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Premiership Relegation Odds

PREMIERSHIP RELEGATION ODDS

The English Premiership operates a promotion and relegation system with the Football League Championship on a “3 up, 3 down” basis. The sides finishing in positions 18 to 20 in the Premier League are automatically relegated to the Championship. The promoted sides are the winners and runners-up in the Championship, along with the winners of the playoffs contested by the teams finishing in 3rd to 6th place in the Championship.

Relegation

Throughout the season, online layers offer Premiership relegation odds on all the Premier League sides. At the start of the season, the recently promoted sides invariably head the Premiership relegation betting market. Punters seeking a value Premiership relegation bet would do well to follow their own judgement rather than blindly backing the relegation favourites. For example, in the 2008-09 season, before a ball was kicked, Hull, Stoke and West Bromwich Albion were, by far, shortest in the Premiership relegation odds, with Hull and Stoke trading at odds-on. After 14 games, West Brom prop up the Premier League table, and are long odds-on favourites for the drop. The other two relegation places are currently filled by Blackburn Rovers and Newcastle United, who were both available at double-figure prices in the pre-season Premiership relegation betting. Needless to say, bookmakers have been swift to slash their Premiership relegation odds to about ¼ of their opening offers. Stoke are a respectable 14th, but remain at odds-on in the relegation betting. Hull City have excelled in their first venture into the top-flight, currently occupying 6th position in the table. Their relegation odds have eased to substantial odds-against.

To Finish Bottom

Stan James and Boylesports offer a Premiership relegation bet on which team will finish the season in 20th place. In 2008-09, West Brom and Stoke are also short-priced favourites in this market, but some of the other well-fancied contenders for the Premiership “wooden spoon” are slightly surprising. Blackburn Rovers, West Ham United and Newcastle United all occupy positions in the first six in the Premiership relegation betting “to finish bottom.” Hull now trade at a healthy double-figure price in this market.

To Stay Up

Paddy Power and Boylesports have Premiership relegation odds for teams to avoid the drop to the Championship. However, there appears to be little value in this market, with the teams currently occupying positions in the bottom half of the table (with the exceptions of Stoke and West Brom) trading at varying degrees of odds-on. These teams are, almost by definition, inconsistent and taking a ridiculously short price about any of them remaining in the Premiership in 2009-10 should definitely be avoided.

Match Betting

Given the popularity of individual match betting with punters, the effect that a relegation “dogfight” can have on a team’s performance is worthy of mention. Late on in any season, teams at the forefront of the Premiership relegation betting will be fighting tooth and nail for survival in the top-flight. The realisation that every point is particularly precious can lead to some unexpectedly improved performances from such teams and some surprise results. Punters would do well to keep this point in mind when betting on late season matches.

All odds correct at time of writing. Please click here for the latest odds