Soccer is the world’s most popular sport, perhaps that’s not the case in the U.S.A, but nonetheless it is and will continue to be “the king sport”; and when Barcelona and Real Madrid are playing, it seems as though all eyes are following their every movement, every media outlet reports on them, and even if you are not a fan, it’s almost impossible that someone hasn’t heard the names of Leo Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, who among many other soccer players have turned their name into a brand, haters or fans, everyone contributes to their popularity. Costa Ricans for instance follow these two teams as though they were their own local teams; you are either a Saprissa or an Alajuela fan just the same as you are either a Real Madrid or a Barcelona fan.

The international soccer schedule is full of great matches today as part of the Spanish league “La Liga”: Real Madrid will face Las Palmas (Costa Rican goalkeeper Keylor Navas is likely to be back with Real Madrid for this game), Barcelona will travel to meet against Sporting Gijon, Athletic Bilbao will receive Sevilla and Real Sociedad will visit Eibar. Four great matches that are expected to draw a lot of attention and of course a lot of money; money in T.V. rights, money in advertising, money in sold tickets, money in memorabilia, money in soccer betting, etc.

Due to the number of teams, the number of leagues, the tournaments etc. soccer is globally the sport people bet on the most, and this number has increased since sportsbooks offer more betting options and even live in-play bets. Bettors also seem to be more comfortable betting online since services such as pay-per-head sportsbook software provider IDSca came into the picture, they provide sportsbooks and their clients with state of the art technology that allows them to place bets in a safe and simple way, from their computer or mobile device 24/7 365 days a year.

Real Madrid’s Brazilian left-back Marcelo will not be able to play today due to a muscle strain, Casemiro is also out for a month; and in Barcelona, Leo Messi will be out several weeks after suffering a thigh injury, these absences affect the team as much as it affects the odds for the game and the betting patterns.

During the week several Champion League clashes are scheduled, but perhaps the most interesting match is the Wednesday game between Atletico Madrid and Bayern Munich at the Vicente Calderon Stadium.