Curling Betting Guide - 2021 Brier

What is "The Brier" and Why is Curling So Big for Canadians?

Few sports embody what Canadians love more than curling. It’s tense, it’s icy, and as it happens, Canada is fairly good at it! On that note, The Brier 2021 is an event that many sports and curling fans alike have been looking forward to, and it’s currently underway. Like other curling events, The Brier displays some of Canada’s top talents, with the best male competitors all coming together to battle it out for the title. It’s not just the competitors that get excited for this one either, as the top sportsbooks also have many bonuses and awesome markets surrounding this event.    With all of this in mind, we’d like to take a quick look at the tournament overview, as well as give our two cents on some hot bets to make! So without further ado, let’s get things started.

Tournament Overview

This year’s event is unlike any other in history. Of course, the COVID-19 pandemic has caused major concerns and doubts as to whether the event will be held at all. But thanks to some clever planning, The Brier will now go ahead with competitors operating inside a ‘bubble’, and zero fans being allowed to attend the event. Don’t worry - The Brier will still be covered by all many major sports channels in Canada. Another key change is that the event will now be held in Calgary, as opposed to the originally planned venue of Kelowna.  If you follow curling pretty closely, you’ll likely know that the event has already kicked off on March 5th. Even if you are a little late to the party, you’ve still got time to follow up on the various curling bet types and our predictions given below. That’s because the tournament will not actually finish until March 14th, so there’s still plenty of action, and plenty of bets to be made!

Who Are the Favourites to Make a Wager On?

This year’s Brier has been expanded by tournament organizers to accommodate for the pandemic causing a serious lack of competition for players across the board. Usually, the tournament has 16 teams competing, but in 2021 it has 18 teams. That’s a lot of teams and players to consider, but there are a few you should definitely be keeping an eye on. First and foremost, last year’s winner, Brad Gushue, and his team are definitely on the radar of many fans - and punters! It’s pretty cool that Gushue is actually chasing history this year, and for those of you who enjoy online curling betting for real money, you’ll immediately notice that Gushue is a red hot favourite to rack up his 4th national title.

Although Gushue and his team are tipped to win the trophy, it will not be a walk in the park by any means. One of his main rivals is undoubtedly Brad Jacobs, a man who has arguably been in the best form over the last 12 months. This guy has also won the trophy 4 times already, so he’s no stranger to the big stage. While the odds for Jacobs to win are slightly higher than Gushue, the next in line is Brendan Bottcher. Having lost in the final last year to Gushue and his team, many feel that Bottcher could finally take the next step and grab a championship title this year.

Key Curling Bets to Make

It’s perfectly normal for experienced punters to have their own curling betting strategies that they like to follow. With that said, we’d still like to provide a few common bets and predictions for the event. Note that all of these online curling betting types are available at major sportsbook brands in Canada.

• Outright winner

Most punters love this one because it is a bet that will remain live until their chosen team/player is eliminated. On that note, while we believe that Brad Gushue will win this year, you might be looking to go for a young rising star like Matt Dunstone. 

• Parlay bet

If you’re seeking big returns, it doesn’t get better than parlay betting. Instead of trying to pick a winner, here you can combine the results of individual games, therefore multiplying the odds. The only downside here is that unless you get every prediction correct, you won’t get any kind of return.

• Head to head games

Given that The Brier is already underway, you can analyze the form/games for each team and pick your individual winners. This is commonly referred to as ‘head to head’ betting.

Our Final End...

If you’re not all that confident (or familiar) with wagering on curling, we would encourage you to check out this guide to curling betting before jumping in at the deep end. With that said, after educating yourself on the various markets listed for curling betting online, make sure you tune in to the event for all of the action - and good luck!