It only happens once every four years and is the biggest sporting event spectacle of the year and of course, there is betting on it. The Summer Olympics are just around the corner and there are Olympic betting odds posted for a variety of events, the gold medal count and Olympic props that are specific to each sportsbook that offers betting on the Olympics.

Since the games are still a week or so away, many of the event specific wagers have not yet been posted. But almost every online sportsbook has Olympic betting odds for ‘Total Gold Medals’ and also ‘Gold Medal Matches’, where the bet is based on how many times two countries will meet in the gold medal round. As expected, the United States Olympic team has the most medals listed with a total of 38.5 and that is pretty much a global number, where books from Europe to Costa Rica to Australia all have the same number of medals won. But bookmakers in their respective countries (or the countries they service) have different numbers for their ‘home teams’. For example Bovada, which caters mainly to U.S. players has Great Britian’s medal total at 21.5, while British bookmaker William Hill has their team listed at 23.5 (with odds) and Irish bookmaker Paddy Power having a figure of 22.5. Paddy Power lists Ireland’s total gold medals at 1.5, yet no other bookmaker is even offering odds on the Irish team’s quest for gold.

However, almost every book has odds on China (35.5-36.5), Russia (24.5-25.5) and Germany (15.5). Still each book has offerings for their countries’ team and different Olympic props for their home town squads. DOG ALERT: This is definitely a reason to shop for the best Olympic betting lines as the home town team is usually a bigger favorite at a book in the home country.

We have been told before that the summer Olympic games are much a bigger wagering event than the winter games. One of the reasons is the number of high profile summer athletes and the populatiry of summer team sports including basketball and soccer. U.S.-facing Bovada told us that “when there is a big name American in it we take a lot of money on him, her, or the team. The best example would be guys like Michael Phelps or the USA Men’s Basketball team. The Men’s 100 meters aside from those also takes quite a bit.” Bovada spokesman Kevin Bradley told us that “considering Usain Bolt lost in his qualifier, he is not as big a favorite at only 5/6 right now, and this will definitely draw a lot of attention as the men’s hundred always does.” Still most sportsbooks do not have offerings up yet for individual events. Bovada has over 20 events on the board already and 5Dimes expects to have “a full board of wagering options for every sport that will be awarding medals.” However, for events not yet available for betting, they are expected to be up within 72-48 hours before the events, especially at the larger, opinionated books, like 5Dimes and Pinnacle. In fact Pinnacle has a ton of betting markets available right now. But how do these places handicap who wins the gold medal in the Men’s 3000m Steeplechase, let alone configuring a favorite for Mixed Doubles Badminton?

According to Bovada, “It is definitely not as easy to set solid lines like the NFL but is a challenge and a fun one at that.” They have been preparing for all of these events for “awhile” using world championship results, world cup results, Olympic qualifying results and stats to set their lines. Most books will keep their limits quite low as these are man-made odds, not established by Las Vegas, and can vary from book-to-book. Then as bets come in on an event, the sportsbook can move accordingly. In addition, by keeping limits low it reduces the overall exposure that perhaps a linesmaker missed a huge favorite in Mens 10m Diving, like Qiu Bo from China

If you do choose to wager on the Olympics, shop around for the number that works out best for your wager at a top online sportsbook. Most of the Olympic athletes are for the most part, amateurs and train their whole lives for this one shot . . . not too much pressure. Remember these two things for next week, the host country usually exceeds expectations and amateurs can sometimes be . . . well . . . amateurish. Enjoy the Games!