Water polo betting is getting more popular every day thanks to a bigger focus on this sport by many online bookies.
A fast-paced, highly physical sport that offers an amazing viewing and betting experience, water polo might just be an ideal choice for your next bet. Check out the highest-rated sportsbooks and learn about different bets you can make at the water polo betting sites.
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Not many sports have a history as colourful and rich as water polo. The sport has been around since the 19th century and became a part of the Olympic Games in 1900, when the modern Olympics were launched.
But, the popularity of water polo betting online hasn’t reached the heights of, say, tennis or football. The sport has remained somewhat niche, although it’s very likely that you’ll find water polo odds at pretty much every online bookmaker nowadays.
Obviously, on this page, you’ll only find bookies that offer online water polo betting.
But, just having this sport in their sportsbook isn’t enough for these sites to get a recommendation, let alone a high rank.
We analyse and test each betting site in great detail to provide you with objective, in-depth information. These are the points we go over when reviewing betting sites:
A water polo team usually has 13 players, but only seven of them enter the playing area - six field players and one goalie. Certain competitions, particularly those for younger players, may reduce this number by one.
Water polo is played over four periods, each typically lasting eight minutes. Again, the exact length of a period changes depending on the level of competition. The time is paused whenever a goal is scored, the ball leaves the playing area, or a player performs a foul move, so there’s no stoppage time like in football. Additionally, a team may not be in possession of the ball for more than 28 seconds.
Matches cannot end in a tie in most international competitions, nor is there overtime if the score is tied after the regular time. Instead, the match will immediately proceed to a penalty shootout until one team is victorious. League matches may allow tied results depending on the current stage and, in those cases, matches just end after the fourth period.
Depending on the pool the game is played in, there’s a coin toss before the match starts to determine the starting sides for the teams. A match of water polo always starts with a sprint, or swim-off as it’s more commonly called, with teams racing towards the centre of the pool in chase of the initial possession of the ball. The swim-offs also occur at the start of each period of the match, and the teams switch sides after halftime.
Water polo shares some rules with other team sports. There are fouls, yellow and red cards, corners, and penalty shots in case of particularly rough play near the goal. Since this is a very contact-heavy sport, fouls are common, so it’s not unusual to find water polo betting odds for betting on fouls and penalties.
Despite its long history, water polo isn’t very heavily featured at online sports betting sites. The popularity of the sport is nowhere near the popularity of football, tennis, or basketball.
Even so, there are several exciting ways to bet on water polo. Here’s what you can expect at the best water polo betting sites right now.
There are many water polo competitions and leagues, from the FINA water polo league to tournaments at the Olympic Games. Early markets for betting on water polo are mostly outrights, giving you an opportunity to score a big payout.
Traditional moneyline bets are your bread and butter of water polo betting markets. Simply pick which team will win the match or whether the match will end in a draw. Although uncommon, there can also be double chance bets on offer.
Since it’s such a fast-paced, dynamic sport, water polo is great for making over/under bets. You can bet on total goals scored, individual player performance, or whether a team will score a number of goals during the match.
Speaking of scores, there’s another point-based market every solid water polo betting site should offer - betting on the point spread. This is easily combined with moneyline bets for some high-paying combo bets.
A little bit uncommon compared to the water polo bets above are the individual player prop bets. These include markets like player to score, whether they’ll be first or last to score in a match, or even if the player will make a foul.
Most water polo competitions are regulated by World Aquatics, formerly known as FINA. They’re recognised by the Olympic Committee and cover all water-based sports. Another big organisation is the European Aquatics, or LEN, which oversees the competitions across the European continent.
Established in 1979, the World Cup is one of the highest levels of water polo competitions and has replaced the FINA Water Polo World League. The competition features eight of the best national teams and takes place every four years, slotting right between the Olympic Games. A bookie absolutely can’t claim they’re the best online water polo betting site without covering this competition.
Another FINA-regulated competition is the World Aquatics Championship. It’s a bi-annual event that, among other sports, includes water polo. This competition also features national teams, but the number of slots is 16. Hungary and Italy hold the most titles in this tournament.
European Aquatics Champions League, or LEN Euroleague, was founded in 1963 and is the highest tier of club water polo competitions. The league spans almost the whole year, starting in September with preliminary matches, followed by the group stage in December, and concluding with the Final Four tournaments in late May. Italian club Pro Recco is the most successful club in this league, holding 11 titles.
The Summer Olympic Games are the pinnacle of all sports. Water polo has a long legacy at the Olympics, being among the first team sports introduced to the competition. It’s a very important event for the sport, and national teams bring their A-game every time. Water polo Olympics betting, therefore, attracts bettors who don’t typically bet on the sport, as well as rookies and fans who just want to support their national teams.
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We update the list of water polo betting sites regularly and review every new addition to it.
