Remember that Tirra approaches them before the last fight with an offer from Tony Soprano. That was a lot of cash right there.
I had my players make a Gather Information check - I think it was 15 - to find a bookie. For every point they exceeded this roll, they found another willing bettor. Still didn't amount to much, but it was a little more believable.
My players eventually gave the trophies they won to Prince Zeech as a party favor.
I know the module says there are multiple persons to bet with with a max of 250 gp or 500 gp with the right rolls. The issue is how many is a reasonable amout of takers for their bets?
Once they made a Gather Information check, I let each character bet 500 gp. At the 10 to 1 odds they had in the first round, they'll each be picking up a nice purse. They shot up to Rank 4 due to several critical hits, so they won't be earning as much from the remaining fights.
....that the module is built arround them not being the champion.
I usually try not to show my cards at the table (i.e. discuss the adventure's plot points) but it sometimes happens. That said, telling your players that they aren't the assumed winners was an excellent move on your part. It does two things: 1) Keeps their betting honest as you've already seen and 2) Makes winning the Belt a true achievement, not just a plot point.
I let my player place bets for becoming the champions of the games. I also let them place bets on individual matches. The PC's that placed the bets before the first round on themselves were given good odds. Something like 10:1 to win the tournament. After winning the first round (in dominating fashion) then odds dropped to 4:1. Most of the rest of the PC's place sizeable bets on themselves after the first round.
One mistake they made was having Ekaym place bets with several different bookies since no one bookie could cover all their bets.
I decided the final match was called a draw since it was interrupted and neither team won. No winner meant no payout, no refund. By the time they tried to go and collect their money the bookies were gone.
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I set up the betting system so that the PCs were limited to one bet per person. (Not counting their deal with Tirra.) They had saved up a lot of cash leading up to that adventure, and I'm pretty sure if I had let them bet it all they would have walked out with far more gold than they should have at that level. They seemed OK with that system, and still made out like bandits because they went out of their way to make themselves look inept before the games.
Their rank rose quickly as a result of their success and the spectacle of their wins, though, so the first round of betting was their only really big haul.
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I really messed this up and my players had WAY to much money coming out of the games. Be careful with the betting.
Beldar1215
I had some issues with the betting as written; as the payout is fixed to the gladiator rank it does not take into account the opponent. It is possible, that you would even make money if you bet the same amount of on *both* teams, without any risk (If both teams had a gladiator rank of 4 or less).
I divised a formula that isn't too complicated and keeps a certain amount of realism.
Gn := Gladiator Rank of Team n
Quota = (G1+1)/(G1+G2)
and for the 4 vs. 4 matches:
(G1+1)/(G1+G2+G3+G4)
That way, in the first match, the PCs have a quota of
3+1/3+5+5+6 = 4/19 = 1:4.75
and vs Pitch Blade, assuming they gained 2 gladiator ranks in between
5+1/5+8 = 6/13 = 1:2,1
I also introduced a rule that a single person cannot bet more than 250gp in total (another 250 with a DC gather information check followed by a DC20 diplomacy check to find and convince an illegal booker). All betting persons have to write down their names; the bookers compare names overnight. (This keeps Tirra's offer interesting despite the relatively low quota).
Both rules together make betting an interesting option but won't inflate the PCs pockets overtly.