If you’re new to betting odds, you might be wondering what they mean. To put it simply, betting odds are the chances or likelihood of you winning or losing a bet. For example, if you bet $10 that the Seattle Seahawks will win the Superbowl this year, the betting odds would be 10:1 (10 chances of you winning $10, and 1 chance of you losing $10).
If you’re curious about the origins of betting odds, you’ve come to the right place. Below, we’ll explore the fascinating history of betting odds and how they work.
Origins Of Betting Odds
Bets or wagers have been a part of sports since the early 1900s. The first officially recorded NFL game was on October 19, 1920, when two Boston businessmen bet $25,000 that a professional football player would throw a touchdown pass in the game. That player was Johnny McQuade, and he threw the pass to Jim Mandich. The number 25 was chosen because it was the 25th anniversary of the founding of the NFL. The first NBA game was played on October 29, 1946, and the first Super Bowl was played in 1967. So, if you’re looking for an excuse to celebrate a notable anniversary or event with some friendly competition, now you know what sport to choose!
The popularity of casino games grew rapidly in the 1960s and ‘70s, and the wagering came with it. While sportsbooks opened in the ‘70s to accommodate this new appetite for betting, it wasn’t until the 1980s that sites like Betonline.com and Mybookie.com developed their platforms and expanded their offerings to include non-sports wagering. And with the growth of the internet in the ‘90s, online sportsbooks quickly took over from the classic sportsbook located in a Las Vegas casino.
Betting Odds Increase As Sports Become More Complex
Over time, as sports have become more complex (from fewer players to more offense and special teams), the betting odds have reflected this increased level of competition. Since the early days of the NFL, the betting odds have never been the same. Just look at the history of the Super Bowl’s odds over the years; beginning at 2:1 in 1974, then rising as high as 9:2 in 1980 before falling back to earth at 6:4 in 2012.
Additionally, the increasing skill and popularity of fantasy sports has driven up the betting odds on those as well. But what happens when an underdog emerges and threatens to upset the established order? As sports gambling grew in popularity in the ‘80s and ‘90s, fans developed a new way of rooting for their favorite teams: betting on them! The early 2000s were all about the underdog, as you might have guessed, with teams like the Oakland Raiders and Tennessee Titans becoming successful due to clever play and a boost from the betting public. The rise of the SEGA ball in soccer resulted in oddsmakers valuing this popular game’s outcome at a whopping +650 percent!
One of the biggest changes to sports odds in the past century has been the advancement of technology. While the advent of the internet has driven the growth of online sportsbooks, it has also allowed for greater analytical study of sports. Due to advancements in technology and big data analysis, today’s sportsbooks can get a pretty good idea of the outcomes of sports in advance, which makes it much easier for them to set the lines and win. The growth of advanced statistics and scouting reports has also driven the growth of oddsmakers, because knowing the strengths and weaknesses of a team before a game helps them make better bets.
How Do Betting Odds Work?
So how exactly do betting odds work? As we mentioned above, the odds set by a sportsbook are the chances of you winning or losing a bet. To set these odds, the sportsbook will generally take a combination of the following:
- The score of the relevant sporting event
- How long the game will last
- The name of the sport
- The team you support (if any)
- If it’s a choice game
- The weather conditions
- Where the game will be played
- The date of the game
- How many points you’ll need to win
Odds are usually expressed as a fraction. For example, if you bet $10 on the New York Giants to win the Superbowl this year, the betting odds would be 106:1. The number 106 reflects the 6 chances the Giants have of winning, and the one chance of you losing. As the sportsbook’s odds get closer to 100:1, they become more attractive to bettors. When the odds hit 50:1, it’s considered a ‘fair’ game and you’re likely to be offered various types of insurance or payout options by the bookie (if you meet the minimum bet requirement).
Types Of Bets You Can Make
There are several distinct types of bets you can make, and it’s important to understand what they are before placing any bets. Broadly speaking, there’s two types of bets: Win and place. A win bet is based on whether or not a specified team will win. For example, if you bet $10 that the Milwaukee Brewers will win the World Series this year, you’re placing a win bet. The other type of bet is a place bet. This is most commonly used in sports betting, but it can also be applied to certain events like the Oscars or the Tour de France. A place bet is based on whether or not a team, person, or thing will occupy a specified position at a particular location at a particular time. For example, you can bet $10 on the New York Yankees to win the World Series this year, but you’re also entering a place bet that they’ll play in Los Angeles this year.
Additionally, there are several different types of win bets. One of the more popular ones is a ‘moneyline’ bet. This is probably the most basic and simplest form of win bet there is. To make a moneyline bet, you’ll typically need to bet money on a team (with a bookie) or event (with an online sportsbook), and you’ll want to make sure you’ve got money on the opposite end of the bet. So, if you bet $10 on the New York Giants, you’ll need to have $20 on the opposite end to make the bet. Another common type of win bet is a ‘parlay’ bet. Named after the act of “parlaying” or combining two or more bets into one wager, a parlay bet is based on the outcome of two or more games or events. For example, if you want to bet $10 on the Packers to beat the Bears this year, and you want to place that same bet on the Bucks to win the NBA title, you’ll need to place three separate bets of $2 on each team to make the parlay bet.
As we’ve established, the growth of fantasy sports has driven up the popularity of parlay betting. Today, many sportsbooks offer a variety of fantasy sports packages, and even the most rudimentary fantasy sports games like NASCAR and the NCAA Football & Basketball leagues have dozens of different wagering options.
How Do The Lines Form?
When a bookie takes your bet, they’ll often give you the option to lay off, or remove, part of it. Say you bet $10 on the New York Yankees to win the World Series. Perhaps the YANKEES are leading at the end of the third inning, which means you’ll need to win by three runs or more to cover your bet. If the Yankees open up a 4-1 lead at the end of the third inning, you can decide whether or not to keep your bet. If you want to lay off, or remove, your bet, you’ll need to call the bookie and request they ‘kill’ your bet. Alternatively, you can request they ‘void’ your bet, in which case your money will be returned (minus a small fee).
Once all of your bets are placed, the bookie will then calculate the overall odds of all the winning bets. Looking at our example above, the overall odds would be 12:1, since the total amount wagered on the Giants was $120 and we bet $10 that they would win the World Series. This 12:1 figure is known as the over/under or true odds, and it represents the median bet of all the gamblers who put money on that game. What this means is that most of the people who played that game believe that the Giants will win, but fewer than half think so.