Ian JohnCan you believe it is December already? Where has the year gone? Now is the time that people start to think about the impending festive period with Christmas plans and New Year celebrations being planned.
However, it is also a cracking time for sports fans and this December is arguably one of the most exciting for top sporting events coming up over the next few weeks, with so many big events to look forward to and enjoy a wager on.
Now, in the UK and Europe, bet365 Sport offers an excellent choice of markets on all these events, and for the majority you will find both pre-match and In Play betting available. Any odds you see in this article will be from bet365 and will have been correct at the time of writing but may change in the meantime.
If you are based in the United States, then BetRivers Sportsbook is a good option for you as it offers a fantastic range of markets and fixtures across a wide range of sports, including all the events you will find listed in this article.
So let’s crack on as we’ve got a lot to get through.
Sporting Action – 1st to 7th December 2021
Premier League – Matchdays 14 and 15
We are already started on Matchday 14 as last night we saw two matches to kick off this midweek set of games in the Premier League.
A Raphinha penalty late in the game was enough to hand Leeds United the points in a tight game with Crystal Palace, while at St James’ Park, ten-man Newcastle did well to earn a 1-1 draw against fellow relegation rivals Norwich City after Ciaran Clarke was dismissed early in the game.
The action continues tonight with six more games:
- Southampton v Leicester City
- Watford v Chelsea
- West Ham v Brighton
- Aston Villa v Manchester City
- Everton v Liverpool
The highlight tonight being the Merseyside derby at Goodison Park which will see Rafa Benitez’s Everton take on his former charges Liverpool in a game that both teams will feel is one they must get a win from. Especially Liverpool should Chelsea and Manchester City, as expected, land victories in their games also taking place tonight.
The midweek set of games finishes up on Thursday with Tottenham v Brentford starting things off with an intriguing London derby, followed by arguably the most important game of the week for both teams as Manchester United host Arsenal with Ralf Rangnick in charge for the first time and hoping to close the five-point gap on the Gunners, who lie 5th in the EPL table.
Then at the weekend, there is Matchday 15 to enjoy which kicks off on Saturday with a huge London derby between West Ham and Chelsea and goes through to Monday night’s game at Goodison Park as Everton take on Arsenal. The full list of Matchday 15 fixtures is as follows:
- West Ham v Chelsea
- Newcastle v Burnley
- Southampton v Brighton
- Wolves v Liverpool
- Watford v Manchester City
- Leeds v Brentford
- Man Utd v Crystal Palace
- Tottenham v Norwich City
- Aston Villa v Leicester City
- Everton v Arsenal
You can enjoy a massive selection of bets on these games every week with bet365 Sport, including plenty of pre-match action and extensive In Play betting available across the games when they are in progress.
F1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix
This weekend is the penultimate race of what has been an absorbing and at times combative F1 season. Certainly, it has been the most competitive in many years with two drivers, Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and Mercedes Lewis Hamilton separated by just eight points as we head into the final two races.
Given that there has already been plenty of controversy and drama both on and off the track between the pair, these last two races of the season promise to be hugely dramatic and entertaining. Hamilton knows that two wins in these races would definitely hand him the title for a record eighth time.
However, if Verstappen can claim at least seven fewer points than Hamilton, or more than that, over the last two races, he will be the new Champion for the first time in his career.
With both teams at loggerheads in recent weeks and the drivers having been involved in some dramatic, and at times brutal racing, no quarters will be given or taken in this battle which is likely to go down to the wire in Abu Dhabi next weekend.
However, a win for Hamilton here could well mean that at the very worst, he goes into that weekend, just one point behind, or maybe even level with Verstappen, so there is plenty to aim for here for both teams and drivers.
You can enjoy a wide range of bets on qualifying, and the race itself with bet365, including of course an extensive range of In Play bets when the race starts on Sunday.
Boxing – Light Heavyweight – Arthur V Yarde 2
Last December, Lyndon Arthur and Anthony Yarde clashed for the first time in what was a very exciting and close battle between the two British fighters. After 12 hard rounds, a split decision went the way of Arthur, much to Yarde’s disappointment.
A rematch always looked likely and with both fighters landing a win in their sole fight this year in the build-up to their second fight and the bookmakers have this fight just as close as the first, with bet365 having Yarde as the very slight favourite over Arthur.
That is despite Arthur being unbeaten in all of his 19 fights so far, while Yarde has lost twice in his 24 fights, although of his 22 wins, 21 have come by knockout.
This should be a cracking bout between two well-matched fighters at the Copper Box Arena on Saturday evening and with the potential of a crack at a World Title dangling in front of the boxers, a win would be a massive boost for either pugilist’s career.
Horse Racing – Aintree Winter Meet
Aintree Racecourse is famous for hosting the Grand National every April, but the course has also been running additional race days throughout the year for some time now and its December winter meet is one of the most popular for both trainers, jockeys and racing fans.
The big race of Saturday’s card is the Becher Handicap Chase, which is run over some of the fences used in the Grand National (Becher’s Brook, Valentines and Canal Turn). The race will feature a number of horses, many of whom will be targeting April’s big race.
Some of the contenders to look out for include Mac Tottie, Escaria Ten, Snow Leopardess, Mighty Thunder, Cap Du Nord, Kimberlite Candy, Checkitout, Chris’s Dream and Vieux Lion Rouge.
The action starts at Liverpool early on Saturday with an 11.15am start time for the first race and with eight races on the card, it is a bumper day of racing for fans to enjoy and of course, you can enjoy all the betting on these races and other meetings across the world at bet365 Sport.
Snooker – UK Championship
We are also now reaching the business end of one of the big three tournaments in Snooker’s triple crown. The UK Championship is now at the Round of 16 stage after a very competitive opening few rounds, that have seen more than the usual number of big name stars fall by the wayside.
Of those remaining in the tournament, Ronnie O’Sullivan is now the clear favourite to win the title, although the likes of Kyren Wilson, Jack Lisowski and Barry Hawkins will also feel that they have an excellent chance to land the trophy.
The Round of 16 begins on Wednesday 1st December and conclude on the Thursday, with the quarterfinals following on shortly after and the final set to be played on Sunday.
O’Sullivan is now the 7/4 favourite to win the trophy with Wilson 5/1.
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