Types of Football Bets
This article covers regular types of football bets. Next, read our Special types of football bets article , which explains Parlays, Teasers, Proposition Bets and Futures.
Betting on Football
Football is a highly competitive and popular sport, and as such there are many different ways to enjoy, as well as gain from watching this great game. For those sports fans that like to bet against friends, or even the odds, will surely enjoy learning about the many different ways a person can bet on football. There is a general term used for most bets, it is the Straight bet, which encompasses various types of betting. The general types of straight bets include, but are not limited to, Moneyline, Spread, and Totals; within these three there are specific betting types like halftime and quarter bets, and Over / Under bets. This section will explain these types of bets so that a player has a general grasp of what is present on an online sportsbook.
Straight Bets
These are the most popular and common forms of betting, which include rules for each type, but the general rules consist of picking a winner and betting on that team. There are variations of this betting style. For these types of bets, there is a Favorite and an Underdog, and each is represented by a symbol; a – sign for the favorite, and a + sign for the underdog. These symbols are followed by a numeric value which has different meanings depending on the bet type.
Moneyline Bet
The moneyline bet is the most straight forward betting type there is on any online sportsbook. It is where the bettor simply chooses which team will win, and base their payout on the odds that are given by the sportsbook, or oddsmakers. The numeric value that goes along with this type of bet represents two different aspects. If a bettor picks the favorite to win, the numeric value this team has is the amount of money the bettor needs to wager in order to win $100, on top of their bet. However, if they bet on the underdog, the numeric value represents how much the bettor will win if they bet $100.
Indianapolis Colts -120
New England Patriots +130
Based on the above odds, if a bettor picks the Colts to win, they must wager $120 in order to win $100; inversely, if they bet on the Patriots, they will win $130 every $100 wagered. This is done due to the fact that the Favorite pick has a greater chance of winning, based on research and stats.
Spread Bet
The spread bet depends on two factors, who wins the match and by how many points they win it by; that is why this is also called a Point Spread bet. Just like the moneyline bet, the spread has the regular odds with a favorite and an underdog, and in some instances the sportsbooks will not show the odds but rather the point spread.
Indianapolis Colts -9
New England Patriots +9
The numeric value in this type of bet also has two differences when betting on the favorite or against. As the favorite is the Colts, they must win by more than 9 points in order for the bettor to get a payout. However, if they bet against the Colts that means that the Patriots have to end the game with a point spread of less than 9 points, even if they lose the match.
Totals Bet
This type of bet is also very straight forward and depends heavily on the points scored, and less on which team wins. Bettors are given a numeric value, and based on their predictions, they can either bet that the game will end with that many points or not. There is a specific bet type that falls under this bet type, and the point spread bet; Over / Under bet. These two types of bets go hand in hand.
Specific Straight Bets
Over / Under Bet
When a bettor chooses to wager by using the totals bet type, they are also given a choice to bet on the Over / Under. The sportsbook gives the numeric value of the total amount of points that have a good chance of being scored, and with that the bettor has two choices. They can decide that the number is too high, and believe the game will end with less points scored; they will bet Under. On the other hand, if they think the total points scored it too low, and the game will end with more points, they bet the Over. These bets usually carry over an extra amount; $100 won for every $115 bet.
Halftime and Quarter Bets
These are also very common line bets when it comes to betting on the NFL and football in general. As the game is played in Quarters, and has a halftime, sportsbooks take this opportunity to create a type of bet specific to those times. They work the same way, but the odds are adjusted after each quarter and at halftime. These bets only take into account the points scored during that specific quarter or half.
Colts -4
Patriots 115
In this case, if the bettor picks the Colts, and the half ends with a score of Colts 15 – 18 Patriots, then the bettor will lose since the Colts did not win the half by more than 4 points. However, if they had bet on the +4 of the Patriots, they would have won since they managed to maintain the score under a 4 point spread. If by chance the game ends and the point spread is equal, the bet is a tie, and the original amount wagered is given back.
