The most important thing to know about betting on sports is that it’s fun. And it’s always been fun.
Well before the legalization of sports betting in 2018, which set off a boom in the United States ($13 billion bet legally in 2019), sports fans enjoyed gambling on their favorite events and teams.
While sports betting is quickly becoming a piece of mainstream sports culture, people new to it should still have that one key objective before placing their first bet: have fun.
How does sports betting work?
There are thousands of sports betting options out there, but the basic premise behind it all is simply predicting that something will happen during a game or event and risking money on the chances of that occurring. Sportsbooks will set odds on these occurrences based on their probability of happening, allowing you to bet on the side you think will win with the sportsbook essentially taking the opposite of that opinion. If something has a high probability of occurring, it has a lower risk and won’t pay out as much as something with a lower probability and greater risk. The greater the risk the bigger the reward but… the greater the risk.Most sports betting options offer two sides, such as team vs. team or Yes vs. No. However, some bets can have multiple options to wager on, such as picking which team will win the championship before the season begins.
Favorites & Underdogs
Two of the most common sports betting terms are favorite and underdog, which are often the two sides to a bet that you can wager on. The favorite is the one side, team, or outcome that has the higher probability of winning or happening. Due to the lower risk, the return from betting on the favorite is smaller.The underdog has a lower probability of winning. Due to the higher risk, the return from betting on the underdog is bigger. If both sides have the same chances of winning, then the odds can be even for both and is often referred to as a pick or pick’em.
Types of bets
As we mentioned, while the premise of sports betting is simple – betting on one outcome or another – there are thousands of ways to bet on sports. These are the most common types of bets:
Spread bets
Spread bets, or point spreads, are used to make uneven games even. A point spread is assigned to a game based on the expected difference in the final score or result, and bettors must decide how much stronger one team is than the other.Oddsmakers set a handicap between the two sides, forcing the favorite to win by a certain number of points (also known as cover the spread) in order to win the bet while allowing the underdog to win outright or lose by a certain number and still win the bet. The point spread favorite will have a negative (-) value to its spread while the underdog will have a positive (+) value to its spread. If a game is too close to set a spread and both sides are perceived as even, the game will be deemed a pick or pick’em and you simply select which side will win outright.
Moneyline bets
These are the most basic type of sports wager: simply pick the winner. Moneylines are based on the implied probability of a result, such as one team beating another.
There are no spreads or handicaps involved to even the game, so a moneyline reflects the probability of the result, with low-risk moneylines (favorites) paying smaller returns and higher-risk moneylines (underdogs) paying bigger returns. Moneyline favorites are indicated by a negative value (-) next to their odds and moneyline underdogs are indicated by a positive value (+) next to their odds.
Over/Under bets
Over and Under Bets or totals are formulated from the projected total amount of points, runs or goals scored by both sides in a game. Oddsmakers will assign a total to a game and bettors can choose whether the actual final score will go Over or Under that projected total. If a total is set at 50 points, a bet on the Over would need 51 or more combined points to win while a bet on the Under would need 49 or fewer combined points to win. If the final score produces exactly the same amount of points as the Over/Under total, it’s graded a push and bets are returned.
Parlay bets
Parlay bets are a combination of two or more bets tied together for a larger potential payout. However, for the parlay bet to win, all bets involved must be correct. The more bets added to a parlay, the greater the risk and the bigger the potential return. But, even if only one of the bets involved in the parlay is wrong, the entire parlay is graded as a loss. Parlays can involve multiple types of bets, including point spreads, moneylines and Over/Under totals. If you’re trying to decide on what bets to parlay and want an idea what kind of payout it will yield, try using our parlay calculator.
What does -110 mean?
In sports betting, -110 means that for every $1 a bettor wants to win, they must risk $1.10. If a bettor wanted to win $100 on -110 odds, they would need to risk $110. This odds format is known as American Odds and is most commonly used in North American sportsbooks and casinos. The -110 odds are commonly used with point spreads, with both sides of the spread listed at -110, also known as flat. The negative value (-) before the American Odds indicates that the bettor must risk more than the return. If the American Odds have a positive value (+) before them, then the bettor can return more than the risk. At +110, a bettor could win $1.10 for every $1 wagered. There are other types of odds formats available, such as decimal or fraction, and if you’d like to see how American Odds translate into those formats, use our odds converter.
How to bet on sports online
You can bet on sports online by first finding the legal options available based on your area. Some regions allow for online sports betting and there are various online sportsbooks available. Other areas don’t allow for online sports betting or offer mobile sports betting sites linked to retail sportsbooks and casinos, which require deposits and withdraws in person.
Depositing into an online sportsbook is very quick and simple, with most accepting major credit cards, traditional and electronic bank transfers, as well as popular transfer methods like PayPal. Withdrawing winnings is just as simple, with funds returned through those common banking methods.