a negative impact on the team’s performance. Injury reports are also important as these will let you know prior to the line-ups being announced who is missing from the game.
Secondly, you should be aware of the hall conditions at the home team’s court. Slight variations in the size of the hall, lighting, and the height of the ceiling could impact the away team because they are not used to playing in these conditions.
Lastly, if you are betting on beach volleyball competitions, you should understand the effect the sand can have on the players. The sand used in volleyball tournaments will differ depending on the country it is held. If teams have experience playing on certain types of sand (similar to tennis and the court), they will be able to acclimatize to the conditions quicker than a team that is not used to it.
Please keep all of these tips in mind when betting on volleyball.
The first step when beginning your journey into betting on volleyball is to find the right sportsbook for you. We advise that you choose one which offers great odds and a large variety of markets for volleyball. Our fantastic team at Africa-bet.com have produced a list of the top sportsbook reviews for South Africans, so please take a look at them.
We also recommend that you start betting with small stakes whilst you gain a better understanding of betting on volleyball and find out which markets your research suits best.
Following this, you can start to raise your stakes and increase your chances of winning bigger. Good luck!
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