4 Weeks Free

NO DEPOSIT REQUIRED

 

What Is a Sports Betting Pool?

A sports betting pool or office pool is a variant of parimutuel betting and is similar to a lottery.

The host collects a buy-in from each participant. At the end of the pool, the prize pool is rewarded equally to the winners. In some cases, there may only be one winner.

Sports betting pools were popularized in the 20th century, but the method was invented during the 19th century (1864) by Joseph Oller in France. Traditional sports betting pools were run by bookies and they would deduct a house-take from the prize pool to make their money.

However, if you’re hosting an informal office pool at work or with friends, you shouldn’t take a cut.

Popular Office Pool Formats Offered By Us

The American Gaming Association (AGA) estimated that forty million Americans filled out 149 million NCAA March Madness brackets at a cost of $4.6 billion in 2019. Other popular office pools played by millions of Americans annually include NFL Survivor Pools and College Football Bowl Pools.

Here’s a breakdown of the sports betting pool formats we offer through our software:

Squares: NFL Super Bowl squares pools are the most popular for this format, but you can run a squares office pool for other sports, including March Madness, NBA,  MLB,  and NBA/NHL playoffs team squares. You can customize the grid however you want.

Brackets: We already discussed March Madness brackets and how much is gambled every year on those, but there are other popular bracket office pools. Playoff bracket pools are great for fans of the NFL, NBA, NHL and/or MLB. We also support soccer bracket pools.

Survivor: NFL survivor pools reign supreme in this format. Millions of NFL fans compete in annual survivor office pools. Our software also supports survivor pools for a number of other sports, including the NHL, NBA, MLB, and soccer.

Running your office sports pools has never been easier.

Our software suite is capable of powering your sports betting pools, ensuring the entire process is smooth, from start to finish.

 

Five Reasons Why Office Sports Pools Work So Well

Millions of people participate in office pools around the world. North Americans love office pools and with the sports schedule so loaded, it’s possible to host sports pools year-round.

Whether you’re running a sports betting pool at the office with work associates or just with a group of friends, here are five reasons why office sports pools work so well:

Quick-Hitting Actionable Tips for Managing Office Sports Pools

COMMITMENT (HOST + PARTICIPANTS)
Office pools are great at the office or between friends because they don’t require a big commitment from the host or participants. The host’s life is made even easier with our office pools software. What’s great about most office pool formats is that the participants only need to fill out a bracket or select a square once. Even the busiest people at the office can commit to playing.
CAMARADERIE
Friendly sports betting pools at the office can build camaraderie among your team. Competition in the office is commonplace, but office pools can help build relationships between employees.
MORALE AT THE OFFICE
There’s a reason why the majority of bosses avoid getting involved in policing office pools. A 2017 survey by WalletHub found that 90% of workers agreed that March Madness was good for office morale, which isn’t surprising at all, considering how many brackets office workers fill out.
INCLUSIVITY
The great thing about sports betting pools is that many formats offer inclusivity. Anyone can participate in office pools and the more the better. Your friend or coworker can play in your office pool even if they aren’t a sports fan, especially bracket, squares or Survivor pools, Office pools are won by underdogs all of the time. I’m sure you’ve heard of the coworker that fills in his/her bracket based on the teams’ uniforms, favorite team names or other trivial things.
EASY TO UNDERSTAND/PLAY
When hosting an office pool, you want to make sure it’s easy to understand and play in. The main goal of running an office pool should be to have some fun with friends, family and coworkers. Office pools were designed to have straightforward rules that anyone can understand. That’s one of the main reasons why office pools work so well. Everyone understands the rules, payouts are simple to manage and standings/results are updated in real-time. When using our software, there’s no trust issues either. The last thing you want is any problems at the office because of a sports pool. With our software, all entries can be shared with everyone of the participants in the pool once it starts. That way everyone can see everyone else’s picks.


Quick-Hitting Actionable Tips for Managing Office Sports Pools

1. RULES:
Create the full list of rules and ensure everyone has a copy prior to the pool starting.
2. TIEBREAKERS:
Don’t forget to stipulate tiebreaker rules clearly and in detail.
3. CASH:
If you’re hosting a money league office pool, collect all funds upfront.
4. FORMAT:
Select an office pool format that’s suitable for the participants.
5. TRASH TALK:
Set-up a way for everyone to share good-humored friendly trash talk and banter.

Run Your Next Sports Office Pool Using Our Software

Office pools are played by millions of North Americans every year. Whether they’re filling a bracket for March Madness or competing in a NFL survivor pool, they’re loved by many.

Run your next office pool with us to help automate the process.

Our customizable software allows you to run a variety of office pool formats for the NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, UFC, NASCAR, PGA and soccer, making us one of the only all-in-one solutions on the market.

Now that you know what a sports betting pool is and why office sports pools work so well, it’s time to set-up your next pool using our software. We guarantee your next pool will run smoothly.