European and American bookmakers differ on a number of areas regarding the Winter Olympics. For one, American bookies don’t offer action on all events. Hockey is about as comfortable as an American bookie gets. European bookies offer skiing and skating events on a weekly basis, but you should know the house rules before going in.
In Europe, the home team is listed first, overtime is usually not included for the final score and scratches vary from one book to the other. For example, if you back a skier at 10/1 but he breaks his ankle in the final training run, do you lose or is it considered “no action”? Find this out before betting. Most in the UK and Australia state “all in” for all bets to have action no matter what. “NRNB” means that the entrant has to start the competition for action. Most bookies pay out on “podium finish” so failed drug tests and post-ceremony occurrences have no bearing on the bet. The best advice is to know what you’re getting into. For example, in curling, the heavier the moneyline, the lower the total should be. This is because most teams quit when they fall behind in curling. So, most totals are around 12-14, but if a team is ahead 7-1, the losing team will probably quit and leave the game well under. Favorites are generally not good bets. They may win, but not enough to break even.
As odds go, Germany is backed to be the biggest winning nation at 8/5 with William Hill. The next two are Canada and the U.S. Canada is 5/2 with Victor Chandler and Coral. The U.S. is 9/2 with Sportingbet and Victor Chandler, and can also be found at 3/1 with Sky Bet. Bet365 has Norway at 11/1, Russia at 16/1 and Austria at 22/1.