complicated simplicity

I find myself enjoying the Beautiful Game more when there are some stakes involved, even though it’s a puny £1 I put in every few weeks or so when I have the time to catch the matches. Le Blues, Chelsea’s Stamford Bridge is about 10 minutes walk from my place, while Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium is across town just opposite the old Highbury. It was a London derby. I do a little football betting from time to time. This weekend has been a windfall, with the two big clashes of Man Utd vs Liverpool, and Chelsea vs Arsenal. I won a grand total of about £10, with a seed money of £2. Not too shabby, I’m about £19 up from the start of the year. It’s not compulsive gambling, or anything close to it. It just makes watching the game more fun.

No matter how good the odds, or how exciting the betting maybe, I always limit my bets to £1 per game, be it spread over 5 types of bets ( 5 x 20p ) or a simple single bet. Obviously you win some, you lose some. You spread the portfolio and minimise risk, exactly what they teach us in the Finance courses. We take risks in our lives, and it’s always a gamble. Gambling is not bad, it’s just something we do all our lives. The important thing is to be able to understand and manage the risks involved. More importantly, it’s about gambling with what you can afford to lose.