Table Tennis is finally enjoying its moment in the spotlight, recently emerging as one of the most popular sports to bet on in the US.
Table Tennis is now the second most popular sport to bet on in Colorado.
So, why has a sport, usually relegated to basement pastime, become so popular?
Well, to answer that we need to start by going back to March 2020, when major sporting events all around the world were cancelled forcing online gamblers to shift their attention to a handful of sports matches still taking place.
- World Table Tennis Championships - Annual (April-May)
- Chinese Super League - China (May, June, July, August)
- German Bundesliga
- French Pro A League
- Austrian Premier League
- Swedish Elite League
- Belgian Super Division
- Moscow Liga Pro - Russia
- Setka Cup - Ukraine
- Win Cup - Ukraine
For the soccer-crazed Europeans, the answer came in the unlikely form of the Belarusian Premier League and for the Americans it was table tennis.
But why is it still topping the charts, when the usual sporting events are up and running again? Well, the answer is table tennis is actually a great sport to bet on!
The first reason why table tennis is a potential moneymaker is that in the world of sports betting the more obscure the sport the more likely you are to find odds that will beat the sportsbook.
A major NFL game, for example, will most likely have the full weight of a sportsbook’s technology creating the odds, along with a handful of human experts. Compare this to a second division table tennis match taking place in Asia where you are unlikely to have any person checking the odds, and a smaller technology capability with much less data to read from.
Betting on Table Tennis FAQs
Is it legal to bet on table tennis?
Yes. It is completely legal to bet on table tennis as long as you use a licensed sportsbook in a state were sports betting is legal.
These include:
What is the best sportsbook for table tennis?
There are a number of legal sportsbooks in the US that offer a wide selection of bets for table tennis.
PointsBet is the best option for table tennis as it offers a unique points focused sports betting option which suits the sport particularly well.
What is the best table tennis league to bet on?
During 2020, when many of the major leagues were cancelled, the Moscow Liga Pro became the most popular league to bet on in the US.
Bet365 offers live streaming of the Moscow League Pro
Otherwise the Chinese Super League, that takes place in May, June, July and August is an excellent option.
The rules of table tennis
The Rules for betting on table tennis
Rule number one: know your players
If you love numbers, lists and data then you are in luck. The more you know about a player and an event the more likely you are to pick up on something a computer won’t.
Trawl the sportsbooks odds, and look for an anomaly, something that stands out to you. You are much more likely to find something of value than for a major league game in the US.
Simply pick a league - the more obscure the better - that a sportsbook offers odds for and learn everything there is to know about the players.
Make sure to pick a league that you can live stream, especially if you are live betting. It is unlikely that your sportsbook will have someone watching the matches, so this could place you at a considerable advantage.
Rule number two: bet on points
Another reason, why table tennis proved so popular is that it is the perfect sport for points betting which is growing in popularity in the US.
PointsBetting is not the same as fixed-odds betting, where you place a bet at odds set by the sportsbook and then either win or lose (and sometimes draw).
With points betting there is scale to winning where you are either rewarded or docked points according to how right or wrong your bet was.
With points betting every point above or below the total multiplies your original stake.
- The Raiders are playing the Dolphins.
- You think it will be a low scoring game, so you place a $10 bet on under 50 points scored.
- It turns out you are right with only 40 points scored.
- You, therefore, have a 10 point win. 10x£10 = 100.
Table tennis is, like tennis, played over sets where one player has to reach a minimum of 11 games to win. This means in a table tennis match there will be a lot of points amassed.
Without previous knowledge of the players, it is also quite hard to read how a game will progress from the first set. For example, it's not unheard of that a player can win the first set 11-2 but then lose the next set. This makes it harder for sportsbooks to read the data, and gives a bettor with a good knowledge of the players a crucial advantage when points betting in real-time.
When it comes to points betting there is one sportsbook, and one sportsbook only that we recommend and that is PointsBet. They are the pioneers when it comes to this form of sports betting and have an extremely generous welcome offer to get you off the ground.
- New Jersey
- Indiana
- Illinois
- Iowa
- Colorado
There are a few states where betting is legal, but were PointsBet is not operational. These include:
- West Virginia
- Pennsylvania
- Tennessee
- New Hampshire
If you are based in any of these states, then there are a number of options available to you, here are our top picks
Best Alternative Sportsbooks for Table Tennis
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Best in Pennsylvania
Best in New Hampshire
Best in Tennessee
Best in West Virginia