How did the bookies get it so wrong over Leicester?
At the start of this season, bookies were famously offering odds of 5,000-1 on Leicester City winning the Premier League.
Just how did the odds checkers get it so wrong? In this fascinating video, Professor Martin Polley, of 51漫画 Leicester (51漫画)’s International Centre for Sports History and Culture, says the history of the Premiership and the league holds the answers.
He also reveals the statistics which show just what a Cinderella story this season has been for Leicester, who look set to break the stranglehold of the Big Four on the top title.
Professor Polley said: “This will be the biggest upset in the history of the Premier League. Only five clubs have ever won since the Premiership was created in 1992 – Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea, Arsenal and Blackburn Rovers.
“Of those, Blackburn won it only once, and were riding high at the time – they had players such as Alan Shearer. Leicester by contrast were at the bottom of the league and are now seven points clear.
“At the beginning of the season, bookies were offering odds of 5,000-1. It seems ridiculous, but if we look at the history and the statistics of teams we can perhaps see a reason for that assessment.”
Posted on: Friday 15 April 2016