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Sports Betting Guides
If you are looking for assistance or suggestions in your sports betting journey, you have come to the right place. Our betting experts have cultivated comprehensive guides to help you navigate your sports betting journey.
Betting type guides
If you are new to sports betting, you may be unfamiliar with some of the common bet types, like over/under and spread. Fortunately, we have betting guides for each of the major types of bets you can place at the top sportsbooks. Below is a brief introduction to the types of bets. Click on the link to the guides for more detailed explanations.
Betting type guides
Moneyline
Moneyline betting is one of the more straightforward types of bets. Essentially, you are betting on who wins a particular game, with shorter odds for favorites and longer odds for underdogs.
Point spread
A point spread is when oddsmakers even out the odds by setting a point margin that the favorite team needs to cover. The favorite needs to win by “X” amount of points and the underdog needs to come within “X” points of winning. It is the most common type of bet in major sports.
Over/under
Also known as “total” betting, this type of bet centers around the projected total number of points, runs or goals expected to be scored in a game.
Futures
As its name implies, futures betting is a type of bet where the outcome of a long-term, multi-stage event is predicted, usually far in advance. For example, picking who you think will win the NBA Finals before the playoffs (or season) start. In our review of each sportsbook, we found competitive futures odds on Caesars Sportsbook
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Parlay
Are you looking for a bet with a higher payout? A parlay is when multiple bets are strung together. If all “legs” of the parlay hit, you get a higher reward than if you make each bet separately. The downside is that if even one part of the parlay loses, so does your whole parlay bet.
Live betting
In contrast to pre-match betting, live bets are placed once the match is already underway. While live odds do get adjusted throughout, you may sense how momentum is shifting in a game and decide to bet accordingly.
Sport-specific betting guides
Sport-specific betting guides
NFL
The NFL is easily the most popular sport to bet on in the United States. You can bet on the spread, moneyline, over/under, player and team props and a whole lot more. NFL lines are as sharp as they come, so be sure to put in your research before placing your bets.
College football
College football has long owned fall Saturdays in the sports world. With the legalization of sports betting across the country, betting on college football has continued to grow in popularity each year.
The types of bets that are so popular in college football are relatively similar to NFL betting, though markets do differ and are not quite as extensive as they are in the NFL. FanDuel is our favorite sportsbook to use for betting on college football
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NBA
When betting on the NBA, you want to stay up-to-date as much as possible on the latest news, since players sitting out due to injury or rest can significantly affect the outcome and news often does not come out until close to tip-off.
Check out the NBA betting guide for much more information on the best practices for betting on the NBA.
College basketball
Even casual sports fans are familiar with betting in March, but the college basketball season runs from November through April and, with over 360 Division I teams, there are a plethora of games to bet on every night. There are great advanced analytics websites available for college basketball to help you get a potential betting edge.
MLB
Speaking of a long season, with 162 regular season games there are so many opportunities to bet on MLB games. Betting on baseball is a bit different that other sports in that instead of a point spread, the more common bet is on the run line, which you can read more about in our MLB betting guide. When it comes to where you should bet on MLB, DraftKings Sportsbook is our favorite due to it’s vast betting markets
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Betting strategy guides
If you are looking for a methodical strategy to help guide your bets, our comprehensive strategy guides may just be what you need. Betting strategies are recommended for all bettors, whether you are a beginner or more advanced. While you may win some bets by just going off-the-cuff, over the long term a tried and true system is more reliable for sustained success.
How to read odds
Before you can adopt a strategy, you need to know how to read odds. This guide is differentiated from our betting type guides in that the type guides explain and define the different types of bets, such as point spreads and totals. The guide about reading odds teaches how to read different odds, what the “+” and “-” mean and other relevant information.
Sports betting strategies
As mentioned earlier, betting strategies are crucial for long-term betting success. We go more in-depth on why this is the case in our sports betting strategies guide. Additionally, we explain several strategies for both basic and advanced bettors, We also get into which strategies are most applicable to each of the major sports. Tip No. 1: Take advantage of as many sportsbook promos as you can get your hands on, with BetMGM’s offers being consistently top-notch.
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FAQ
Covering the spread is when a team wins a point spread bet. See our point spread guide for more information.
The best way to make a profit while betting is to use a sports betting strategy and apply it appropriately to the bet you are making.
Football is the most bet-on sport in the United States.
Yes, most major sportsbooks offer live betting options.