Rugby Knowledge is a sports betting tipster service that is operated by an unnamed tipster. The service is provided through Wider Horizens who have a moderate tipster stable under them.
Introduction to Rugby Knowledge
One of the major difficulties that I personally find when it comes to tipster services is finding coverage for the niche. You see, I am a strong proponent of having a decent portfolio available to you, and a big part of that is having coverage for a lot of different sports. The fact is that if you stack your portfolio around say, horse racing, eventually you will end up paying for the same selections, or selections that are contrarian to each other. When that starts happening, it eats into your bottom line. Which nobody wants.
As a result of this philosophy, I enjoy finding products that are based around sports that most people probably aren’t betting on. At least, not consistently. Using today’s service as an example, I know plenty of people who will have a punt on the Six Nations based around a gut feeling or what they see in the news. But that’s only a small part of the rugby season. Now, something like Rugby Knowledge is advising you week in and week out what you should be betting on. That allows for a more consistent profit, and if Wider Horizens are to be believed, this is pretty respectable.
Now something that I think it is important to keep in mind with something like this is that… well, it is a bit niche. As such, I do think that there has to be a lot of tempering of your expectations too. Rugby Knowledge is highly unlikely to become your “go to” tipster service. It isn’t necessarily something that I believe will carry your betting portfolio. What I do think you get, is a nice opportunity from Wider Horizens to add something that most people won’t even have considered, and that solely in and of itself can prove quite valuable.
What Does Rugby Knowledge Offer?
One of the most apparent things that stands out about Rugby Knowledge to me is that the tipster behind the service does pretty much everything right. Now, whether or not this is simply down to Wider Horizens is something that is up for debate. In my experience, their services are a bit of a mixed affair with varying levels of consistency (something that does end up cropping up here too). But by and large, this is a service that, at a glance, is incredibly impressive.
So, how exactly does this present itself? Well, there is quite a lot really. First things first, let’s talk about how the tipster behind Rugby Knowledge manages everything. Selections are uploaded to a members area on the website on most days where there are games. There are all of the obvious details of what you are betting on and some advised odds.
Here though is where even my usual “gold standard” gets bettered by Rugby Knowledge. You see, you do get a comprehensive write up on why a bet has been selected. This includes insight into things like the psychology of players in a game, how events off the field have manifested within the game, and things as simple as “Team A has a better squad and Team By are on a losing streak”.
Included with this is also a link to Oddschecker for the precise bet that has been recommended. This is something that I love to see. It is a small amount of work from a tipster and ensures that when you come to place your bet, you’re always getting the best possible odds. Honestly, the management of Rugby Knowledge is nigh impeccable.
Now, let’s talk about the bets that you will be placing. Whilst there are a number of sports that I enjoy watching, rugby isn’t one of them (all the more reason to find a tipster that does have that interest). As such, I will hold my hands up to the fact that I am not really familiar with all of the betting markets covered by Rugby Knowledge. They don’t however seem to be anything overly complex.
Whilst we’re on the subject of betting markets and odds and whatnot, this is a low odds service by and large. On individual bets, you’re generally looking at slightly less than evens. Something that does somewhat restrict the earnings potential. With that said, there are also accas that have been advised at really quite decent odds as well. They are definitely less frequent, but Rugby Knowledge only relatively recently posted a winning 7/1 four fold.
The volume of bets from Rugby Knowledge is something that can be a bit eclectic. This definitely isn’t a service that is tipping every single day, but like with football, that seems to have a lot to with when games are stacked. Importantly, whilst the Premier League rugby isn’t quite as constant, there is an increase in volume and frequency of bets during international tournaments.
Staking wise, there are varied stakes involved with Rugby Knowledge. A lot of what you will be doing is simple stakes of 1 point per bet. But it is worth noting that there can be as many as 3 points per bet. Obviously, all of this can start to add up in terms of costs. And adding to this is one of the few criticisms that I feel I have about this and that is that the tipster behind the service, nor Wider Horizens, seem to provide much in the way of a betting bank .
Something that does stands out to me is a rather interesting claim that Wider Horizens make in the sales material for Rugby Knowledge. We are told that the tipster behind the service is able to “beat the bookies on a regular basis with a 70% strike rate in our 1st season”. Now, the more recent results suggest that this isn’t quite what you can expect. This does however seem to be down to some changes to the service.
How Does Rugby Knowledge Work?
When it comes to how Rugby Knowledge works, there are a few things in its corner. The first and most obvious one is my mind is the simple fact that you are quite literally being told exactly why you are backing a given bet. That is something that sounds incredibly simple, but there is a reason that I call it the gold standard. It is impossible not to be informed about your bets.
That is all well and good, but it isn’t the whole picture. The fact is that there is actually quite a lot that is apparently going on behind the scenes too. And it is actually genuinely quite interesting. Not because Rugby Knowledge is necessarily built on anything new, but because in a bit of a rarity, I actually believe the claims that Wider Horizens make. This makes for a very interesting thing.
You see, the tipster behind the service supposedly played the game “at cup and representative level” before retiring through injury. They are no going through their coaching badges at a smaller club with a view to going into coaching in the future. This allows for a lot of quite unique insight. Something that I think you see when you look at the write ups that are given for Rugby Knowledge.
Something that is worth noting is that whilst there is proofing for Rugby Knowledge, it isn’t necessarily the most up to date thing. This is something that I have seen with tipster services from Wider Horizens before now. It is undeniably a downside. But I think it’s fair to point out that the proofing is still relatively up to date. Furthermore, it does allow you to get some idea of what you can expect.
What is the Initial Investment?
There are two options if you want to sign up to Rugby Knowledge. The first that Wider Horizens provide is a monthly subscription. This is priced at £15 per month (with your first month costing just £7.50). Alternatively, you can sign up for the whole year for a one time cost of £85. Coming in at a shade over £7 per month, that represents quite a significant discount really.
Of note is the fact that there is no sort of money back guarantee or anything in place with Rugby Knowledge. This is pretty much standard practice for products from Wider Horizens. And if I’m really honest, given the overall costs involved and the trial, it doesn’t really strike me as a dealbreaker. But it is worth keeping in mind for those who want to try out those longer subscriptions.
What is the Rate of Return?
Wider Horizens say that the 2018/19 season ended with a profit of 58.59 points. That isn’t bad at all, but it is also a little outdated. What I can say however is that there was a recorded profit of 7 points in the first month. A number that ultimately puts Rugby Knowledge in line for those historic results. Of note though is the fact that a lot of this comes from the big acca I mentioned earlier.
Conclusion for Rugby Knowledge
Look, Rugby Knowledge isn’t perfect. I really don’t believe that this is a hot take or a controversial statement. It doesn’t make a huge amount of money, unfortunately, Wider Horizens aren’t exactly on top of the proofing (which is a definite shame), and ultimately, there is a fair old degree of risk that you take on with this. These are all things that you should keep in mind.
Because here’s the thing. Despite all of this, I still think that Rugby Knowledge is worth some consideration. At least, in the right kind of circumstance. And in order to paint this picture, I need to circle back to what I was talking about earlier and the idea of a portfolio. You see, I would stake quite a lot on the fact that most people aren’t betting on rugby regularly. As such, this won’t interfere with most people’s betting.
And it is in that context that I think that the results start to look pretty reasonable. Sure, Rugby Knowledge isn’t going to make you a fortune, but given the investment of time (and to a lesser degree money) an extra 50 – 60 points a year isn’t too bad. To £10 stakes, that’s an extra £500 – £600. Even take away the subs and you’re still looking pretty reasonable. All of which is ultimately coming from a sport that you probably aren’t betting on.
A big part of the reason that I think that Rugby Knowledge is worthwhile in this regard is the way that it is managed. You are ultimately getting a hell of a lot for your money with Rugby Knowledge. The in depth writeups that you get are of a very high quality. They provide you with a lot of insight and if you’re looking to get more insight into the sport and how to bet on it, that is invaluable.
All of that of course is for a really quite small price. £15 per month isn’t a lot at all for a service that is going to build up a portfolio. Now, that doesn’t strictly mean that I would recommend Rugby Knowledge. The truth of the matter is that for most people, it isn’t really going to be a particularly viable or attractive option.
You see, whilst it is cheap, there are definitely services that are slightly more expensive, but ultimately, can produce more profit. As such, if you only have one tipster service, Rugby Knowledge definitely shouldn’t be it. But it really doesn’t mean that it is a bad service. Far from it in fact.
The bottom line is this. Rugby Knowledge is a niche product. It is also a product that has a niche market. For those who are looking to round off a portfolio and fill those gaps, this is really worth some consideration. It is a very solid looking service. What it won’t do is deliver on the big numbers that more mainstream betting market tipster services will deliver.
