As part of the process, other than making your bet selection and choosing how much to stake, you also have to choose how and where to place your bet. We briefly explain the process for placing a wager with an online sportsbook and the different types of wagers that you can make.
Placing an Online Bet with a US Online Sportsbook
Important points:
- You need to be at least 21-years-of-age to register for an online betting site in the majority of the states that have legalized Sports betting.
- You can register for your online sportsbook account from anywhere in the United States.
- However, you must be physically located within the state's lines in order to place your wagers. All licensed and regulated online sportsbooks offered in the US are protected by the latest in geolocation technology.
Assuming you’ve already registered with a quality online US sportsbook and deposited funds, you’re ready to place a bet. It is an incredibly straightforward process.
- Most online sportsbooks display a list of different sports, and clicking on each sport will bring up a list of the currently available betting markets.
- Selections will be displayed for each betting market along with their odds.
- Once you’ve made a selection, it will be added to your betting slip.
- Enter the amount you wish to stake and confirm the wager.
- The appropriate amount of funds will be deducted from your account.
- If you wish, watch the game or sporting event play out. Live in-play betting options are regularly available throughout your chosen game or sporting event.
- Successful wagers are usually paid out automatically directly into your betting account, available for reinvestment into further wagers, or for withdrawal.
Popular Online Sportsbook Betting Types
- Money line – A straightforward bet on your pick to win or lose any single game or standalone sporting event.
- Points Spread – Point spread betting is a very popular method of sports betting. For example, if you are wagering on an NBA match between the Nets and the Knicks, this may involve giving the Nets a head start (+4.5) or handicapping the Knicks (-4.5) to even the contest.
- Totals or Over/Under – Bet on whether the combined point totals of the two teams competing in a single sporting contest are over or under the number offered by the betting site. For example, in NFL Betting, imagine a New York Giants vs. Dallas Cowboys match-up at Over 45.5/Under 45.5. If you believe the two teams will combine to score 46 points or more, you would bet on the over. If you expect them to score less than a combined 45 points, you would bet on the under.
- First Points/Goal/Basket/Home Run etc – (team-or-player)– Place a wager on which team or player will make the first scoring play of any sports match.
- Parlay Wager – Parlay wagers are an accumulated number of bets taken over a selection of games. Odds accumulate just like compound interest with each successful leg of the parlay delivering huge wins if all legs of the bet end up being successful. Occasionally sports books have promotional offers of ‘lose one leg of parlay and have your bet pay out as a winner’.
- Prop Betting – Prop bets (abbreviation for proposition bets) are usually wagers taken out on how particular players will perform, or what will happen at a certain point in a game or sporting event. Online sportsbook can sometimes offer hundreds of prop bets alone on a single NFL game for example. For example, prop betting can be as diverse as wagering on whether Patrick Mahomes has more passing yards than Tom Brady this week, or if the first out of the World Series will be a strikeout or not. Prop betting offers endless sports betting possibilities.
- Futures Betting – Bet on a future outcome of any sport taken out months or even years in advance of the event taking place. Futures wagers are usually on end-of-season events like Super Bowl winners, NBA Finals Champions, NHL Stanley Cup winners, MLB Word Series Champions etc.
