Rounding Up the Best Betting Markets
FIFA Women's World Cup
Germany to win the Women's World Cup at 7/2 with Ladbrokes; lay Sweden if less than 7/1; China is a good each-way value at 14/1.
Expect the 2007
FIFA Women's World Cup, being held in China, to attract a lot of media attention. It undoubtedly will throw up its fair share of media-friendly cuties, and the organization of the tournament will be scrutinized closely ahead of next year's Beijing Olympics.
Of the 16 teams competing, it is relatively easy to look past the best-priced 8/5 about two-time winner the USA. It finds itself in the "Group of Death" with Sweden and North Korea - both of which are in the top five of the FIFA World Rankings - so until it can prove it has what it takes to get out of the group, it is probably best to avoid them.
2003 winner Germany topped its qualifying group without losing a point, and a recent 4-0 thrashing of fellow
World Cup contender Denmark greatly enhanced its Teutonic confidence. At the time of this writing, it was a best-priced 7/2 with both Ladbrokes and Expekt, and will be unlucky not to reach the final, so an each-way bet may be worth considering, too.
Sweden will be without first-choice goalkeeper Caroline Jönsson, and star striker Josefine Öqvist is also out. Expekt is laying Sweden at 5/1, while Ladbrokes and Totesport at going 7/1, and it is worth opposing them on the exchanges if you can get the right price.
The value in the tournament could lie with host China at 14/1 with bet365, Ladbrokes, and Expekt. It finished as the runner-up in 1999, losing narrowly on penalties to the USA, and fourth in 1995. It beat North Korea to win the
Asian Cup and qualify for this event, and home advantage this time around should be a significant positive for the team that is still rebuilding after the "golden era" of 1999.
Whatever the outcome, Antepost will be pulling up a pew to watch the beautiful ladies play the beautiful game, and will be indulging in a spot of trading on the exchanges.
American Football
Arizona Cardinals to win 7.5+ games this season.
Arizona Cardinals to win the Super Bowl on Betfair at 65/1, with potential to lay when the odds invariably shorten.
Antepost's U.S. cousin is excited about the Cardinals. "There is much talk this side of the Atlantic about the new and improved Arizona Cardinals," he wheezed breathlessly by e-mail. He claims there are three factors that make this team the potential sleeper of the year:
A great quarterback: With his rookie year behind him, Matt Leinart is poised to become one of the league's best quarterbacks. He has earned the players' respect, and has become a team leader because of the example he sets. He participated in every off-season workout over the summer. He bought his offensive linemen watches after the 2006 season, and ran with them the first day of training camp. "That cliche, 'Actions speak louder than words,' is very appropriate for Matt," coach Ken Whisenhunt said. "He's a young, talented quarterback who really wants to be good."
An improved offensive line: Levi Brown, the fifth overall pick in the 2007 draft, agreed to a six-year deal that could be worth as much as $62 million, with more than $18 million of it guaranteed. This should provide the Cardinals with much-needed help on offense.
An easy schedule: Much like the Chicago Bears last year (which took it all the way to the
Super Bowl), the Cardinals have arguably the easiest schedule of all of the NFL teams this year.
Sounds like a good bet to Antepost. Now, where's my Betfair login.
Equities
Stocks with high international exposure, such as Vodafone, Diageo, and Standard Chartered, to represent the best value in the third quarter 2007.
Despite the bad news emanating from the U.S. subprime mortgage sector, the slowdown in Germany, and the shadow of inflation looming in Britain, global economic growth is still robust, with telecoms, oil, and mining outperforming, particularly in emerging economies.
The IMF predicts vigorous global growth of 5.2 percent in 2007 and 2008, with China, India, and Russia all performing well, and this bodes positive for companies such as Vodafone, Diageo, and Standard Chartered, which have a truly international reach.
It is clear the FTSE was oversold during the recent downturn in equities, and many of the bargains will already have been snapped up, but there's still time to get among the balance sheets and sniff out some real value there; just make sure that all of your eggs, and those of the company you invest in, aren't in the same basket.
