Prefer that we explain it to you? Check out this episode of the Last Night’s Game podcast.
These examples apply to most sports, but we used football as an example.
One way to bet is on the spread. The spread is the number sportsbooks think a team will win/lose by.
For example, if the Seattle Seahawks are listed -4 (favored by four points) vs. the New England Patriots, it means they’re the favorite. Favored teams always have a minus in front, and the underdogs have a plus. This means the Seahawks would have to win by four or more points for you to win. Conversely, the Patriots can lose by 3 points and you would still win, if they lose by 4 it would be a “push”, so you receive money back.
Another way to bet is to go with the money line bet, meaning you bet on a team to win straight up, without a spread. This is beneficial if you think the underdog will win, as the payouts are bigger. (The favorites are more likely to win, so payouts are less).
For example, the Patriots are +190 money line bet, meaning they would have to win the game for you to win the bet. If you put $10 on them and they won, you would win $19. The total payout would be $29.
Seahawks are -230 favorites therefore the odds in a money line bet are not as good. If you put $10 on them, you would only win $4.23, with the total payout being $14.23.
Then there’s the under/over bet, which means you are not betting on any specific team but the final score of the game.
Let’s say the Super Bowl over/under is 46. If you take the over, you’re betting that the two teams will score at least 46 points. The under means you bet that they will score fewer than 46 points total.
Another betting option is a parlay, which is placing two or more bets on a single ticket. Parlays have higher payouts because the likelihood of winning decreases with more bets put on a parlay card. Each bet must win for you to win your bet.
An example, according to the William Hill mobile betting app, if you put $10 on a parlay with 2 selections, the payout would be $26.44. It would look like this:
Patriots +4 (spread – can lose by three points to win, and if they lose by four, you get money back)
Seahawks/Patriots Over 46 (over/under – total score will consist of 46 points or more)
Last but certainly the most fun is a proposition (prop) bet. Prop bets are wagers on individual outcomes that may occur during the game. They are very popular during the Super Bowl. Here are some popular prop bets in the Super Bowl:
Over/under of the length of the national anthem
Who will win the opening coin toss?
What color Gatorade will be dumped on the winning coach?
A few last-minute pointers
A push means you tie your bet and get the money you bet back. Say you bet over 44 for Patriots/Broncos and they score exactly 44. You will get your money back because they met the over points, but didn’t actually go over.
Backdoor means the team scores a meaningless point at the end of the game to cover a spread.
If there is a .5 in the number, like over/under 46.5, the teams must score 47 for you to win.
A sportsbook makes money by taking a cut of each bet, which typically is 10 cents on spreads and over/under. Therefore, if you wanted to bet $10 on the Broncos at +3 odds (win by three or more), it would be -110. Which means you would need to put down $11 to make it even money.
Lastly, the people who set the points on each game are smart, and there’s a reason it's their job. They’re good at making the casino money. Enjoy it, but gamble responsibly.
Want more? Here’s a guide to sports betting for newbies.
