Sports betting is a type of gambling in which you place a wager on a sporting event. It can be a fun way to watch your favorite team, but it can also be very risky. You can lose money or even go bankrupt if you don’t know what you are doing.
Betting odds are calculated using a mathematical formula to determine the probability that a team will win or lose a game. The number is based on a variety of factors including the past performance of the team, injuries, weather, trends and more.
+EV Bets
Expected value (EV) bets are one of the most important and fundamental types of sports betting strategies. They can give you a big advantage over most sports bettors. This method can be very lucrative over time if you master it correctly.
You should always consider EV bets when you make a bet. They can help you avoid the house edge, which is a negative percentage of your bet that the sportsbook takes out of your winnings.
Buying the Underdog
Many people avoid underdog bets, but they can pay off when the better team is favored by a large amount of points. This is because they have a lower risk: reward ratio than the favorites and can usually lose by less than their point spread.
Shopping the Lines
A big reason why sportsbooks set lines is to try and balance their books between teams. Ideally, they would have the same amount of money bet on both sides of a match, but this isn’t always possible.
When this happens, they move the lines to try and balance out the amount of action on both sides of the match. This gives casual bettors a chance to win more, but it also creates value for sharp bettors who choose the other side.
Fading the Public
This strategy is often called “fading the public” or “betting against the masses.” It’s not difficult to do, but it does take practice. You’ll need to stay on top of offseason, preseason and in-season moves so you don’t miss them.
You’ll also need to be aware of the spreads and totals. These can vary slightly between sportsbooks, but they’re a great way to find potential value bets.
Draws are a good bet for value, especially when you’re looking at games where the home team has a strong motivation to keep a score low. This is often the case in European soccer, where teams from the higher league average compete against each other at home.
The best way to find value bets is to sign up for several sportsbooks and shop the lines. This can be time consuming, but it’s well worth the effort.
Another useful tool to use when betting on sports is the Live Odds Page at most sportsbooks. This page will display the current betting odds for each team, which you can easily compare with other sportsbooks to see which one offers the highest price.