There was a TV show which aired on CBS in the mid to late 1990s called Early Addition. The premise was that the show’s lead character, Gary Hobson, would receive newspapers one day early. Essentially, Hobson was given the opportunity to see what would happen the next day.
While captivating, it struck a chord with the sports betting community as Hobson’s ability to see the future was a dream for any seasoned bettor looking for an edge in the game. But have we found a suitable alternative, a quarter of a century after the show’s final episode?
While no “early editions” are landing on sports fans’ doorsteps just yet, the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) has given bettors a unique opportunity to gain a clearer picture of the future. But does AI offer a surefire way to pick the right results?
Crunching Numbers with AI
What AI excels at is handling the heavy lifting of crunching numbers which some bettors may not have the resources or time to do.
For example, if you were betting on the outcome of soccer fixtures in the English Premier League and specifically focusing on how many goals would be scored by two teams over 90 minutes, AI could help you by analyzing past results. In essence, you could gather data on both teams from as many games as you’d like then use AI to calculate the average number of goals scored in those matches.
If the calculations show that over 2.5 goals were scored in more than 80% of these matches over the last year, you would justifiably feel confident that betting on over 2.5 goals as the data strongly supports this outcome.
Using the Latest Betting Promotions
Having unlocked this information you might then look to place a bet on the outcome. Of course, this doesn’t mean that there isn’t any risk as there is. However, more and more bettors are choosing to use sign-up offers that effectively allow you a ‘free hit’ when placing an opening bet.
For instance, these generous sports betting promotion offers available here allow new customers to claim as much as $150 in bonus bets after wagering $5.
While these are great sign-up offers to capitalize on, the wider point is that there is still some uncertainty involved even when using sophisticated AI software to help streamline your picks which is why it pays to look for the best betting promotions.
Understanding Risk with AI
While the aforementioned example focuses on goals, AI can also run thousands of simulations of the outcome of a game based on current form, weather conditions, historical head-to-head meetings, and up-to-date standings of the league table.
In other words, in the 10,000 simulations that were run for a recent fixture between Ipswich and Chelsea, AI predicted Chelsea winning in over 7,000 simulations which aligns with the Blues’ pre-match odds of -250.
On the other hand, Ipswich won fewer than 1,700 times out of 10,000 simulations and came into the game at odds of +500.
However, there is only so far that AI and numbers can take you when trying to accurately predict an outcome. While data can provide a compelling argument on paper, you must also consider the human element of football along with the unpredictability and the red-hot emotions of supporters desperate for their team to win.
In the above example, despite the numbers saying as much, Ipswich were able to beat Chelsea therefore defying the data – that’s sport at its finest.
Not Quite a Perfect Science
The bottom line is that even with the advent of AI in sports betting, upsets will still happen. But what AI does provide is a far more comprehensive approach to analysis—ensuring that, even in the face of the unpredictable, no stone is left unturned.