After an exciting Six Nations championship, there is still an exciting time ahead for rugby union fans.
Not only are there Grand Finals on the way but then there’s the Lions tour of Australia to look forward to. For those who love betting on the sport, who might be the teams to be placing wagers on?
The late 1980s and first half of the 90s were a memorable time for Bath. They won the English Premiership six times including four in a row between 1990-91 and 1993-94. Since the introduction of the play-offs, Bath have only finished top of the table on one occasion.
That was in 2003-04 but they then lost to Wasps in the play-off final. Two more play-off finals followed in 2015 and last year when losing to Northampton Saints. Could this be the year when that first final is won?
Based on the odds and promos offered by UK bookies, they certainly believe it will happen, with odds of 4/5 on them to win the final at Twickenham on June 14. Their disappointing campaign in the European Rugby Champions Cup seems a distant memory now.
Only two of their first 15 matches in this season’s English Premiership have ended in defeat. One by just a single point away at Northampton Saints who won’t be at Twickenham in June. If they finish as league leaders, the omens are good on them going on to win the final.
The past three seasons have all seen the league leaders go on to win at Twickenham. That followed a run of four times in five years when the opposite occurred.
If Bath again fail to win the Twickenham final, it’s Saracens who the bookmakers believe will triumph. They are the 9/2 second favourites to win for the second time in three years. They still have a bit of work to do in the league to confirm a top four finish.
Leicester Tigers haven’t won the Twickenham showpiece since 2022 when defeating Saracens. They lost to Bath earlier in the season and still have to play them on May 17. It’s 11/2 that they triumph at Twickenham in June.
You have to go back to 2006 for the last time Sale Sharks won the Twickenham final. They have been in impressive form in recent weeks and their away form has particularly improved. Will that be good enough to win the final though. The current odds at the bookmakers are 15/2.
Bristol are 9/1 to win the final and it would be an historic occasion if they could do so. While rivals such as Bath and Exeter have enjoyed great success, Bristol have never even made the final.
A Lions tour is always something to look forward to. This summer sees them heading down under to take on Australia for the first time since 2013. The first of three test matches is being played in Brisbane on July 19. Two more tests follow on July 26 in Melbourne and Sydney on August 2.
Get yourself ready for a late night (or early morning) as the British and Irish Lions bid to again win a series against Australia. 12 years ago, two nail-biting matches were shared with a combined winning margin of just three points. Anyone betting on another close match in the decider were on a loser as the Lions ran out 41-16 winners.
Since then, they have drawn a series in New Zealand and four years ago lost 2-1 to South Africa. Can the Lions get another series win in Australia? Sportsbooks believe so and have them at 4/9 to win the series.
You have to go back to the 1974 series in South Africa for the last time the Lions played a series without losing a match. Bookmakers have the Lions at 11/8 to win this upcoming series 3-0 and it’s 13/8 they win 2-1 with Australia 7/4 to win the series Bets can also be placed on who will start the first test for the Lions and who will be named captain.
There’s plenty to look forward to this summer and hopefully some winning bets can be placed on the top games too.
