Fine Margins

Sports betting is a multi-billion-dollar global business that few understand. Fine Margins is the first book to apply the tools of economic analysis to modern sports betting, drawing on original research based on millions of quoted odds to reveal how these markets actually work.

Written by Professor Karl Whelan, a widely published economist with a PhD from MIT, and drawing on research conducted with an experienced bookmaker, this book does not promise a recipe for picking winners. It offers something more valuable: a clear-eyed account of how the global sports betting business works, how the odds are set and which bets cost you more than you realise.

Combining rigorous research with real-world examples and stories, the book answers questions such as:

• How do sportsbooks set odds?
• How can you figure out the sportsbook's profit margin?
• Will you do better backing favorites or underdogs?
• Why do sportsbooks promote parlays?
• Is beating the closing line the key to winning?
• Is it a bad idea to bet on events with lots of competitors?
• How should you use bonus bets or boost tokens?
• Do you lose more with live betting?
• How do prediction markets work and what's the best way to use them?

Karl Whelan is Professor of Economics at University College Dublin. He holds a PhD from MIT and has published widely on macroeconomics, central banking and the economics of betting and prediction markets.