Time for long-range thinking on the sports betting front
Members of the Springbok team in a huddle during the 2023 Rugby World Cup final in Paris. Picture: Steve Haag/Gallo Images
The sports bonanza of July 2025 is drawing to a close but that doesn't mean wagering opportunities are over – far from it.
Many a life-changing coup has been landed at a humble August Vaal race meeting – or a canny long-range flutter on the footie has come to bountiful fruition. Remember Leicester City!
Hopefully we've prospered from a brilliant horse racing season in KwaZulu-Natal, the Open Championship, the Tour de France, Grands Prix and MotoGPs, the Women's African Cup of Nations, the Women's Euros and even the World Darts Matchplay and have a tidy fund with which to tackle the rest of the year – and the next one.
Speaking of long-range, it might be a tad surprising for Springbok fans to learn that their heroes are not favourites to win the 2027 Rugby World Cup. South Africa are 3.65 to complete a hat-trick of titles, with New Zealand preferred at 3.50. France are a 5.00 chance, ahead of Ireland 6.00, Australia 8.00, England 8.95 and Argentina 29.00.
Much sooner, though, there's the southern hemisphere Rugby Championship, starting in mid-August, and the Women's Rugby World Cup, starting a week later.
Billions of sports bettor eyes around the world will turn to the English Premier League, which kicks off on 15 August.
Defending champions Liverpool are 2.90 favourites to do it again, with Arsenal at 3.25, Manchester City at 3.95 and Chelsea at 9.50. Newly promoted Sunderland and Burnley are 1,000-1 chances – and 1.33 and 1.36 favourites for relegation.
Those odds will change a lot in time and, to tie up the value of your hunch, this might be a good time to strike.
In Italy's Serie A, Napoli are 2.80 for another win. In Spain's La Liga, Real Madrid (1.72) edge perennial fierce rivals Barcelona (2.20).
It's not only the strongest country competitions that are open for a football bet. Punters can venture as far afield as leagues in Finland, Mexico, China, Slovenia and Ecuador.
Horse racing
On the horse racing front, locally it's a fairly quiet time as everyone catches their breath and starts preparing for the Highveld spring season.
For the farsighted, Betway odds are available on next year's Cheltenham Festival in the UK. As if to mock the long-range forecasters, the favourite for the Cheltenham Gold Cup is a horse called Inothewayyourthinkin (4.50).
These Betway odds are correct at time of publishing and subject to change.
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