No one knows what 2020 holds for us all, but at least we can hope that it turns out to be a bit less eventful than 2019. That said, there’s going to be plenty of opportunities for surprises so it might be a good idea to have some money riding on at least some of them. So here are five bets to lay in 2020 if you want to make life a bit more interesting.
Farewell to Europe
The first of our bets is undoubtedly the one with the lowest potential returns. Following the Conservatives’ landslide victory in the December election, it would seem that what they say goes – for the next five years at least. With a departure from the EU inked in for the end of January the Brexit date odds are very short indeed. But if you were to stick your neck out and put some money on things being delayed for a few months then you could be looking at a bigger win altogether.
The first woman to ride a Grand National winner
It may be the greatest horse race in the world, but the Grand National has yet to break the glass ceiling by seeing a woman jockey ride to victory, or even into the first four finishers. Admittedly, there have been years when the latter’s nearly happened: in 2018 Bryony Frost came 5th on Milansbar and in 2005 Carrie Ford achieved the same result on Forest Gunner. So maybe this could be the year when the patriarchy takes another blow to its dominance.
England or Wales to win Euro 2020
For many sports fans this is going to be the highlight of the football year. The first-ever Euro championships to be played all across the continent to celebrate their 60th birthday will certainly be hotly contested. But whether Gareth Southgate’s men can fulfil on the initial promise they showed at the 2018 World Cup remains to be seen. It’s a tougher task for Wales, but with Gareth Bale in the team (almost) anything is possible.
Great Britain to win more Olympic medals than ever before
Shortly after the Euros finish all eyes will be on the Tokyo Olympics. The question is whether Great Britain can put in its best ever performance in the medals table. Of the five new sports being introduced it’s probably sport climbing that gives us the best chance of success and we can also be confident of a good showing in the athletics. So fingers crossed.
A white Christmas in Manchester
You might intuitively think that global warming has put paid to any more white Christmases, but the reality is more complicated than that. So if you wanted to end the year on a flourish it might be worth putting a few pounds on Albert Square being transformed into a winter wonderland in 2020.
So there you have them, five great bets for 2020. And if you put them all together in an accumulator and they all come off it could be a very good year for you indeed.
