Looking back through the history of betting predictions, it is very clear that the way people string together betting selections has changed drastically. From punters having to rely on little else than gut instinct to now using the latest AI technology, it has been quite the journey.
It’s effortless now to jump online to look up predictions as well as a list of bookies to place your bets with. The thrill of making correct betting tips has not changed throughout the years, but the way that punters arrive at their conclusions certainly has.
Here’s a look back on the journey from intuition to AI in sports betting predictions.
Gut Instinct
Think of how hard it was to put together sports betting tips back in the days when there was no readily available access to technology. Keeping up with results from the latest football matches, for example, would have to have come via TV reports and then the next day in the newspaper.
Based on very limited information to form the following bets, striking wagers would have meant a trip down to the local betting shop or via telephone. There was a lot more risk involved in the nascent days of sports betting.
Statistics Rise
Horse racing pioneered the stats-driven analysis that punters use for sports betting. Newspapers would list the day’s racing along with form and expert insights. It far surpassed any other sport in terms of the volume of data that was presented.
But other sports started to catch up as online access grew and the latest football standings and better statistics were presented, making things easier for punters.
The new age of computing power also meant people could explore some rudimentary software prediction programs. Punters ultimately still had a lot of work to do to put picks together, working off small amounts of better but still relatively limited data.
Analytics Amp It Up
Better computing power meant that more data became commonplace. The significant shift to the data-driven practice of analyzing statistics over sheer luck started in the early 2000s, which coincided with the start of the online betting era as well.
People had better access to sportsbooks, and in turn, people leaned on the power of stronger prediction models to use for their predictions. But not only were more nuanced statistics available online to help in markets like Over/Under and Handicaps, the technology of television also helped immensely.
Broadcasters started putting out empirical data from their video analysis, like tracking players for running distance and shooting chances, and big analysis of tactics, providing punters with a lot more relevant and up-to-date information.
AI Prediction
Now we are on the cusp of a new era where AI is beginning to play a big role in prediction models. The computing power can compress and filter head-to-head records, scoring forms, and perhaps most importantly of all, potential.
Think of the new Expected Goals (xG) information that is the new big trend as a static in football predictions. That is solely a number that machine learning has given us about the potential for goals, which is remarkable.
The Human Touch
But even with the AI models taking up the new challenge of sports betting predictions, there is still an element of gut instinct involved. There is still a great human touch that is part and parcel of sports betting, and Expected Goals can’t account for a player having a bad day.
Human error is never going to be eliminated from sports and that is the connection back to the bettor. Perhaps it is only the punter’s instinct that can pick out those long underdog odds, and understand what influence a playmaking midfielder’s absence can have on a match.
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