Ohio residents have had a few weeks to adjust to the list of sports betting options in the state. Fans have been placing their bets on all sorts of events, with a high volume on NFL games.
However, it will soon be basketball’s time to dominate the Ohio sports betting limelight. College football is over and the NFL playoffs are starting to wind down, so basketball will provide the bulk of the betting options (outside the Super Bowl).
That will be the case over the next couple of months, as there are so many games taking place on a typical night between the NBA and college basketball.
Despite that, not every type of basketball game has the same number of options available. There’s a lot of disparity between men’s and women’s basketball, and it’s often because of the way sportsbooks approach posting their odds for games.
College basketball will step into the betting spotlight soon
The NCAA basketball season is in full swing at this point. With games taking place every night, there have been plenty of opportunities for college basketball betting.
The majority of those betting options are on the men’s side of the sport. So far, the lists of women’s basketball games available for betting have been short.
That isn’t due to fewer women’s games being played, but rather that sportsbooks in Ohio haven’t been posting odds for the matches.
For fans of a team like Ohio State, that can be a frustrating reality. The school’s women’s basketball team entered the week as the No. 2-ranked squad in the country. That success has hoops fans looking to bet on the action. Research shows that women will make up a big slice of the Ohio sports betting market.
However, betting on the games is sometimes easier said than done. It all depends on which sportsbook you’re trying to use.
Bet365 leads women’s basketball betting
When it comes to betting on women’s basketball games, each online sportsbook approaches things differently.
Bet365 Sportsbook Ohio has the most women’s basketball betting options. Its slate often features numerous games from around the country on any given night.
Just take the Jan. 26 Ohio State vs. Indiana game as an example. Since the latest AP Poll has Ohio State at No. 2 and IU at No. 6, the matchup held plenty of importance for both sides. The Hoosiers won, 78-65.
Ohio residents were able to bet on the game over at Bet365. The sportsbook had over 50 women’s basketball games available for betting that day.
Other Ohio sportsbooks have fewer options
Bet365’s wide list of options ran in stark contrast to other betting apps in the Buckeye State, such as DraftKings and FanDuel. Neither sportsbook had any games available for betting on Jan. 26, which left Ohio State fans out in the cold. Both companies took bets on over 70 NCAA men’s basketball games each that day.
Caesars Sportsbook Ohio had a trio of games available for bettors, but even that list was dwarfed by the available selection at Bet365. According to a Bet365 spokesperson, that’s because the company aims to have the widest selection of betting options available at any given time.
“Whether it’s pre-game, in-game, Premier League soccer or NCAA women’s basketball, our commitment to offering the widest variety of markets to customers in NJ, Colorado, Ohio and Ontario remains the same. In regards to numbers for our world-class proprietary product, bet365 offers the industry’s widest range of ‘in-game’ sports betting events with over 75 sports covered.”
Every company does things differently. Finding a niche is hard in the sports betting world, and it looks like Bet365 is happy to take women’s basketball bets in Ohio. If you’re a fan of Ohio State or any other women’s team, Bet365 is likely the best option available for betting on games at the moment.
Ohio sportsbooks will not list odds for every option
Ohio’s sportsbooks are not posting odds for many women’s basketball games, but that is not uncommon across the U.S.
Sportsbooks pick and choose which games they’re going to offer odds on. Since some events are more popular than others, you are not able to bet on every single game from every single sport in Ohio. These companies try to hit the highlights they think bettors will be most interested in. For example, Ohio State football odds are already listed for the 2023 season at some sportsbooks.
Because of that, some sports, like women’s basketball, don’t have as many options available for betting. Sportsbooks have odds up for the biggest matchups, but not for every single game of the season.
This doesn’t apply to just basketball, either. The more “out there” the sport that you want to bet on is, the less likely you are actually to find betting odds for it. In other words, you’ll have a much easier time finding a sportsbook that will take your MLB bet compared to an NCAA volleyball bet.
It goes to show that just because sportsbooks are allowed to offer odds on certain games doesn’t mean they actually will. Ohio sports bettors have a wide list of betting options available, but it all comes down to which events the sportsbooks think are worth posting odds.
Reaching out to your favorite sportsbook could help if there’s an approved event you’re hoping to bet on. It’s all about how interested sportsbooks believe the general public is for every team and sport.
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