Proposition bets, or prop bets, have become a money-making tool for bookies all over the world. People have placed bets on nearly everything imaginable.
One bookie for a popular prop betting website lost a significant amount of money when an episode of “Game of Thrones” dropped early. “Game of Thrones” is a show that millions of people watch. In this case, some people watched and won, while the house lost.
About Game of Thrones
Produced by HBO, “Game of Thrones” is in its eighth and final season. Based on a book series by science fiction writer George R. R. Martin, the show has three story arcs. One focuses on different families, their battle for the Iron Throne, and control of the fictional land of Westeros. Another focuses on the development of the daughter of a once-powerful family. The final arc focuses on the families who are defending the land from northern invaders. Each episode of the four-episode final season is almost two hours long. The episodes have all had more than 18 million viewers the night they aired. Millions of people are trying to guess the outcome of the series.
Betting on Shows — and Other Events
While most sportsbooks take bets on the outcome of a game, prop bets are different. People can place prop bets on the outcome of other events, such as television shows. Many people bet on events, such as an election or the Academy Awards. While some people feel that prop bets are a waste of time, others enjoy placing them. Experts are torn on whether prop bets are safe bets. Some experts think that the odds are with the house. They believe that sportsbooks use prop bets as a way to get additional traffic to their websites. However, for those people who like to place prop bets, the payout can be huge. Just ask the man who bet that “Moonlight” would beat “La La Land” for best picture at the Academy Awards in 2017. Experts estimate that more than 15 percent of all bets to sportsbooks are prop bets.
The Blunder
SportsBetting.ag developed a themed sportsbook for “Game of Thrones.” The sportsbook was the idea of a sportsbook manager for the site. Depending on the odds that go along with the prop bet, someone could still win a lot of money. Of course, this isn’t at all what the bookie wanted. People placed prop bets on everything from who would die in which episode to which dragon will fly first. The prop bet money was flying in fast. However, there was a problem.
The final season of “Game of Thrones” premiered on April 14. However, DirecTV leaked it early. This means that dozens of gamblers took advantage of the early release. They made bets already knowing the outcome. Gamblers were betting on everything related to “Game of Thrones,” such as which character would speak first in Season 8. The bookies noticed the problem with the site when traffic suddenly increased. Bookies said the large amount of traffic meant that people had seen the show, and they wanted to cash in. And, cash in they did. The sportsbook lost tens of thousands of dollars in revenue.
While the leak ruined the prop bets for the first episode, there are other prop bets people can still make. Players can still get good odds on whether Cersei Lannister will die, and which character will murder her. There is also plenty of time to decide whether Jon Snow or Bran Stark will get the throne. Of course, Sansa Stark is still a favorite.
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