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Keeping an eye on betting lines can be an amusing distraction with football rumours. Usually those rumours have to do with players, but with all the talk of Jurgen Klopp to Liverpool this week, it was inevitable the way people were betting on the club's next manager would become a story in its own right.
From the moment Rodgers was fired on Sunday, Klopp was always the heavy favourite. The only real frontrunner for the job. Today, he's gone from frontrunner to what seems a sure thing, and with that the bookies have begun to suspend betting on him. For some Liverpool fans, that will be all the confirmation they need of Klopp to the Kop.
Of course, when it comes to ongoing betting, bookies are rarely proactive in how they set their lines, and so—as is always the case when this sort of discussion comes up—it's well worth pointing out that suspending betting on Liverpool's next manager doesn't mean they have any information beyond what's available to the average fan.
Bookies don't make money on you losing. They make money by balancing where the money goes and taking their cut off the top. Ideally, any amount paid out on Klopp going to Liverpool is covered by all the people who have bet on Carlo Ancelotti or some other manager getting the job. When that stops being possible, betting is suspended.
"There were a series of huge bets this morning following reports that the club's American owners had already been in contact with representitives of the 48-year-old German," read a statement from Betfred, who became the first to close betting on Klopp earlier today. Other betting companies have since followed their lead.
"Odds had been slashed on his appointment to 1/10 forcing Betfred to act. Already Liverpool have gone from 11/4 to 5/2 for a top four finish with fans confident the former Borussia Dortmund boss will get the inconsistent squad back to winning ways. All indications are Liverpool have got their number one target."
Betfred don't have any special insight here. All they know is that so much money is being put on Klopp—and so little on other potential managerial candidates—that it is no longer possible to balance that money, and that if the line stays open they will be paying out of their own pockets should Klopp end up appointed.
Still, for whatever it's worth, the lines on Liverpool's next manager are quickly closing. Mostly already have. The bookies may not have any special insight, but bettors at least are so confident in Klopp's arrival they could put the odds at 1/100 and still the only people putting money down would be putting it all on Klopp.
