As sports leagues in North America continue to struggle with the inclusion or exclusion of fans to their games due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the topic of spectators being able to attend the Tokyo 2020 Olympics has been raised. Oddsmakers are hinting fans will be able to attend the Summer Games.
According to the latest Tokyo Olympics betting odds, online sportsbook Sportsbook has released a new betting prop on whether the 2020 Olympics will take place with spectators, with the “Yes” option at -600 (86.7 percent implied probability) and “No” coming back at +350 (22.2 percent implied probability).
Sportsbook
These are American odds and, for new bettors, it means you would need to bet $600 to win $100 in profit if you believe spectators will be in attendance for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. If you think “No” and you bet $100, you’d win $350 in profit if no fans go to Japan.
Will Fans Attend The Tokyo Olympics?
| Option | Odds |
|---|---|
| Yes | -600 |
| No | +350 |
Odds as of January 11 at Sportsbook
Why Spectators Are Expected To Attend Tokyo 2020 Olympics
The Tokyo Olympic Games were supposed to be held in 2020 and were postponed to the summer of 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
A lot of bettors who had Olympics futures bets such as which country would have the top medal count or the most gold medals had to be refunded by their sportsbooks, which really sapped the momentum for what is usually an incredible celebration of sport and the largest sporting event in the world.
While oddsmakers seem confident in setting a betting line at -600 for spectators to be in attendance, bettors can’t look at these Tokyo Olympics betting odds as if it’s a lock, given the unpredictability of the virus and how it’s being handled worldwide.
The positive spin is vaccines have started to be administered to at least combat the spread of the virus and should expedite the possibility of fans being able to attend sporting events. A lot can change in six months but at this point, recent trends point to fans making their way to Tokyo and supporting their country’s athletes in a quest for the gold medal.
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