The Italian Serie A is among the most popular soccer leagues in the world and has been for decades. Fans in the United States will have a special opportunity to watch more than 300 games over the next few years as ESPN recently signed a multi-year contract to broadcast matches. Interestingly, the first one will be the opening clash of the 2018-19 season, set for August 18th when Chievo hosts Cristiano Ronaldo’s new team, Juventus, and it will be broadcasted on ESPN+.
It will be the 87th edition of the Italian Serie A with the round-robin format, as the league is contested by 20 teams which play against each other two times per season between August 2018 and May ’19. At the end of the season, the first-placed club wins a Serie A title or Scudetto, the top four teams qualify for the UEFA Champions League, while the fifth and sixth place both head to the UEFA Europa League. The three lowest-ranked sides are relegated every season to the Italian Serie B and are replaced by the best three teams from the second tier.
The most successful team is Juventus with 34 titles so far, and the last season’s Scudetto was its seventh in a row.. Two clubs from Milan, Internazionale and AC Milan, both have 18 titles each, while Genoa sits in the fourth place with nine titles in its trophy room. Alongside Juventus, Inter, and AC Milan, only the rivals from Rome, Lazio and AS Roma, managed to win a title in this century.
How To Bet On The Italian Serie A
When one team wins seven titles in a row, it is obvious which team will be the betting favorite.. In the previous Serie A season, the Old Lady recorded 30 wins, five draws, and three losses, while in the 2016-’17 and ’15-’16 seasons, Juventus won 29 games. The odds on Juventus are not attractive, particularly when it’s playing in front of the home fans, but the Old Lady was so constant that the bettors with a fat piggy bank just loved to wager on the 34-time Italian champion.
Alongside Juventus, Napoli and AS Roma are the strongest teams in the Italian Serie A over the last six years, winning three runner-up places each. The odds on these two teams are more tempting than on Juventus, while Inter, Lazio, and AC Milan complete the big six of the Italian Serie A. Last year, five out of six surpassed the 20-win mark, as only Milan recorded 18 victories, and the bettors can expect more of the same in the ’18-19 Serie A season. Likewise, everyone will try their best to finally dethrone the Old Lady, so the bettors will need to keep track of the situation and teams’ form to see who could challenge Juventus.
When it comes to betting on the totals, the Italian Serie A offers some interesting odds on the over/under of the total of 2.5 goals, going from -200 up to +120. In the ’17-’18 season, we saw 1017 goals in 380 games, or 2.68 per contest. Additionally, 52 percent of all matches had at least three goals on the scoreboard, while 27 percent had more than three. The home team won 43 percent of the games, 22 percent ended in a draw and the visiting team won 35 percent. The most common full-time score was a 1-1 draw, although just seven teams recorded more than nine stalemates.
Another intriguing option that could get some nice wages is betting on the top goalscorer. Cristiano Ronaldo is the runaway favorite for the Serie A season with the odds at -150. Inter’s Mauro Icardi and Lazio’s Ciro Immobile topped the score chart last year, bagging 29 goals each. Icardi is at +600, while Immobile is at +1200 odds. Gonzalo Higuain from AC Milan is at +1000, and he could be a nice pick along with AS Roma’s Edin Dzeko at +1600 and Napoli’s Dries Mertens at +2500.
The bettors should have a lot of fun with the Italian Serie A this season, especially because they will be able to watch it all live on ESPN, while betting at the BetDSI Sportsbook. Likewise, the bettors can wager on future odds and pick up the potential winner, top four teams or the clubs to be relegated at the end of the season.
Italian Serie A Picks and Predictions
While everyone expects a thrilling battle for the Scudetto, we have had some interesting player movement in Italy this summer. Cristiano Ronaldo joined Juventus in a hefty $138 million transfer after winning three straight UEFA Champions League titles with Real Madrid, and his arrival should be a massive boost for the whole Serie A. Many pundits are suggesting that Ronaldo’s arch-rival Lionel Messi could join Inter soon, so the fans in the United States could witness a new era of the Italian Serie A. Besides Juventus, all other title contenders made some significant moves to fortify their squads, but we also saw some departures, including Juventas’ legendary goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon, who joined Paris SG on a free transfer.
The summer transfer window will close on September 1st, but at this moment, Juventus is the biggest favorite to retain the title -250 odds. Inter is a +650 favorite, Napoli is at +700 and AS Roma sits at +750. These three teams should join Juventus in the championship race and probably earn the top-four finish. AC Milan is at +1800 to win the Serie A title with -150 odds to reach the top-four finish. Lazio is +6600 to win the Scudetto and a +300 underdog to qualify for the Champions League.
Fiorentina, Torino, and Sampdoria all are at +2000 to finish among the top four sides, while Atalanta is at +1200, and these four teams should battle for the fifth and sixth place to earn the Europa League qualification. The mid-table positions should be guaranteed for these clubs, while all other teams could battle against the relegation.
Among the newcomers, Frosinone is the strongest bet to return to the Serie B next year with the odds at -138, while Parma is at -120, as the Crusaders will start the season with a five-point deduction due to a match-fixing penalty. Empoli won Serie B last season, so the Blues are +240 favorites to be relegated, just like Chievo and Cagliari — who barely avoided the relegation last year. SPAL, at +110, looks like a nice wager, but the White-Blues bought some experienced players to strengthen their team. On the other hand, Bologna sold a couple of first-team players, so at +250, the Greyhounds could be an interesting betting option to be relegated from the Italian Serie A.
Italian Serie A Picks
Winner: Juventus (-250)
Top 4: Juventus (-5000), Inter (-200), Napoli (-225), AS Roma (-225)
Relegated Teams: Frosinone (-138), Parma (-120), Cagliari (+240)
Top Goalscorer: Mauro Icardi (+600)