The Science - and Fun - Behind Sports Betting in the US

There’s a lot of science, and fun, behind US sports betting, especially when you consider all of the options available. Since 2018, online gambling has been officially sanctioned in nearly 40 US states. These states include Arizona, Connecticut, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana, New Jersey, Nevada, New Hampshire, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wyoming. Although not technically a state, it’s even possible to gamble online in Washington D.C. Of course, the rules do vary by location, but the bottom line is that there’s a good chance you’re one of the 164 million American adults, and counting, who can engage in legalized sports betting online.

Understanding Odds

Understanding gambling odds is not as difficult as it can first seem. To put it simply, you need to divide one number by another, then multiply the sum by your bet amount to calculate your chances. If the larger number is divided by the smaller number, then the odds will pay out more than your original bet.

Here are some examples:

If I bet or wager $500, and the American Odds are set at +110, Decimal Odds at 2.10, Fractional Odds 11/10, and Implied Probability of 47.62%, I can win $550.00. That means my total payout is $1,050.00, which includes the return of my original $500 wager.
If, instead, I want to do Parlay betting (aka, accumulator), and base it on American Odds, and I bet $500, the calculation is just a bit different. If the Odds for Selection 1 are -110, and the Odds for Selection 2 are -200, my total payout would be $1431.82, which includes the return of the original $500 wager. It’s higher risk and difficulty, but also higher reward.

Understanding Betting Options

We mentioned Parlay betting in the previous topic. What does that mean and what are some other important terms?

Here’s a breakdown:

Moneyline – It’s a bet on which team or player will outright win, regardless of score.
Sports Betting Odds – Just as in the previous section, this is how much you can win versus how much you bet. The greater the negative number, the greater your winnings,, e.g., -110 wins back 110% percent of your bet.
Parlays – It’s made up of two or more individual wagers that both need to win for a payout. Potential payouts grow larger the more wagers that make up a parlay.
Spread – It’s the difference between two amounts or outcomes, helping to even a matchup between stronger and weaker opponents.
Totals – It’s a wager on the total number of points or other statistics in a game. It’s colloquially known as over/under.
Props – Short for proposition bet. It’s a wager not tied to the final score or outcome of a game. This often involves bets around individual players rather than teams.
Teaser – It’s a parlay variation that allows you to move the point spread or Totals a designated amount of points in your favor.

What Sports Can You Bet On?

There’s really no limit to the types of sports you can bet on. These include boxing, college basketball, college football, cricket, horse racing, MLB baseball, MLS soccer, MMA, NBA basketball, NFL football, NHL hockey, rugby, swimming, table tennis, and tennis. While not all of these sports are US-centric, it’s not a bad idea to try and broaden your horizons. And some of these non-US games, like rugby, are as good as sports competition gets.

science and mathematics in major league baseball — Major League Baseball is an ideal target for all kinds of strategies.

It’s also easy to get into betting for sports where you don’t understand the rules. Let’s use rugby as an example, which can be broken down as follows:

There are two 40-minutes halves, with a 10-minute break in-between each half.
There are 15 players to a team, with up to 7 substitutes.
The objective is to carry the ball over the other team’s goal line and touch the ball down to score.
The ball can only be passed laterally or backwards, never forwards.
A player can run, kick, or carry the ball in any direction.
If the ball goes out of play, there will be what’s called a lineout. With a lineout, players from both teams form a line and compete for the ball thrown in by a person on the team.

Easy, right? Now you know all you need to know to start enjoying watching rugby. Before you know it, you’ll be able to bet on competitive games with confidence.

Conclusion

As you can see, despite the reliance on science and mathematics, sports betting is not that difficult to understand. There are plenty of ways to bet, plenty of sports to bet on, and a whole lot of fun to be had watching the action unfold.