Blocked Odds Explained
Online betting sites occasionally block certain markets and suspend wagering completely. This can happen because the site is getting too many bets on one outcome. In such cases, the sportsbook will suspend the market to limit its liability. It may also block odds because it received new information that can significantly change the probabilities.
In-play betting markets are also suspended regularly as the sportsbooks need time to calculate the new betting odds as the game goes on. For example, when a football team scores a goal, the betting site has to evaluate the game once again and calculate the odds. It will have to block betting to prevent customers from taking advantage of the old prices.
Other bookmakers may also suspend betting odds because of game disruptions. Some of these disruptions include a player collapsing on the field or a stray person invading the court. If the game has to stop because of the disruptions, betting will be stopped permanently.
You cannot place bets on blocked odds, and neither can you cash out your wagers. You will have to wait until the markets are opened again so that you make partial or full cashouts. Blocked odds won't affect your existing wagers, but new bets are no longer accepted.
While sportsbooks have to suspend markets for their own protection, betting exchanges don't have to take this step. This is because their money isn't on the line. However, some betting exchanges will suspend markets in major sports leagues like the Premier League, NBA, and NFL. They do this out of a sense of fairness as some customers may have had issues updating their odds.
Using Oddspedia’s Blocked Odds Tool to Your Advantage
Keeping track of blocked odds can help improve your betting strategy. On Oddspedia, you will be able to see markets that have been blocked by a number of bookmakers, and this indicates that the market may have some risk for the betting platform. You can then use the blocked odds tool at Oddspedia to find sportsbooks that still have the bet types and do an odds comparison for the last active odds for that particular market. The dropping odds tool can also be used as an indicator for betting odds that may be blocked in the near future.
On the blocked row of Oddspedia, there is a list of sportsbooks that have suspended betting in particular markets. You will also see the percentage of sportsbooks that still have the market open. Use the filtering options on the left side of the website to narrow down the results.
Why do sportsbooks suspend markets and block odds?
Sportsbooks suspend markets and block odds for various reasons. If the site finds the betting activities for one game highly suspicious, it will stop accepting new wagers. They also have to block odds if one outcome is getting too many bets. This is because they have to limit their liability.
They may also suspend the markets because of game-changing events in the matches. For example, in football games, scoring a goal alters the odds significantly and can force the operator to suspend in-play wagers momentarily. Game disruptions may also force sportsbooks to suspend betting markets.
