One of the most important factors for successful football betting is knowing the game itself. Unfortunately, there’s no easy way of attaining this knowledge – you simply have to love football and follow it for years.
Betting Fellow is here to help you with anything related to online sports betting, so we can at least point you in the right direction. We’ll try to do this by providing you with overviews of leagues you might not be as familiar with as you might want to be. In this article, we’ll be taking a look at the Russian Premier League.
Akhmat Grozny will have to put on their best performance to record a home win against Spartak Moskva. The price of 3.09 indicates a difficult battle and that’s exactly what we expect to see in this match.
Spartak Moskva are heading into what’s surely be a challenge. Akhmat Grozny are not to be taken lightly and an away victory would certainly be a big success for the vi... read more
The visitors are aware of the challenge that awaits them. To come out on top against Baltika on their own field would be a major achievement, and it is always a tough task.
Krasnodar will need to bring their top form if they want 3 points from this matchup – and they do. Baltika are not easy pickings, although the visitors are widely seen as close favourites.
There is a feeling of confidence within the Baltika camp following their remarkable home win in the last round of the ... read more
The most probable outcome of this match is Krylya Sovetov getting completely overwhelmed. They are underdogs by a considerable margin, and it’s not likely even the most optimistic of their fans are expecting them to pull off a victory.
A trip to Krylya Sovetov can hardly be seen as a big test for Zenit. With 1.41 betting odds stacked in their favour, it’s hard seeing p... read more
CSKA Moskva are seen as favourites to win this match against Olimpiyets. The betting odds indicate an easy win and anything but a home victory here would indeed be a big surprise.
From the current viewpoint, the situation is straightforward. Given the strength of CSKA Moskva and the fact that Olimpiyets are given 7.68 odds to win, it is easy to see that an Olimpiyets victor... read more
Though Makhachkala are the favourites between these two teams, this is a fairly balanced matchup. All three possible outcomes of a Result bet are quite possible, which at least means we may get to see an exciting game.
Krylya Sovetov will have little to hope for in this match. 3.64 betting odds on them winning paint a pretty clear picture and from this standpoint there is ... read more
Punters who are looking for a safe bet should definitely consider this match. The home win odds of 1.69 bring great value considering the fact that Rostov are indeed firm favourites to defeat Akron.
At 4.95 betting odds, an away win would be a huge surprise and ... read more
Betting odds can be illusive at times and Spartak Moskva are more than capable of pulling an upset. However, Krasnodar should have a clear path to victory if they stick to the plan.
It’s highly unlikely that Spartak Moskva will manage to get some points this round. Krasnodar are at a considerable advantage, so even a draw would be a success for the visitors.
The hosts’ previous home game was fairly predictable, and a bit uneventful. An early lead carried them to a straightf... read more
Rubin Kazan' may come out on top this Sunday yet, but it will be quite a struggle. They’ll be fighting a somewhat stronger team in Dinamo Moskva. However, it’s still a relatively balanced matchup, as signified by the 3.45 for the hosts to win.
Though Dinamo Moskva are the stronger team between the two, we wouldn’t call an away bet at the odds of read more
Zenit are likely on their way to a decisive victory, and it’s hard to feel optimistic about the visitors’ prospects. Bookmakers are pricing a home win at 1.48, which is quite in line with most expert opinions.
If betting odds are anything to go on – and they are - Lokomotiv Moskva will likely get overrun by their opponents with little hope of winning. Considering ho... read more
The home team are slightly stronger as far as most online bookies are concerned, but the difference is by no means insurmountable. Both a stalemate and a victory for Akron are still on the table.
The visiting team is fully aware of the challenge that lies ahead. A win against Olimpiyets on their home field would be a significant achievement, and it is never an easy task.
Olimpiyets will be looking to put the previous away defeat in the Premier League (2:1) as soon as possible. ... read more
It’s quite easy to predict that Krasnodar will take the 3 points here. Though a different result is not entirely impossible, it would still be quite a notable upset.
Akron stand next to no chance at beating the hosts in this match. For instance, most bookies online offer odds of 7.07 for an away win, indicating a very small chance of success.
Spartak Moskva are likely on their way to a decisive victory, and it’s hard to feel optimistic about the visitors’ prospects. Bookmakers are pricing a home win at 1.32, which is quite in line with most expert opinions.
Sochi stand next to no chance at beating the hosts in this match. For instance, most bookies online offer odds of read more
With the odds slightly in the hosts’ favour, they have a decent shot at walking away with 3 points. Still, Akhmat Grozny can pull off both a win or a draw, so the hosts can’t afford to let their guard down.
With the betting odds being what they are, this match could still go either way. Still, the fact that Akhmat Grozny are generally the weaker team makes this match an uphill battle for them.
An away win from the last Premier League round would have been a proper surprise... read more
Spartak Moskva will have to put on their best performance to record a home win against Zenit. The price of 2.99 indicates a difficult battle and that’s exactly what we expect to see in this match.
Despite playing away, Zenit are more likely to win this showdown than the hosts. It’s not a done deal, of course. Considering the betting odds for an away win are set at read more
Akhmat Grozny are easily the favourites in the match this Saturday, but we wouldn’t call a Home Win bet at the odds of 1.96 safe, exactly. They are more likely to win than not, but Krylya Sovetov may have a few tricks up their sleeve yet.
The visitors would need to pull off quite a stunt in order to come out victorious. They are severely outmatched in this outing – th... read more
By pricing a home win at around 2.00, the bookies made it clear that Krasnodar are the favourites. Overall, though, the difference between the teams is not big, and the match can end either way.
At 3.64 betting odds, an away win would be a huge surprise and we�... read more
The hosts will have little to hope for in this match. The betting odds work against them and so does the overall impression. They are a weaker side here and it would be a proper upset if they manage to beat Lokomotiv Moskva.
We are most likely going to see this match being won by Lokomotiv Moskva. They have a solid advantage over their opponents – at least according to the betting odds. That said, we’ve definitely seen much bigger surprises in the Premier League but such a scenari... read more
Rostov should not have bigger problems running away with three points in this match if they stick to their game plan. However, Krylya Sovetov can be a tough nut to crack and the home side need to be on top of their game.
At 3.67 betting odds, an away win would be a huge surprise and we’re positive Krylya Sovetov are well aware of it themselves.
Betting odds can be illusive at times and Rostov are more than capable of pulling an upset. However, Krasnodar should have a clear path to victory if they stick to the plan.
It’s highly unlikely that Rostov will manage to get some points this round. Krasnodar are at a considerable advantage, so even a draw would be a success for the visitors.
What everyone expected to be a tightly-contested affair turned into a one-sided match as Krasnodar recorded a convincing Lokomotiv Mosk... read more
The game is heavily lopsided in the visitors’ favour – for instance, most bookies are offering 10.70 odds on a home win. The hosts are no doubt in a difficult situation and don’t have much hope of overcoming Zenit.
Most bookies and expert opinions agree that Zenit should record a decisive victory here. It’s a fairly one-sided matchup overall, and they are hard favourites despite playing as the away te... read more
The odds are definitely leaning in the hosts’ favour, but this match is far from a done deal. Judging by odds alone, Rubin Kazan' may yet be able to walk away with a draw or even a surprise victory – though it’s still a longshot.
Rubin Kazan' stand next to no chance at beating the hosts in this match. For instance, most bookies online offer odds of 6.14 for an away win, indicating a very small chance of... read more
Akhmat Grozny are expected to win here, but we can’t call such betting predictions completely foolproof. Akron may surprise us yet, and even a tie game seems a decent possibility from where we’re standing.
The matchup this Saturday is rather one-sided, with Akron seen as the clear underdogs. Most bookmakers online have priced their victory at 4.10, which is enough to doubt such an outcome will happen. read more
Zenit are likely on their way to a decisive victory, and it’s hard to feel optimistic about the visitors’ prospects. Bookmakers are pricing a home win at 1.35, which is quite in line with most expert opinions.
Rostov stand next to no chance at beating the hosts in this match. For instance, most bookies online offer odds of 10.20 f... read more
The online bookies marked Rubin Kazan' as the favourites, which makes a lot of sense. Still, we wouldn’t put Khimki winning beyond them – not to mention that draws are a strong possibility in relatively balanced games.
An away win in this match would be a huge surprise and an equally big achievement for Khimki who could consider themselves fortunate if they run away with a point in the bag.
Adefeat was always on the cards for Rubin Kazan' who were read more
Often abbreviated to RPL, the Russian Premier League is the highest tier of professional football in Russia. It consists of 16 of the best association football clubs in the country. It is currently officially called the Rosgosstrakh Russian Football Championship due to a sponsorship deal with one of Russia’s leading insurance companies.
As of the writing of this review, the UEFA league coefficients rank the Russian Premier League as the 7th-best national league in Europe. This ranking system bases such rankings on performances during the past five years. This means that the RPL is one of the biggest professional football competitions in the world.
The league in its current form was founded only 19 years ago, in 2001. However, the true history of top-flight leagues in Russia starts way back in 1936 while it was still part of the Soviet Union. The highest division of football in the USSR was the Soviet Top League.
The Soviet Top League was established on the initiative of Nikolai Starostin, the founder and head of the Spartak sports society. He is widely considered to be the creator of the Soviet football league system and is a very important figure in the history of USSR’s professional football. The League was originally called Group A. It changed several names over the decades, including the First Group after World War 2 and the Higher League after 1970.
Back in the day, the Soviet Union was a powerhouse in terms of world sports. The Soviet Top League ranked as the second-best league among UEFA members in the 1988-89 season.
Following the country’s dissolution in 1991, however, the top-flight league was also splintered into several national leagues – most notably the Ukranian Premier League and the Russian Premier League. Since the international community widely considers Russia to be the USSR’s political successor state, UEFA also considers the Russian Premier League to have succeeded the Soviet Top League.
However, since several major leagues were spawned from the STL, discussing team records and titles can get a bit muddy. Keep this in mind when we discuss such topics later in this article.
Between 1991 and 2001, Russia’s highest tier league was the Russian Football Championship. It was rather short-lived but worked a lot like the league we have today.
In terms of structure, the RPL follows a mostly standard format. The 16 teams all play each other twice, once home and once away, for a total of 30 matches per team. The teams are then ranked based on a point system in which three points are awarded for a win and one for a draw. In case of a tie between two teams, they are further ranked by the number of wins, then the goal difference, followed by several other factors like head-to-head results.
The highest-ranked team are named Champions, and qualify for the UEFA Champions League group stage, along with the runners-up. The third-ranked team qualify for the Champions League qualifying round. The next two teams on the board qualify for the Europa League.
The two teams with the least points are relegated to the National Football League (Formerly known as the First Division) and are replaced by the top-ranked two teams from that 2nd tier league.
Matches used to be played between March and November in order to avoid the infamous Russian winter, but that changed in 2010. Nowadays, they’re played between autumn and spring, like in most European national leagues.
From 1991 to this day, the most decorated team in the RPL’s history is Spartak Moscow with 10 titles and 5 runner-up positions. They are followed by CSKA Moscow and Zenit St. Petersburg with 6 and 5 titles, respectively.
The league’s all-time top scorer is Oleg Veretennikov, who played for many different teams throughout his career. (Soviet Top League appearances are taken into account for individual players.) The record for most appearances is held by CSKA Moscow’s Sergei Ignashevich with 489 outings.
Russian Premier League Derby Matches
Moscow Derby
A rivalry as old as 1922, this derby is the match-up between two of the biggest football teams in Russia’s capital of Moscow – Spartak and CSKA (Although, nowadays there’s something to be said about Lokomotiv.)
It should be noted, however, that this name is sometimes given to any match played between any of the following: Torpedo Moscow, Spartak Moscow, CSKA Moscow, Lokomotiv Moscow and Dynamo Moscow. The current balance of power between these varies, as does the importance of their respective rivalries.
The Rivalry of Two Capitals
Again, this derby has been attached to several different rivalries. Zenit St. Petersburg is always on one end; on the other is any of Moscow’s leading clubs, namely Spartak and CSKA.
Russian Premier League Best Stadiums
VEB Arena
Also known as Arena CSKA due to UEFA sponsorship regulations, this multi-purpose sports stadium has a capacity of just over 30,000. As you might have guessed, it is CSKA’s home turf but is also occasionally used by the Russian national team.
Otkritie Arena
Spartak’s base of operations, the Otkitie arena may be familiar to football fans as one of the venues for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. It has a capacity of 45,360 and was completed in 2010. The name is due to a sponsorship deal with the Otkritie financial group, but it’s usually referred to simply as Spartak Stadium.
Krasnodar Stadium
Built in 2016, Krasnodar’s new stadium is an absolute architectural wonder. It is hailed as one of the most modern sports arenas in the world and can house up to 35,000 spectators.
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