Super Rugby more than lives up to name, a 15-team rugby union competition that enjoys a well earned reputation for producing the most exciting product of the 15-man sport.

Established in 1996 as Super 12 with a dozen sides, it became Super 14 in 2006 and Super 15 in 2011. Marketing executives have dropping the numeral in recent years so Super Rugby it is, with 15 teams – five from Australia, five from New Zealand and five from South Africa, including the Kings that have replaced the Lions in the Super Rugby fold.

The Kings will play out of the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth, with their catchment area comprising the Eastern Cape and parts of the Western Cape. Bookmakers are tipping that the Kings will have a dismal debut Super Rugby season, with the Matt Sexton-coach newcomers short odds to finish at the foot of the ladder. The Rebels ran last in their debut Super Rugby campaign in 2011 and the Force, one of the two Super Rugby virgins in 2006, collected the dreaded wooden spoon in their first crack at the title.

The kings of Super Rugby have generally been sides from New Zealand, with Kiwi teams taking out 11 of the 17 finals, including the first five and the last one. The Crusaders have not tasted Super Rugby success since 2008 but they boast seven gold medals and three silver medals, a tally that puts them head and shoulders above their rivals.

The Crusaders are one of six sides that have won a Super Rugby tournament, with the other triumphant teams being the Blues (three titles), the Bulls (three titles), the Brumbies (two titles), the Chiefs (one title) and the Reds (one title). One has to feel sorry for the Sharks, Super Rugby finalists four times but yet to experience the ultimate high. The Sharks lost 6-37 to the Chiefs last year. Source: Wikipedia

Conference-based Regular Season

Because of the format of the Super Rugby competition – it has gone from being a round-robin tournament in which every sides plays either a home or an away match versus every other team before the top four enter the play-offs to a conference-based competition similar to that of, say, the National Football League in the United States of America – the most sensible way to analyse the event is to look at the three conferences and how they may end up playing out. You can see the schedule here.

Brumbies to Capitalise in Australia

The Australian Conference is the first alphabetically and, as luck would have it, the first place that value-conscious 2013 Super Rugby punters should go. That is because the Australian Conference features two sides that are out of their depth but not priced accordingly by bookmakers and another team that is trading well under its true odds.

Punters should be able to write their own tickets about either the Force or the Rebels qualifying for the 2013 Super Rugby play-offs as the Australian Conference winners but the lightweights are listed at odds of around 20-1 and 12-1 respectively, while the Waratahs are offered at odds of around 3-1 despite winning only one-quarter of their 16 games last year. The Sydney-based Waratahs are Australia’s glamour side, which explains why they trade at short prices every season, often for no logical rugby union reason.

The Brumbies and the Reds are the Australian Conference teams on which to concentrate and, once one does some analysis of their draws and squads, it becomes apparent which of the 2-1 shots warrants a bet. The Brumbies have been given a very good draw and, in Jake White, they have one of the smartest coaches in the sport. The Reds have a much toucher schedule and they will have to play at least half of their matches without Will Genia, their Wallabies halfback who sustained a very serious injury in 2012.

Kiwi Section Too Close To Call

The New Zealand Conference is the most difficult to solve, with four of the five sides holding realistic domestic and international title claims. Just 14 points separated the first-placed Chiefs from the fourth-placed Highlanders in the 2012 Super Rugby tournament, with the Crusaders and the Hurricanes sandwiched between them and the Blues nowhere.

The Chiefs are going to be hard pushed to improve on last season’s championship triumph, with multi-sport star Sonny Bill Williams returning to rugby league and leaving a gap in their midfield. And the Crusaders will be without arguably the world’s most influential rugby union player, All Blacks captain Richie McCaw, for most if not all of the 2013 Super Rugby tournament as the 2011 Rugby World Cup-winning skipper enjoys a well earned sabbatical. If one had to have a bet on the New Zealand Conference it would be the Highlanders at odds of around 11-2 but this is a section to leave alone.

Sharks Top of the South African Food Chain

The South African Conference is similar to the Australian Conference insomuch that it contains a couple of no-hopers – the Cheetahs and the Kings – making it a three-team race between the Bulls, the Sharks and the Stormers. The Sharks represent the value play at odds of around 2-1 because they have a draw every bit as benevolent as that of the Brumbies, with the Durban-based side facing their biggest rivals at home and their easiest opponents on the road. However, the 2-1 about the Sharks is not quite as appealing as the 2-1 about the Brumbies if one had to place only one wager.

Crusaders False Favourites Without McCaw

As far as betting on the 2013 Super Rugby title goes, there is value in supporting the Sharks at odds of around 8-1 as bookmakers have fallen into the trap of quoting the Crusaders as the favourites at around the 9-2 mark.

The Crusaders are the side whose name pops into the head of Super Rugby punters ahead of any edition of the tournament but they will miss McCaw badly – possibly for the entire season – and the fact remains that they have not won the competition in any of the last four years. Yes, they have gone close but close is not good enough for punters. One would have to be a fool to write off the Christchurch-based team but they are worth taking on given the early market.

The 55th Grammy Awards will take place in Los Angeles on Sunday 10 February 2013 and, while bookmakers are offering up no value in the Album of the Year race, there are good opportunities for punters in the other major categories. The best opportunity was seeing Rihanna’s nipple ring though.

Seriously though, bookmakers are correct to have Mumford & Son’s sophomore effort, Babel, as the warm favourite to win Album of the Year. The folk band’s long player is trading at odds of around 1-3 to make it back-to-back wins for the United Kingdom in this race after Adele’s victory last year.

Of the 15 editors and experts polled on GoldDerby, the top awards analysis website in the world, 10 of them are tipping Babel to win Album of the Year, with three going for El Camino by The Black Keys and two for Some Nights by Fun.

Babel’s odds are probably a little bit on the short side but it is difficult to make a case for backing either El Camino or Some Nights at the available odds. Album of the Year is the most prestigious of the Grammy Awards category but that does not mean that punters have to place a bet on it.

Besides, there is plenty of value for Grammy Awards punters to vacuum up in the Song of the Year, Best New Artist and Record of the Year races because people who spend their lives assessing these events disagree with the odds.

Let us start with the best value option of the three, which is We Are Young at odds of around 6-5 in the Song of the Year category. Number one in the United States of America for six consecutive weeks across the months of March 2012 and April 2012, Fun’s biggest hit to date is the pick of a dozen of GoldDerby’s 15 analysts, with the other three tipping Carly Rae Jepsen’s catchy Call Me Maybe. Twelve out of 15 equates to an 80 per cent probability, whereas odds of 6-5 represent only a 45.45% chance. If the GoldDerby boys and girls are correct, We Are Young should be around 1-4.

Not very far behind We Are Young in the appetising stakes is the offer of odds of around 7-4 that Fun wins the Best New Artist category. Some bookmakers are favouring Hunter Hayes even though the young country star has picked up just three 2013 Grammy Awards nominations and none of GoldDerby’s 15 sages thinks that he will receive the prize. Ten of them think that Fun will triumph, with the other five in the Frank Ocean camp. One could back both Fun and Ocean at odds of around 7-4 and 2-1 respectively for a payout of roughly 4-9 but it makes more appeal to back Fun on its own.

Record of the Year seems to be the most competitive of the major 2013 Grammy Awards races but one could argue that bookmakers do not have sufficient percentage in the two betting market leaders, Fun’s We Are Young and Gotye’s Somebody That I Used To Know. Both tracks are trading at odds of around 7-4 in spite of attracting 14 of the 15 thumbs up from GoldDerby’s 15 analysts. Lonely Boy by The Black Keys is getting the nod from the one dissenter. We Are Young is outpolling Somebody That I Used To Know by eight votes to six currently so punters should be interested in getting their hands on any quote that is odds against.

One may have to shop around to find a wide range of 2013 Grammy Awards betting markets because, unfortunately, a lot of bookmakers have taken the precaution of suspending their lines in the lead up to the glamour event in Los Angeles.

However, as one can see from the 2013 Grammy Awards analysis posted above, it is worth one’s while exploring the websites of online bookmakers because this is one event on which they tend to make mistakes. The Grammy Awards are a lot harder to assess than, say, the Academy Awards because there are few, if any, significant precursors for the music prizes. Finally, play this song and let the cash roll in 🙂

Well, David Beckham is a Paris Saint-Germain player and a lot of punters are kicking themselves for not making money out of what, in hindsight, was an obvious move from Major League Soccer to the French Ligue Un for the Englishman.

Beckham received mind-blowing offers from teams all around the world, including sides in Australia, England and the oil-rich Middle East, and one gets the feeling that Queens Park Rangers manager Harry Redknapp would have swam across the Atlantic Ocean to sign the former England captain from Los Angeles Galaxy. But once Paris Saint-Germain made its interest known, Beckham was likely to be France bound.

Paris Saint-Germain ticks a lot of boxes for Beckham. It is top of French Ligue Un after 23 rounds, three points clear of its closest challenger, so a championship looks on the cards. Certainly bookmakers agree with PSG as short as 1-7 to win what would be only its third league championship.

The lure of UEFA Champions League football – something that Redknapp could not offer with Queens Park Rangers – played a part in getting Beckham to Paris Saint-Germain as well, as did the French city being the world’s fashion capital. That would not have gone unnoticed by his wife, Victoria. And being just three hours from London by train is a bonus.

But the major reason why Beckham picked Paris Saint-Germain is that Carlo Ancelotti is the French Ligue Un table-topping team’s manager. Beckham has many friends in football but few people have formed a tighter bond with him than Ancelotti.

Good times, David Bechman was first signed by Carlo Ancelotti at AC Milan.

The 53-year-old Italian was the coach of Milan when Beckham, acting upon England manager Fabio Capello’s orders to stay fit if he wanted to play in his country’s FIFA World Cup qualifying matches in 2009, joined the Italian Serie A powerhouse on a short-term loan from Los Angeles Galaxy.

Ancelotti and Beckham hit it off immediately, enjoying each other’s company away from the pitch. Famously, Ancelotti drove Beckham more than 200 kilometres just so that they could have dinner at one of the Italian’s favourite restaurants. It was a spur of the moment thing but absolutely typical of their close friendship.

Beckham was 33 years old when he joined Milan for the first of his two loan spells with the Rossoneri but Ancelotti did not have any qualms about putting the veteran Englishman in his side’s starting line-up. Beckham joined Milan during the winter break of the 2008-2009 Italian Serie A season and was eligible to play in the last 21 rounds of the championship. Ancelotti named Beckham as a starter in 18 of those games.

Ancelotti had fled Milan by the time that Beckham returned to the San Siro at the midway point of the 2009-2010 Italian Serie A competition, with Leonardo filling the void created by Ancelotti’s move to English Premier League giant Chelsea. Beckham made seven league starts for the Rossoneri under Leonardo and came off the bench on four occasions.

News of Beckham’s charity-focused five-month deal with Paris Saint-Germain made worldwide headlines and bookmakers did not stand on ceremony waiting for an invitation to frame exotic betting markets. Consequently, punters are able to bet on, among other things, the number of times that the Englishman scores for PSG in French Ligue Un this season. Already a fans favourite, Beckham’s press conference below revels his generous charity donation.

However, the Beckham exotic betting markets that represent the best opportunities for punters are the ones regarding his number of French Ligue Un and UEFA Champions League starts this term. Bwin and BetVictor are the bookmakers whose odds should grab the attention of value hunters.

Bwin is offering odds of just under evens that Beckham starts more than six French Ligue Un matches for Paris Saint-Germain this season. The front-of-shirt sponsor of Real Madrid has probably read too much into Beckham’s mediocre Milan statistics under Leonardo and not placed sufficient emphasis on his superb numbers under Ancelotti. If Beckham stays fit and healthy – and no-one looks after oneself better than the 37-year-old superstar – then one should expect Ancelotti to pick him more often than not. There are 15 rounds of the French Ligue Un championship to go so Beckham has plenty of time to get to seven starts.

If Bwin has made a small odds-compiling error then BetVictor has made a big one in offering odds of around 4-1 that Beckham starts a UEFA Champions League game for Paris Saint-Germain this term. PSG’s tie against Valencia may occur too soon for Beckham to feature from the start but every bookmaker has the French side as the favourite to qualify for the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals, with BetVictor quoting it at odds of around 4-7. Surely if Paris Saint-Germain makes the last eight, there is an excellent chance that Beckham will start one of the two legs. Anything over 2-1 seems like value about this particular proposition so BetVictor is going way out on a limb with around 4-1.

The bromance between Beckham and Ancelotti is back on and there are opportunities for punters to profit from it.

Bullseye! Premier League Darts is back with a few chnages.

Premier League Darts has a new format for the 2013 season, with PDC World Championship runner-up Michael van Gerwen just one of three players making his tournament debut following its expansion from eight to 10 participants.

Wes Newton, Robert Thornton and van Gerwen are the new Premier League Darts faces, joining old hands Gary Anderson, Andy Hamilton, Adrian Lewis, Phil Taylor, Raymond van Barneveld, James Wade and Simon Whitlock for the ninth edition of a weekly competition that is wildly popular throughout Ireland and the United Kingdom.

The 2013 Premier League Darts format will see the 10 players face each other over nine round-robin rounds, after which the two lowest ranked men will be relegated. Then the top eight players will compete against each other in the final five rounds for the four play-off places, with the title being handed out at The 02 in London on Thursday 16 May.

Taylor is the undisputed king of Premier League Darts. The Power has won six of the eight Premier League Darts titles and strung together a 44-match unbeaten run before Wade defeated him 8-6 in the first match of the 2008 season.

Wade and Gary Anderson are the only non-Taylor champions of Premier League Darts, with the Machine beating Mervyn King 13-8 in the 2009 decider and the Flying Scotsman defeating Lewis 10-4 in the 2011 final. Basically, if the Power reaches the final, he takes out the top prize.

Taylor Favourite As Usual

Ireland- and United Kingdom-facing bookmakers have gone to town on 2013 Premier League Darts, capitalising on the sport’s surge in popularity in recent years. Major Darts competitions attract capacity crowds and one would struggle to find spectators who have a better time at a live event.

As Taylor has been for every Professional Darts Corporation- organised tournament in which he has competed, he is the championship favourite before a dart is thrown. Bookmakers are offering odds of around 13-8 that the Power tops the 2013 Premier League Darts ladder going into the play-offs and odds of around 9-4 that he wins the title decider.

The arrival on the scene of van Gerwen has provided Taylor with the motivation to keep practising for several hours a day even though he is 52 years old and, unless one has a very good reason, he is the default betting option.

Power To Top League Ladder

It is not a question of whether to back Taylor; it is a matter of how is the best way to go about it. There is a feeling among some darts fans that the Power is vulnerable in matches played over short distances. Proponents of this theory say that most of Taylor’s major championship losses have taken place in the early rounds and that is true. But what they ignore are the Power’s numbers in the Premier League Darts round-robin games that are short and sweet.

Taylor has played 106 Premier League Darts round-robin matches for 86 victories, 14 draws, six defeats and a positive leg difference of 410. Six losses in eight competitive seasons is not the record of a man with a weakness in best-of-14-leg games. It is a myth that the Power is vulnerable in short matches. A complete myth.

Therefore, the most appropriate form of 2013 Premier League Darts betting action for one to take appears like a bet on Taylor qualifying for the play-offs as the top seed. Odds of around 13-8 about the Power doing something that he has done eight times out of eight seems generous in the circumstances as he bid to put van Gerwen and others in their place.

Anderson To Hit Most 180s

Taylor is the greatest player in the history of darts but the Power is not the most prolific hitter of 180s so one should not view one bookmaker’s offer of 14-1 odds that he scores the most maximums in the 2013 Premier League Darts as a rick. It represents okay value but nothing more than that. Taylor is often seen as better because of his high profile wins. See the video below!

Bookmakers have plumped for van Gerwen as the 2013 Premier League Darts tournament 180s favourite at odds of around 7-4 and that is fair enough. However, there may be a better value bet hidden elsewhere in this exotic market.

Anderson, trading as short as 3-1 odds but available in one place at 11-2, is the Premier League Darts competitor of interest. The Flying Scotsman holds the tournament record for maximums in a match – 11 versus Australia’s Simon Whitlock in 2011 – and he hit more 180s per leg/set than anyone else in the recent 2013 World Darts Championship.

Premier League Darts officials have only granted Anderson one of the places in the 10-man field because he won the competition two years ago, otherwise he would be watching the games unfold on television. The Flying Scotsman is ranked outside the world top 10 and bookmakers, quite rightly, do not consider him a serious title contender.

But Anderson’s smooth throwing action is the envy of many darts players and he is famous for his heavy scoring. One would rather back the Flying Scotsman at 11-2 than, say, Taylor at 14-1 or van Gerwen at 7-4 in this market.

Nine-dart Finish Statistics

Many Premier League Darts punters will want to have a bet on the 2013 tournament featuring at least one nine-dart finish and bookmakers are pretty much offering the same odds about the yes and no options. For the record, there have been six perfect legs in the previous eight Premier League Darts competitions – van Barneveld in 2006, van Barneveld on 2010, Taylor in 2010 (twice in the same match), Taylor in 2012 and Whitlock in 2012 – while there were two nine-darters in the 2013 World Darts Championship at the Alexandra Palace.

Watching this video from 2010 of Phil ‘The Power’ Taylor is a sure-fire way to get pumped about Darts.

Schladming will host the 42nd edition of the Alpine World Ski Championships, marking the second time that the town will stage the event and the ninth time that the alpine skiing-crazy nation of Austria will have the honour.

Austrian superstar Harti Weirather won the blue-riband event of the 1982 Alpine World Ski Championships in Schladming, taking out the men’s downhill by just under half a second from Switzerland’s Conradin Cathomen. Klaus Kroell, Hannes Reichelt and Max Franz are Austria’s strongest chances of a home win in the most prestigious race on the 2013 program.

Austria is far and away the most successful country in the history of the Alpine World Ski Championships, winning 71 gold medals, 73 silver medals and 66 bronze medals for a total of 210 medals. Next best is Switzerland on 50 gold, 56 silver and 47 bronze for a total of 153. All up, 22 nations have won at least one medal dating back to the inaugural competition held in Murren in Switzerland 82 years ago.

With five gold medals, four silver medals and three bronze medals, Norway’s Kjetil Andre Aamodt heads the men’s Alpine World Ski Championships medal table. Germany’s Christl Cranz top the women’s standings with 12 gold and three silver.

Since 1995, the Alpine World Ski Championships have been organised in odd-numbered years so as not to clash with Winter Olympic Games. And looking ahead, the International Ski Federation has awarded the 2015 Alpine World Ski Championships and 2017 Alpine World Ski Championships to Vail/Beaver Creek and St Moritz respectively.

Turning one’s attention back to the 2013 Alpine World Ski Championships, there are 11 events scheduled – downhill, giant slalom, slalom, super combined and super G races for both men and women, plus a mixed team competition.

Svindal too short for men’s downhill

Aksel Lund Svindal is the clear favourite to win the 2013 Alpine World Ski Championships men’s downhill gold medal, probably because he won the 2007 title in Are and was the dominant racer in the last event staged on the slopes of Schladming. The Norwegian won last year’s World Cup men’s downhill in Schladming by 0.57 seconds from a top field.

However, Svindal trails Dominik Paris in this term’s World Cup men’s downhill standings, finished fifth in the 2011 Alpine World Ski Championships men’s downhill and was the silver medallist behind Didier Defago in the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games men’s downhill. The Norwegian is a fine racer worthy of respect in any speed event but he is more of a super G specialist and worth opposing at his short odds.

Paris and Reichelt are the best value bets against Svindal, with the Italian trading at odds of around 12-1 and the Austrian available at around 11-1. Rising star Paris leads this season’s World Cup men’s downhill competition by three points and he was second fastest in training for the last men’s downhill event in Schladming before producing a poor run in the race itself. Ranked sixth in this term’s World Cup men’s downhill, Reichelt was third in Schladming 11 months ago and he is in the high-speed form of his life.

Vonn worthy women’s downhill favourite

The women’s downhill does not have the profile of the men’s downhill but it will be one of the highlights of the 2013 Alpine World Ski Championships, with United States of America’s Lindsey Vonn dominating the betting market.

Fast and furious, the Alpine Ski World Championship is the premier event on the skiing calendar

Whereas one can make a case for opposing Svindal in the 2013 Alpine World Ski Championships men’s downhill, one cannot knock the gold medal credentials of Vonn in the women’s equivalent even though she is odds on in some places.

Vonn has won five consecutive World Cup women’s downhill titles and leads this season’s series by a whopping 129 points. The American has 61.13 per cent more points than Stacey Cook, her compatriot in second spot on 211. Also, Vonn took out the 2009 Alpine World Ski Championship women’s downhill in Val d’Isere and the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games women’s downhill. The 28-year-old phenomenon missed out on 2011 Alpine World Ski Championship women’s downhill gold in Garmisch-Partenkirchen but only just, collecting silver.

The winner of three of this term’s five World Cup women’s downhill races, Vonn is more than entitled to be odds-on status so grab the evens available with some bookmakers.

Oppose Hirscher in men’s slalom

Of the other nine events on the 2013 Alpine World Ski Championships program, the one that presents the most interesting betting opportunity is the men’s slalom.

As the most technical alpine skiing discipline, slalom lends itself to opposing a favourite as short as Marcel Hirscher at odds of around 5-4. The Austrian youngster leads this term’s World Cup men’s slalom standings but he flopped in Schladming last year and asks for punters to oppose him.

Felix Neureuther and Andre Myhrer are the 2013 Alpine World Ski Championships men’s slalom second and third favourites respectively and they filled the first two positions in Schladming in 2011. One can back the German at odds of around 5-1 and the Swede at around 17-2. Dutching them provides odds in excess of 13-5, which makes considerably more sense than backing Hirscher alone at a shorter price.

It is tradition that no sooner is the Australian Open over that tennis pundits discuss the possibility of a man and/or a woman completing a calendar Grand Slam of singles titles.

Bookmakers love to get in the act as well so it should come as no surprise to read that there are several markets out there regarding the number of Grand Slam singles titles that Novak Djokovic and Victoria Azarenka each win in 2013.

Two Grand Slam singles titles this year is the Djokovic favourites at odds of around 5-4, while one Grand Slam singles title is the Azarenka favourite, odds on in many places but a shade of odds against with one bold firm.

No men’s singles player has completed a calendar Grand Slam since Rod Laver in 1969. Indeed, no men’s singles player since Rocket has held all four major titles – Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and US Open – concurrently, which goes to show the odds that Djokovic has to beat in order to achieve a feat that proved beyond, among others, modern greats Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Pete Sampras.

Federer has won three of the four Grand Slam men’s singles titles in the same year three times – 2004, 2006 and 2007 – Nadal won everything in 2010 except the Australian Open and Djokovic’s only 2011 failure came in the French Open.

No women’s singles player has completed a calendar Grand Slam since Steffi Graf in 1998. The feat proved too tough for Martina Navratilova, although she did win six major titles in a row from Wimbledon in 1983 to the US Open in 1984. And Serena Williams pulled off the Serena Slam from the French Open in 2002 to the Australian Open in 2003.

Azarenka made the most of her luck to win the Australian Open for the second year in a row, capitalising on the unexpected exits of Maria Sharapova and Serena Williams – the former was brought down by a bad performance, whereas the latter came unstuck because of a bad ankle.

Will either of these two tennis stars be able to complete an unlikely Grand Slam in 2013?

Bookmakers are not giving anything away even with their 50-1 quotes about Azarenka completing the calendar Grand Slam in 2013. The Belarusian has not made it past the French Open quarter-finals in seven Roland Garros appearances and she has yet to take part in a Wimbledon championship match.

If Serena Williams can get and stay fit for the six weeks of the French Open, Wimbledon and US Open, one would have to say that Azarenka will struggle to win another major title this year. Remember the head-to-head between the American and the Belarusian stands at 11-1 in favour of the former.

Basically, anyone who backs Azarenka to add to her 2013 Grand Slam women’s singles title tally is betting that Serena Williams will break down again because, on the American’s day, she is very close to unbeatable.

So what about Djokovic’s chances of becoming only the third men’s singles player after Don Budge (1938) and Laver (1962 and 1969) to complete calendar Grand Slam? Bookmakers are quoting four titles for the Serbian at odds as low as 8-1 and as high as 16-1. The 16-1 odds are fair enough based on the French Open, Wimbledon and US Open markets that have Djokovic at 7-4, 9-4 and 15-8 respectively. The multiple works out at about 25-1 but one has to account for the shrinkage to the Serbian’s Wimbledon odds if he wins the French Open and his US Open odds if he arrives in New York having gone three from three between January and July.

With Nadal scheduled to play his first tournament in seven months next week, there could be some major changes to the ante-post Grand Slam men’s singles markets in the coming days, particularly if the Spaniard either breaks down or does not look a patch on his old self. Nadal has been so hard on his body throughout his career that one would not collapse in shock if he did not regain full fitness ever again. If Nadal is not 100 per cent, Djokovic could put himself alongside Budge and Laver in the history books.

The French Open shapes as a battle between Djokovic and Nadal. Andy Murray and Federer will be Wimbledon threats, although one cannot underestimate the amount of pressure that will be on the Briton’s shoulders and the Swiss is yesterday’s man. The US Open will be competitive but it takes place on the Serbian’s favourite surface, hard.

Grand Slam bets, whether they are in tennis or golf, have had a reputation of being for mug punters. This year, though, the 16-1 about Djokovic is worth a close look.

The Super Bowl is the biggest annual event in American sport and, such is the increasing popularity of American football outside the land of Uncle Sam, the National Football League title decider attracts millions of international viewers.

Super Bowl XLVII – the National Football League uses Roman numerals to identify each edition of its championship game – will take place between American Football Conference winner Baltimore and National Football Conference winner San Francisco in New Orleans on Sunday 3 February 2013.

Both the Ravens and the 49ers boasts unblemished Super Bowl records – Baltimore is one from one having beaten New York’s Giants 34-7 in Super Bowl XXXV, while San Francisco is five from five having taken out Super Bowl XVI, Super Bowl XIX, Super Bowl XXIII, Super Bowl XXIV and Super Bowl XXIX – so one of the participants is going to blot its copybook.

National Football Conference representatives have won 25 of the previous 46 Super Bowls, including each of the last three, while the Steelers (six wins), the Cowboys (five wins) and the 49ers (five wins) are the most successful teams in the illustrious history of the major event.

Underdog Ravens should be favourites

Many Super Bowl XLVII betting markets have been open since Baltimore and San Francisco beat New England and Atlanta respectively to earn the right to fight for the Vince Lombardi Trophy at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.

Some bookmakers opened up with Baltimore as the five-point Super Bowl XLVII underdog but that line is ancient history following a sustained assault by what are known in the betting business as sharps. The match is likely to start with the Ravens receiving around three and a half points.

That does not seem right. Baltimore is battle hardened and full of confidence after defeating Denver and New England in back-to-back road games, restricting the super-offensive Patriots to only one touchdown and just 13 points. At least New England quarterback Tom Brady had Gisele Bundchen’s beautiful shoulders to cry on after his shock loss.

It is difficult to line up the form of Baltimore and San Francisco but not impossible. Both the Ravens and the 49ers have played the Patriots on the road and the Giants at home this season and, on both counts, the Ravens come out on top – by eight points against the Patriots and, get this, by 42 points versus the Giants. Yes, one is using a small sample but it does suggest that the Super Bowl XLVII market is incorrect in favouring San Francisco over Baltimore.

Then there are the Ray Lewis and Harbaugh factors. Lewis is going to retire after Super Bowl XLVII and call time on a brilliant career that will surely see him inducted into the National Football League Hall of Fame at the first possible opportunity. Baltimore is determined to send out the 13-time Pro Bowl pick as a winner. The Lewis story has been a thread throughout the miraculous recent run of the Ravens.

Super Bowl XLVII has been tagged the Harbaugh Bowl because brother John and Jim are the head coaches of Baltimore and San Francisco. Advantage, Ravens. Jim says that he is not half the coach that his brother is. Take him at his word.

This years Superbowl has been dubbed the Harbaugh Bowl

Flacco positioned for MVP Award

The highlight of any Super Bowl for many punters are the wide range of proposition bets that bookmakers frame to assist with their marketing. There are hundreds of Super Bowl XLVII exotics from which to choose, including the always extremely popular Most Valuable Player Award.

Lewis is bidding to become the sixth man to win the Super Bowl Most Valuable Player Award on multiple occasions and the first non-quarterback to achieve the feat. It really is a quarterback’s benefit, with 25 of the previous 46 Super Bowls having a quarterback as the man of the match.

If one fancies Baltimore to beat San Francisco in Super Bowl XLVII then Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco is the most obvious Most Valuable Player selection. With eight touchdown passes and zero interceptions, Flacco has a chance to tie or break three-time Super Bowl champion Joe Montana’s record for most touchdowns without throwing an interception during a single post season. Every other quarterback who has finished a post season throwing at least eight TDs with no interceptions has won not only the Vince Lombardi Trophy but also the Most Valuable Player Award. Flacco is trading at odds of around 3-1 to become the fourth consecutive quarterback winner of the Super Bowl Most Valuable Player Award following on from Drew Brees in Super Bowl XLIV, Aaron Rodgers in Super Bowl XLV and Eli Manning in Super Bowl XLVI.

Tuck in to longest field goal prop

Perhaps the best of the Super Bowl XLVII proposition bets from a pure punting prospective is Baltimore to score the longest field goal at odds of around 8-11. Ravens kicker Justin Tucker has fluffed only three field goals this season, while his record from more than 50 yards is a perfect four from four. On the other hand, 49ers kicker David Akers has not even had a crack at a field goal measuring more than 40 yards during the play-offs. San Francisco officials are extremely worried about Akers and rightly so. Akers was just 9-19 from more than 40 yards during the regular season. Akers is a real liability.

Neither Bremen nor Hannover are the most fashionable of sides but they are even more entertaining than a Robin Williams stand-up set, so bet on there being goals galore in their German Bundesliga derby match at the Weserstadion.

Many professional football punters put a line through all local arguments but such are the astonishing statistics pertaining to Bremen and Hannover that even the most anti-derby gambler may be tempted to get involved.

The numbers are so incredible that one would have to go a very long way to find a more compelling case for backing over 2.5 goals and both teams to score in a game between sides competing in one of European football’s top leagues.

We expect plenty more of this in the next clash between these 2 teams

Bremen and Hannover have each played 19 German Bundesliga matches this season so, counting their September 2012 clash only once, they have participated in 37 exclusive games. A total of four elite German teams have not featured in a goalless match. Bremen and Hannover are two of them, with the others being leader Bayern and fourth-placed Frankfurt.

None of Bremen’s German Bundesliga matches this term has produced fewer than two goals so fans of Thomas Schaaf’s side have been entertained throughout the season. Goals in Bremen’s games have totalled two five times, three five times, four three times and five six times for a 3.53 mean.

And only one of Hannover’s German Bundesliga matches this term has produced fewer than two goals, with goals in its games totalling one once, two three times, three four times, four four times, five five times, six once and nine once for an average of 3.95, which puts it at the top of the chart.

Bremen and Hannover met in the capital of Germany’s state of Lower Saxony in the third round of the German Bundesliga season and it was an action-packed, five-goal thriller in which Hannover was 2-0 up inside 10 minutes but required a last-gasp Szabolcs Huszti goal to beat Bremen. Huszti, who scored two of Hannover’s three goals and set up the other one, found time to receive his marching orders before Deniz Aytekin blew the final whistle and the home team celebrated.

Understandably, bookmakers are not keen to lay certain bets on Friday’s match between Bremen and Hannover but even odds of around 4-7 about the sides combining for more than 2.5 goals are worth taking. Of the 37 German Bundesliga games in which Bremen and Hannover have taken part this term, 28 of them have gone over 2.5 goals. That is a percentage of 75.68, which is around 1-3 in fractional betting odds.

Both teams to score is another football betting staple and bookmakers are quoting that option at odds of around for Bremen versus Hannover. Both sides have scored in 15 of Bremen’s German Bundesliga matches this season and 14 of Hannover’s games. Counting September 2012’s AWD-Arena meeting once, that means 28 out of 37 again. One should be able to see the value. It should be blindingly obvious to anyone who understands even the most basic mathematics.

A lot of the time it makes sense to bet against the crowd. This is not one of those times because every known statistic supports betting on over 2.5 goals and both teams to score, plus bookmakers are doing their bit by offering odds that are generous in the circumstances. Their offers may be sufficient to put off punters who have not crunched the numbers but those gamblers who have done their homework appreciate that their offers should be even tighter.

Taking the analysis one step further to include all matches featuring either Bremen or Hannover this season, the over 2.5 goals strike rate is 38 out of 49 (77.55% per cent), while the both sides to score incidence is 39 out of 49 (79.59%). They are quite simply breathtaking statistics.

Bremen against Hannover is the opening game in the 20th round of this term’s German Bundesliga competition. The headline event is Sunday’s match between Leverkusen and Dortmund, the second- and third-placed teams. Bookmakers have chalked up odds that are disrespectful to Leverkusen given that it has yet to lose at home this season.

South Africa and Pakistan will play a three-Test series from Friday 1 February 2013 to Tuesday 26 February 2013, with the games taking place in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Centurion.

The series is one to which cricket fans are looking forward because it brings together the world’s number one- and number four-ranked sides, with South Africa leading the way on an International Cricket Council Test rating of 124 points and Pakistan not all that far behind on 109.

There are some countries in which Pakistan has not played a Test match for even longer than its home nation. And South Africa is one of them, with Pakistan not having played a five-day game in the republic since 2007. None of Pakistan’s bowling attack knows what it is like to play a Test in South Africa, although the bouncy pitches ought to suit them.

South Africa hotly fancied

Bookmakers have installed South Africa as the hot favourite for the three-Test series, which is hardly surprising given its ranking as the world’s top team and Pakistan’s previous results in the republic. South Africa has won six of its nine Test matches at home to Pakistan, with those half a dozen wins producing three series successes and one draw.

And the deeper that one digs the stronger that one feels that South Africa has an excellent chance of sweeping Pakistan 3-0 and extending its lead over England at the summit of the International Cricket Council Test rankings.

World’s best bowling attack

Bowling is what wins Test matches – sides have to take 20 wickets at a reasonable rate to stand any chance of winning five-day games – and South Africa has the best attack in the world. Dale Steyn and Vernon Philander are ranked number one and number two respectively, with Morne Morkel in eighth spot. No other team has three bowlers in the top 12, with Pakistan’s finest coming in at numbers three, 11 and 19.

South Africa’s lack of a really top-class spinner makes them vulnerable away from home – particularly on Asia’s dusty pitches – but it does not matter so much in the republic because the conditions favour seam bowlers such as Steyn, Philander and Morkel. South Africa has won its last three home matches by 10 wickets, an innings and 27 runs and an innings and 193 runs and it has not tasted defeat in any of its last dozen games irrespective of venue, winning series in Australia, England and New Zealand during that period.

Pakistan’s batsmen more likely to fail

The key to the matches between South Africa and Pakistan will not be how the home side’s batsmen handles the away team’s bowlers but how the away side’s willow wielders respond to the challenge of the home team’s fast men.

Although Pakistan’s bowling line-up is worthy of respect – Saeed Ajmal would walk into any Test side, while Umar Gul, Mohammad Irfan and Junaid Khan are not mugs – one would bank on South Africa’s batsmen scoring competitive totals against them. South Africa has four of the top-ranked dozen batsmen, including the freakish talents Hashim Amla (ranked second), AB de Villiers (ranked sixth) and Jacques Kallis (ranked seventh). Rarely does South Africa’s batting fail to fire.

Pakistan’s batting is a lot more flaky, with only three men in the top 30 and even those ranked highly – Younus Khan is ninth, Azhar Ali is 11th and Misbah-ul-Haq is 13th – prone to off days. South Africa’s pace attack is going to ask a lot of questions of Pakistan’s batsmen and the jury is out as to whether the tourists will be able to handle the combination of speed, bounce and sideways movement.

The all important ground statistics

Johannesburg’s New Wanderers Stadium will stage the First Test between South Africa and Pakistan, getting under way on Friday 1 February 2013. South Africa has won only 13 of its 33 matches at the ground, although it is due a victory there having gone loss-win-loss-win-loss-win-loss since 2006.

Fast bowlers have been named man of the match in each of the last five New Wanderers Stadium games, with the honours going to Shanthakumaran Sreesanth (India), Steyn, Mitchell Johnson (Australia), Morkel/Steyn shared and Pat Cummins (Australia). So one can expect a seam-friendly pitch.

Newlands in Cape Town will be the venue for the Second Test between South Africa and Pakistan, starting on Thursday 14 February 2013. Appropriately for Valentine’s Day, South Africa loves playing at Newlands, with seven victories and three draws in its last 10 appearances at the venue.

There have been some very low scores in Cape Town matches recently, including New Zealand’s 45 all out in the first innings of the 2013 New Year’s Test. Kallis and Philander have shared the last four man-of-the-match awards at the ground between them so one could say they like the joint.

The Third Test between South Africa and Pakistan is set for Centurion’s SuperSport Park, beginning on Friday 22 February 2013. South Africa has won 13 and drawn three of its 17 games in Centurion so the home side will be confident.

It is worth noting that SuperSport Park has been somewhere that many of crickets second-tier nations have faced South Africa so the home team’s record may be a bit inflated.

South Africa can sweep series

With South Africa appearing to hold the aces and the last 30 Tests at New Wanderers Stadium, Newlands and SuperSport Park producing only five draws, one should look to back the home side to beat Pakistan 3-0, which is available at around 7-2.

Stretched over five action-packed winter weekends, the Six Nations Championship is Europe’s top annual international rugby union tournament. Formerly known as the Home Nations Championship and the Five Nations Championship, it became the competition that one knows today in 2000 when Italy joined England, France, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

Neither Italy nor Scotland has experienced Six Nations Championship glory, with the 13 titles being divided among France (five victories), England (four victories), Wales (three victories) and Ireland (one victory). One has to go back to 1999 for Scotland’s last tournament success and, of course, Italy is still trying to break its duck.

Wales won the 2012 Six Nations Championship and did so in fine fashion, winning all of its five matches – England 19-12 in London, France 16-9 in Cardiff, Ireland 23-21 in Dublin, Italy 24-3 in Cardiff and Scotland 27-13 in Cardiff – to secure not only the official title but also the unofficial Grand Slam and Triple Crown honours.

All Six Nations Championship teams dream of a Grand Slam, which occurs when a side wins all of its games during one year’s competition. Since 2000, there have been eight Grand Slams, with France (three times), Wales (three times), England (once) and Ireland (once) achieving the feat.

Only England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales are able to do a Triple Crown because it is exclusive to the four so-called home nations. Ireland has won more Triple Crowns than any other team since 2000 – it swept its matches versus England, Scotland and Wales in 2004, 2006, 2007 and 2009 – but its Six Nations Championship record indicates that France and Italy have proved very difficult obstacles to overcome.

Draw helps some and hurts others

The Six Nations Championship suffers from draw inequity, with the sides not playing each other home and away. There is insufficient space in the European rugby union program for the Six Nations Championship to comprise 10 games so, every year, three teams have three home matches and three sides have three away games. It is unfair but that is the reality of the situation and nothing is going to change.

For the 2013 Six Nations Championship, England, Italy and Scotland will have three home matches, whereas France, Ireland and Wales will have three away games. Crucially, England will host France in what has become known as Le Crunch. Of the Six Nations Championship heavyweights, the draw in odds-numbered years works in favour of England and against France. England’s home matches are versus France, Italy and Scotland, while France’s home games are against Scotland and Wales. Ireland and Wales have only two home matches but at least they are versus two big guns, which mean that they are less inconvenienced than France.

Bookies are split on who will be lifting this years six nations trophy?

Wales overpriced for wooden spoon

At first glance it may seem outrageous to suggest that Wales could go from first in 2012 to last in 2013 but there is a very real possibility that the Six Nations Championship title holder could go from hero to zero in 12 months.

Wales lost all four of its home games during the autumn and, while there was no shame in losing 12-14 to Australia and 10-33 to New Zealand, the same cannot be said for losing 12-26 to Argentina and 19-26 to Samoa. And while it is a little churlish to knock Wales for how it won the 2012 Six Nations Championship, it did so with a points difference of just plus 51, pretty low for a Grand Slam-winning team.

Confidence in the Wales camp is low, several of its star players are either injured or carrying knocks and the 2013 Six Nations Championship draw sends it to France, Italy and Scotland. Italy and Scotland in Cardiff would likely be regulation victories for Wales. Away from home is another story and interim Wales coach Robert Howley knows it.

The International Rugby Board’s world rankings on the eve of the 2013 Six Nations Championship indicate why some punters have snapped up the early odds of 33-1 and 25-1 about Wales winning the wooden spoon for the first time since 2003. The title holder is a marginal favourite for its opening match against Ireland in Cardiff, a game that if it loses may result in it being the underdog in Edinburgh and Rome.

Several bookmakers are still offering 20-1 about Wales going from first to last and those odds are too big to ignore given the circumstances facing the defending champion.

England and France the ones to beat

Buoyed by its 38-21 Twickenham triumph over New Zealand in December 2012 and aided by the 2013 Six Nations Championship draw, England is the best bet to win the tournament at odds of around 2-1, although one could make a decent argument for backing both England and France and getting better than 1-2.

England and France look head and shoulders above their 2013 Six Nations Championship rivals, with neither Scotland nor Italy having a realistic hope and the odds of both Ireland and Wales artificially low because bookmakers are worried about laying them, particularly Ireland, at fancy prices.

Ireland may have only two home matches but they are versus England and France so one would have to say that Declan Kidney’s side will be right in the betting in each of its 2013 Six Nations Championship games. But will Ireland win a sufficient number of matches to take out its first title since 2009. The International Rugby Board’s world rankings suggest that, while Ireland will probably be competitive every time that it takes to the field, it is most likely to win only two games – its matches against Italy and Scotland.