Moneyline Betting

Which Sports Support Moneyline Betting?

Baseball, soccer, and ice hockey are mostly moneyline betting, since these sports do not have point spreads moneylines are the default forms of wagering.

Football and basketball have moneylines in addition to point spreads. In recent years, football moneylines have become extremely popular among sports bettors. Moneyline betting is based on the amount bet per $100.

Let’s look at look an example of a baseball moneyline:

Here’s an example of an American football moneyline:

Tips for Moneyline Betting

Moneyline betting can be tough to tackle for some bettors, but it is truly a balance of risk vs reward.

For instance, a large favorite of -300 or more is most likely to win going to win their matchup, but that large price means you’ll be risking a lot for a small payout.

On a moneyline bet of -300, you’ll need to win your bet 75% of the time just to break even. When your odds jump even higher to -400, you’ll need to win your bet 80% of the time to show a profit.

You are risking a lot to win very little and even though a large favorite will win most of the time, when they do lose, you will find yourself out a lot of money. We try to stay away from large favorite moneylines, because the amount you must risk is very high and the payoff is low.

On the other hand, underdog moneylines can be lucrative wagering opportunities.

In cases when there is a point spread and moneyline offered on an event, such as an NFL football game, many bettors will place a wager on the moneyline and point spread of an underdog they feel has a chance to pull the upset. They will safely bet the point spread because they feel the game will be close, but will also put themselves in line for a nice payday if the underdog wins straight-up.

Final Thoughts on Moneyline Betting

There is no magic formula for moneyline betting, you’ll simply need to pick your spots wisely and balance your risk versus your potential reward.

In general, I think this means taking higher upside picks, such as underdogs rather than taking large favorites. However, you should analyze each game independently looking for value in both favorite and underdog moneylines.