MMA Betting Is Rising In Europe: Everything You Need To Know About Betting On MMA Fights
It was not long ago that MMA fights were attracting millions of fans in the US, whereas they were quite unpopular in European grounds. This situation has changed much lately, especially as Europe boasts a handful of MMA talents that have reached top levels in competitions and have enjoyed great recognition and support from the sport’s lovers.
And as MMA is getting bigger in other parts of the world – besides the US, betting on MMA is also getting bigger due to the growing interest derived from the heat in the bouts. European betting sites now, including Austrian bookmakers, offer an attractive selection of MMA bets, where punters can place their wagers and support their favorite fighters or back their predictions over a fight.
In the US, betting on Mixed Martial Arts fights is very popular as many UFC fights come at the center of the country’s attention when long-awaited matchups are taking place or strongly anticipated fights involve elite fighters. In Europe, MMA betting has not yet reached the levels of the US market, but there is a clear upward trend which shows growth of wagers placed on this sport.
As it is still at the initial phases of the growing stage, it is only natural that many bettors are not quite familiar with the specifics of MMA betting. So, if you want to know more about how betting works in MMA, you should read below the basics to get started.
MMA Betting
For their most part, bets on Mixed Martial Arts involve bets on UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) events and fights. This doesn’t mean that there are no other high-profile MMA competitions taking place. On the contrary, tournaments such as the Fight Nights Global (FNG), the Absolute Championship Akhmat (ACA) or the Bellator MMA are top-notch competitions that enthuse fans and spectators alike.
But the truth is that there is no other promotion like UFC, when we are talking about followership, fans, spectatorship, viewership and of course bets. And this holds true for the European bettors as well, not only the American punters.
How Does Betting in MMA Work?
The general principles in MMA betting are more or less the same as in any other sport. So, what one needs to learn when thinking about betting on UFC fights, for instance, is the basics of bets and the most popular bets on the sport offered by online bookmakers.
When punters want to bet on Mixed Martial Arts fights, then they will come across a number of different markets in betting sites: match bets, over/under round bets, method of victory bets, double chance bets and round bets.
Match bets are head-to-head bets, where you, as bettors, need to pick the MMA fighter that you think will win the bout. In MMA fights the common rule is to have one winner in the end, with draw or no contest accounting for less than 2% of the total fights.
Over/Under round bets are bets on the distance that a bout will go regarding the number of rounds. Here, sportsbooks typically set a line for the total number of rounds and as bettors you are called to make a prediction whether the actual bout will go beyond that number or not. This is a relatively easy type of bet in MMA which of course is suitable for beginners.
Method of victory bets are bets on how the fight will end. There are three options here: submission, judge decision and knockout/technical knockout (KO/TKO). You just have to pick which method of victory will be at the end of the fight and not who will win the fight.
Double chance bets are in fact becoming more popular now than the method of victory bets. These are bets on both the winner and then on the method of victory – for example you bet on a fighter to win by KO/TKO. Spotsbooks typically give all different combinations of these outcomes and obviously different payouts come with each of these options.
Round bets are bets on the specific round that you predict that a fight will end at. It is not like over/under, but essentially it is a bet on the exact round, which makes it more difficult, but more profitable if it is won.
Overall, MMA betting can be very interesting and once you get to acquire more knowledge and more experience it can be very rewarding as well.
