For a rookie sports bettor, it’s easy to get lost in this massive arena where making wagers takes more than a single decision. Winning is hard when one doesn’t know the fundamentals involved in this popular activity. So in this sports betting guide, let’s take a few minutes to run through the basics of online sports betting to make sure you’re doing the right steps.
Betting on sportsbooks
Sportsbooks are the betting sites that facilitate online sports betting, as well as the sports experts that set the odds for a particular match. It can be a regular sportsbook that accepts regular cash, or a cryptocurrency-based betting site like Nitrogen Sports.
What are the odds?
In sports betting, the odds are the central point of reference determining the standing of a playing team. It’s one of the most important things to consider in learning how to bet on sports. Odds are a numerical representation of a team’s winning chances according to the sportsbook’s perception. They usually come in decimal odds, fractional odds, or American odds.
Decimal odds
Decimal odds are the simplest odds format, so most sportsbooks use it. Calculating your potential payout using decimal odds is easy; you just have to multiply the amount of bet you want to place by the decimal odds presented by the book. Say, in a Bitcoin sportsbook you wish to bet 0.1 BTC on a team with decimal odds of 2.696, your total return is 0.2696 BTC (0.1 BTC x 2.696) or 0.27 BTC if rounded up.
Fractional Odds
Fractional odds, on the other hand, requires the division method. The odds show the amount of money you need to bet in the denominator to get the payout indicated in the numerator.
American Odds
American odds are read differently for the favored team and the underdog. The odds for the favorites are expressed with a negative sign as it indicates the amount of money you need to bet in order to win $100, while the odds for the underdogs are backed by a positive sign to show the amount of money you can win for every $100 staked.
If you like to do the math, calculating your own odds is a very good way to get an edge in sports betting.
Types of Betting Lines
Money Line
Short and sweet, money line betting is the simplest out of all of them - you just pick the outright winner of a match and if that team wins, you get your money.
Point Spread
Point spread betting is the most popular format in sports betting. It’s a bit more tricky, which makes it wildly interesting. To give more opportunities for bettors, sportsbooks assign point spreads to the teams as a way to level the playing field. To understand this better, you can up a more comprehensive sports betting guide on point spread betting to learn it better.
Totals (Over/Under)
In betting on totals, you don’t place wagers on a team. Instead, you try to predict the results. If you think the final score will fall under the predicted number, bet under. If it’s more, then you bet over.
Whether you’re a first-time or pro bettor, reviewing the essentials before placing a sports bet is key to winning. It takes a long time to finally master how to bet on sports, but starting in the right direction makes the journey way easier.
Nitrogen Sports is one of the first sportsbooks that offer a multi-channel platform in online gambling. Bettors get the opportunity to place their bets on sports, esports and play casino and poker all in one place. But at the forefront of this well-rounded wagering experience is the use of the biggest cryptocurrency in the world, that is bitcoin.
This is the newest addition to the growing landscape of online betting and if you want to learn more, the sportsbook offers an all-encompassing instructional content over at Nitrogen Sports Blog where latest news, updates, matchups, betting lines and bitcoin betting guides are published for free.