Hockey is the top Winter Games sport among gamblers, but curling with its sliding stones, spirited sweeping, and cheating allegations has surprised oddsmakers. Bettors are showing significant interest in the quirky sport, reports the AP, which piques viewers' curiosity every four years at the Winter Olympics. "There's definitely a stronger curling-hockey split than what was expected," said Chris Pearce, a senior trader at Caesars Sportsbook.
It's expected that the handle—the total amount wagered—on this Olympics will far exceed that of the 2022 Beijing Games, mainly because legalized sports betting has expanded in the US and these Games are easier to track live because of the time zone. Indeed, Pearce said they had already exceeded their Beijing mark "five or six days in."
"The curling alone is going to take seven figures overall," Pearce said. "If you would have told me at the start that that we'd turn over a million on curling, I wouldn't have believed you." The International Olympic Committee says it closely monitors betting on Olympic sports to protect the integrity of the Games. The worldwide aggregate betting volume on the 2024 Summer Games in Paris was a record $13 billion, the IOC said; the Summer Games now have nearly three times the number of events than the Winter Olympics so naturally get higher figures.
The curling competitions are being held in Cortina, where Sweden beat the US to win the gold medal in mixed doubles. The men's and women's team events are in full swing, and the allegations of rule breaking have added a dash of controversy. "It's kind of relatable, it's an easy watch, you can understand it very quickly," said Christian Cipollini, BetMGM Sportsbook trading manager. Some other sports—like speedskating—are over in minutes. Curling takes hours and can include frequent lead changes. "Curling is one that continues to go live, so that's what ends up getting it more popularity from a handle standpoint," Cipollini said. The handle for a curling match, he estimated, is equivalent to that of a low-to-mid-tier college basketball game.
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