Can you bet on rugby?
Trying to Find the Goal: Milan’s Struggles with Rugby
Milan Rabszski, the famed Polish gambling expert known for creating and maintaining TopKasynoOnline–the well-known casino review site designed to give Poles a better chance to gamble–has taken an interest in the art of rugby betting. Being a football fan himself, he has decided to visit his friend, Michael, an amateur rugby player, bettor, and coach, to gain some insights.
“I honestly thought it was like football at first,” admits Milan Rabszski sheepishly as the gathered crowd laughs. “I’m Polish; we’re good at football. And looking at rugby, I thought it was basically the same thing, but with hands allowed. But I learned very quickly that this was not the case. Firstly, I learned that Rugby Union and Rugby League aren’t just different tournaments but two different sports with different rules. Secondly, being a football fan, I’m used to ties. There are no ties in rugby!”
Here, Milan sighs. “Less than two percent of all rugby games end in a draw. Two percent! It’s madness.”
And perhaps it was, but it was a new sport for Milan Rabszski, and he was excited to tell people all that he had learned about this highly physical game. Michael had told him that the Polish rugby team was ranked 34th in the world, which was very good, and like any proud Pole, Milan had decided to investigate.
Getting to Know Rugby
“So, the game started in England,” Milan continues. “They say it began when a football player picked up a football and started sprinting towards the goal.”
The origins of rugby are shrouded in mystery, but the split between Union and League is very well known. Originally it was played among gentlemen “amateurs” and working class “professionals.” However, as professional teams became more common, the amateurs banned them. The professionals went and made their own rules. Thus, League and Union: League for the working professionals and Union for the gentlemanly amateurs.
Rugby League and Rugby Union have the same fundamentals. Teams try to score “tries” and outscore their opponents. Rugby League is faster than Rugby Union. In Rugby Union, a try is worth three points, while it’s worth five points in League.
Rugby League teams have 13 players, compared to Rugby Union’s 15. After-tackle regulations are another difference. Rugby League doesn’t have “rucks” or “mauls.” Instead of rucks and mauls, attacking players roll the ball to a teammate. Rugby Union has no possession limits. In Rugby League, the attacking team can only be tackled six times before losing possession.
There are no lineouts in Rugby League. When a play ends, the teams can scrum.
“Both games have similar rules and principles,” Milan concludes. “It gets confusing because you have international teams for both sports in many countries. I felt lost at every kasyno internetowe when I tried to place bets.”
The Strange Stats of Rugby
“Being a numbers man, I went for the stats first,” Milan says, warming up to the topic. “I had to know the history. Did you know that for a game that hates ties, there have actually been 0-0 tie matches? It’s extremely unusual, but it’s happened between international teams! It happened once between Scotland and New Zealand in 1964 and earlier between England and Wales in 1962. It hasn’t happened since 1964 internationally, but domestic clubs have achieved that result more recently.”
“Is that the lowest score?” asks a young girl in the front row, and Milan nods. What could be a lower score than a team not scoring at all?
“The highest score is a very different story. In Denmark, there was a domestic club named Comet who beat another team, Lindo, 194-0.” Milan stops and looks at the crowd. “Let me say that again. 194-0. This happened in 1973, but the strange thing is that the winners, Comet, don’t exist anymore! Lindo still plays.”
“How long does a rugby game last?” asks an older man from the back. “Is it like football? Two halves of 45 minutes?”
“Two halves of 40 minutes for 80 minutes total and extra time,” Milan replies with a nod. “Close enough. But did you know that the longest ever match lasted 34 hours and 06 seconds? It was played between 22 members of the Sandbaggers club to raise funds for charities.” Milan smiles slightly. “They played through the night and beat the previous record of 33 hours. And they did this only last month in August 2022.”
Understanding Rugby Betting
“Now we get to the part I had the most trouble with,” begins Milan with a sigh. “The betting. My first hurdle was understanding what a handicap was.”
Gambling on the spread between two teams’ strengths and weaknesses can add a new dimension to games. Bookmakers use a handicap to make a game more interesting for bettors by giving an advantage to one team. When one team has a far better chance of winning than the other, handicap betting is used. For bets you can use 22 Bet http://topkasynoonline.com/review/22bet/ in the Poland.
Bets can be made fairer by including a handicap. In a handicap wager, the favored time not only needs to win the match but must also overcome the handicap. Clearly, then, this is a fun form of wager to make when there is a clear talent gap between the competing teams.
“But I understood it eventually.” Milan holds up a hand. “I overcame that handicap.” He laughs at his own joke and shakes his head. “I wish Michael was here to hear that one. But anyway, the fact that ties are so rare in rugby really made it difficult for me to use my favorite bet: the 3-way.”
There are three possible outcomes to a 3-way bet: Team A wins, Team B wins, or there is a tie. Given the extra possible outcome, the odds on a 3-way bet will always be greater than those on an identical 2-way bet. Therefore, there is only one possible way to win in a 3-way bet and two ways to lose.
Conclusion
Milan Rabszski is the editor in chief at TopKasynoOnline, a passion project of his that serves as an information portal for Poles. The website is designed by the Poles and is an effort to help fellow gambling enthusiasts. Their office is located at Zlota 59, 00-120 Warsaw. Their phone is always buzzing with queries; reach out to them at +48 22 595 14 00. You can also listen to Mr Rabszski’s podcast at topkasynoonline.buzzsprout.com. At the time of writing in September 2022, Poland uses Blik, Prezelewy24, Paysafecard, Bitcoin, and Ecopayz as official payment methods.
Please note: Gambling is illegal in Poland, so the content in this article is intended only for informational purposes and is available to users outside of Poland.
