Millions of people will watch the Super Bowl this Sunday with money—sometimes thousands of dollars—on the line. Sports betting is now legal in more states than ever, with online sites bringing the bookie right to your couch. It’s a big business, and many people are chasing a dream that could lead to financial freedom or even riches. But it’s not easy to turn a knowledge of sports into consistent profits, and most gamblers lose.
The main reason so many people try to make a living betting on sports is the belief that their superior knowledge of athletes and teams gives them an edge over the bookmakers. This perception is fed by the variety of information services available to sports fans, from data analytics to podcasts and picks from trusted experts. This makes some sports fans feel they can beat the odds and win every time, so they continue to wager despite their losses. And they blame their failures on bad luck or bad performances by the team or athlete they bet on.
But if you really want to be successful at sports betting, you need to treat it like a real business. And that means setting a budget, understanding how to read the odds and making smart decisions about which bets to place. You also need to understand the house advantage, which is how much the sportsbook takes on each bet. This is known as the “vig” and can be as high as 12%. There are ways to reduce the vig, however, such as placing bets on games with lower probabilities of winning (e.g., a game with a -110 moneyline).
In addition to the straight bet on a single outcome—such as who will win an NBA game—bettors can also make spread bets on individual players or teams. A spread bet involves the sportsbook “giving away” or “taking” a certain number of points, goals, runs and so on. If the team you bet on wins by more than the number of points you bet on, you’ve covered the spread and turned a profit.
Prop bets are the most ridiculous and dangerous of all bet types. These bets often have nothing to do with the game itself and are instead based on pop culture or other non-sports factors, such as how many songs Usher will perform at halftime or which Kansas City Chiefs star will appear in the State Farm ad first. These bets are usually limited to small amounts to prevent insiders from cashing in.
Sports betting is a fun and exciting way to add another layer of entertainment to sporting events, but it’s not a get-rich-quick scheme. The best way to be a successful sports bettor is to start small and work your way up, becoming an expert in a smaller NCAA conference and building a database of statistics for each team. You can then use this knowledge to find value on bets and improve your odds of winning. And remember, always bet what you can afford to lose and keep your hobby and moneymaking activities separate!