Some Sports Betting History

When asked about the beginnings of betting on sports, most people will probably think about the bookies and underworld criminals of the 19th century. Hardly anyone will go back as far as 1000 B.C. when the Chinese were betting for real money on dog and horse races. The Chinese have been gamblers since way back in the days of their B.C. emperors, and just about every city in China had some kind of gambling den where people could bet on local dog and horse races.

Betting on Sports in Ancient Times

Sports betting history progressed into the year 400 B.C. with the advent of the Greek Olympic Games. Then the Greeks began betting on sports including athletic competitions between humans. During the Olympic Games, they could do some betting for real money on boxing, wrestling, running and discus throwing. They also gambled on animal races, but betting on sports competitions in the Games became very popular.

The Romans took sports betting history to further extremes with their betting on gladiator fights in the 3rd century B.C. The gladiator fights would not be exactly sporting according to today's interpretation because the fights would have to end in the death of one of the participants. Roman spectators were betting for real money on the gladiator they thought would come out alive.

The Organization of Betting on Sports

Around the mid-1800's the English began organizing their rugby and soccer leagues which made betting on sports much more popular among gamblers. Bettors could travel from one sports arena to another, betting for real money on the sporting events.

Sports betting history took the same route in the U.S. where horse racing and baseball games began to be popular events for betting for real money. However, all of these events required the gamblers to be physically present at the races or games in order to place their bets, watch the results and collect their winnings.

It was with the beginnings of the televising of sporting events that betting on sports became easier and more convenient. You could place your bet with a bookie or a local casino and then watch the action from your home.

Online Betting on Sports

With the advent of the internet and online gambling sports betting history really took a jump forward. Many sites opened what is called sportsbooks which gained in popularity in the beginning of the 21st century when gamblers began to put their faith in online sports betting sites. Betting on sports online is now a huge industry with more and more sports fans betting for real money on their favorite sports events.