Have you been watching the action take place at IEM Chicago 2018 this week? If you have, you may have noticed that the results couldn’t be further from what was predicted.

Teams like NaVi and MIBR are dropping out against lower-tier teams and teams that nobody expected to make it past the group stage, are putting up a surprisingly good fight.

But what does this mean for bettors? Well, with the way things are going, it makes perfect sense to take advantage of Rivalry‘s outright markets for IEM Chicago 2018.

What is a CS:GO Outright Market?

An outright market is a type of bet that requires the bettor to place a wager on which team they think will win the entire tournament. Outrights can be a great way to make your betting money go further, because the return can be much higher than betting on single matches.

Obviously, the odds are better because there is more risk. Even a favorite like Astralis could lose out to another team. But that’s where the fun comes in. Making an outright bet can be a great way to risk a little bit of money for a huge potential cashout.

With the way IEM Chicago 2018 has been going, it could be the perfect time to make a bet on a team like eUnited or LDLC. It might be unlikely that they win, but with odds of 62.50 and 191.50 to 1, for LDLC and eUnited, respectively, you could get a massive $625 or $1915 on a single $10 bet if these teams win.

If you prefer to play it safe, you could choose to go with Astralis, the best team in the world. Their odds would still net you $22 on a single $10 bet. Or, if you want to put trust in a slight underdog, what about FaZe or Team Liquid?

You can see the locked in odds for each of the teams below.

Who is most likely to win IEM Chicago 2018?

So far we have showcased the potential winnings you’d get for picking an outright winner, but who is the smartest team to bet on? The clear pick is Astralis, and we’ll explain why.

Firstly, Astralis is ranked as the best team in the world right now. In second place we have NaVi, who unfortunately fell out of the event. Team Liquid and FaZe are easily the next top contenders to take the grand final, but if we take a look at their past matchups against Astralis, it really isn’t looking great.

In fact, the last time FaZe won a game against Astralis was back in May during IEM Sydney 2018, perhaps thanks to an incredible, but rare, explosion of talent from Guardian.

But what about Liquid? It’s not looking so great, either. Team Liquid won a best of one in overtime against Astralis in the FACEIT Major, but before that, their last win against Astralis was back in December 2017, and it was yet again an overtime best of one.

So, in summary, we think Astralis is the most logical option here.

What are your thoughts? Will you be betting on the IEM Chicago 2018 outright market?