Sports gambling has continued to be a growth industry worldwide. A popular sport to bet on is American football. The single largest game that is bet on in the United States is the Super Bowl. In the early 1990s, about $40 million was legally wagered on the game, with that amount increasing to more than $90 million by the latter part of this decade. If you have made the choice to place a bet on a football game but do not have much experience, you will want to understand the various wagering options available to you.

Available Betting Methods

There are several betting methods available for you to choose from for football betting. The most popular option is a spread or straight bet. When you choose this option, there will be a point spread for the game that normally favors one team over the other by a set number of points. For example, if the Indianapolis Colts were playing the Minnesota Vikings, you may see a spread that looks similar to Indianapolis -6.5 Minnesota +6.5. This means that Indianapolis is favored by 6.5 points, and if you were to bet on Minnesota, you get 6.5 points added to the Vikings' score at the end of the game. Other betting methods include: Money LIne, which is a variant of the spread bet; Over/Under, where you bet on whether the total score will be over or under a set amount; and exotic bets such as who will score first, the last team to score, who will win the coin flip, bets for who will be winning at halftime, total score, and exotic information. Most people new to betting will choose to bet on the spread since that is the simplest variant of betting to understand.

Finding a Place to Bet

If you live near an area that has casinos that support sports betting, these will be the easiest places for you to place a bet and pick up your winnings in a timely manner. Many people, however, do not live close to an area that supports casino gambling. If that's your circumstance, you can turn to online gambling on football or the Super Bowl. You will need to read the terms of service for the website that you choose to use for your wagers as there are limitations on the method of payment if you win and the location(s) where users can legally receive payments for online wagering. Many online gambling establishments will provide extra benefits that you cannot get at the casino, such as bonus cash for an initial deposit, breaks on the point spread, and other betting opportunities that might not be available at the casino. You will be required to have a credit card or debit card to place your bet.

Choosing Your Wager

Choosing the method to use for betting on the Super Bowl or other football games is normally the toughest decision for new gamblers. Many people will only bet on the Super Bowl during the year as a recreational aspect to the evening's activities. If you find yourself in this circumstance, one of the teams will be favored by a set number of points over the other team. The teams may or may not have played against each other during the regular season, so you will want to see if they did and what the score was. If they did not play against each other, then you can find out how well the two teams did against common opponents. This may indicate how one team may perform against the other in the Super Bowl. Other popular methods include signing up for a paid or free handicap service at one of the online resources in order to leverage the knowledge of a sports betting expert in making your wager.

Source:

Lock Smith Sports: How Much is Bet on the Super Bowl?

Football Betting: Football Betting Basics

Coverwire: Different Ways to Bet on Sporting Events

More Information:

Super Bowl Betting Methods

Las Vegas Sports Betting

Sportsbook Online Betting