It’s no secret that HBO’s Game of Thrones is one of the most popular TV series in America and around the world. It should come as no surprise then that there is actually quite a big betting market surrounding the show. Fans of Game of Thrones can place bets on all sorts of things, including who will be the next main character to die and so on. However, British bookmakers recently had to suspend betting following a string of suspicious bets being placed.
Betting on who will sit on the Iron Thorne when Game of Thrones ends has been suspended. This follows a number of suspicious bets being placed on Bran Stark in quick succession.
Bran Stark to win the Game of Thrones?
The suspicious wagers were all centred around who will ultimately be victorious and sit on the Iron Throne at the end of season 8. Earlier this week, bookmakers accepting Game of Thrones bets suddenly started seeing a drastic increase in the number of people betting that Bran Stark would sit on the Iron Throne. Until this point, the odds of him doing so were at 14/1.
In case you need a reminder, Bran Stark is the youngest son of Ned Stark. Bran was crippled in season one, after being thrown out of a window. While it is entirely possible that he could sit on the throne, it is highly unlikely. This is what made the betting activity suspicious and forced bookmakers to suspend betting.
Game of Thrones Betting Suffers Due to Leaks
The main concern is that Game of Thrones has suffered numerous hacks and leaks. Due to its immense popularity, there are many that do not want to wait for the next episode. Season 7 was plagued by leaks and hacks, which saw scripts for unaired episodes held to ransom, as well as entire episodes being released online early. According to executives from HBO, the script for season eight is complete and has been sent out to the actors. This makes a leak possible and is obviously what the bookmakers are worried about.
Before the betting market was suspended, Jon Snow was the favorite to sit on the throne with 2/1 odds. Daenerys Targaryen was in second with 7/2 odds, with Cersei Lannister at 9/1. If either Jon or Daenerys wins, we’re sure most viewers will be very pleased with the result. Season 8 of Game of Thrones will be the show’s final season and will only air in 2019. However, there are rumors of numerous other spinoff series being considered.
