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American football is the most popular sport in the US and its professional league, the NFL, counts millions of watchers worldwide, during the regular season as well as in the Playoffs. A lot of enthusiasts aren’t satisfied with just watching the games and choose to bet on their franchise, their favourite players or a variety of other factors. When it comes to betting, American football is nothing short of a paradise, because it is possible to guess almost everything that will happen during the three hours in which the opposing teams will face each other on the gridiron. There is a simple and quick way to increase the budget available for betting. It is possible to take advantage of the bonus bets that online operators offer to new and existing users, as well as exploiting promotions and offers that bookmakers propose quite often to attract bettors and give them an easy way to bet, as often and as quickly as possible.
As NFL popularity rises, football betting does the same
The NFL is becoming more and more popular even on the European side of the Atlantic Ocean. The numbers of watchers and bettors is constantly increasing, in part because of regular season games now being staged on our shores but also due to the dizzying amount of statistics that are available to sportsbook and the simplicity and value of the betting markets. Whoever likes set rules and a level playing field, when it comes to sports betting, can turn to the NFL and start a betting journey which could become quite prolific.
Nowadays, the media are doing very good in hyping NFL games, in the States as well as in Europe. They are managing to create a loud buzz that draws ratings, increasing the interest in the product. The NFL, obviously, sustains this way of operating. The league is more than happy to reach a new audience and increase its actual following. The seasoned bettor should not be fooled by the noise created by outlets, trying to sell improvised odds or compelling stories about an upcoming game. It is very important to filter out all the media buzz around a match-up and use the huge amounts of data available out there about a franchise, a player, or a particular series, to find winning bets. There are several ways to bet on the NFL and we are about to know the most popular ones.
The moneyline
Betting the moneyline is as simple and as straightforward as possible. The bettor must pick the winner of a given match-up, without caring for everything else that could happen during the game.
The points total
This market is different and can pay way more than the moneyline. Here, points are very important. The bookmaker suggests a number, representing a certain amount of points scored, by both teams. It doesn’t matter which franchise wins and which loses, what matters is guessing correctly the over/ under in total points. It goes without saying that a bettor can play the moneyline and the total in the same bet slip. In that case, though, he or she must win both the bets.
The spread or the handicap
This is the most important market in NFL betting. The same could be said about the NCAA or Canadian football. One side is given a point advantage, so that both teams are close to even money. This point spread is generally referred to as the handicap. Professional bettors, bookmakers and even the mainstream media covering American football determines the chances of both teams winning by calculating the spread. The handicap levels the playing field by countering the different strengths of NFL teams and determines the favourite and the underdog in every match-up. Reading Kansas City Chiefs – 5.0 means that KC is favoured to win by more than 5 points so the handicap in their favour begins with a 5 points head start.
Odds makers tend to commit mistakes in their forecasts while calculating the spread. This offers a way to win more money.
Usually, it is quite difficult to find good odds while betting the moneyline. The odds are more interesting in the points total market, but serious bettors tend to focus on the handicap. Since betting the spread is more difficult, a good way to start is studying the historical game odds of a good team, such as the Philadelphia Eagles, recent Super Bowl champions. In this way, it is easier to master the sportsbook way of releasing the spread and understand how and when it is better to bet, for or against the spread.
The secret is being selective. Almost nobody can win by betting on every single NFL game. A wise bettor knows some franchises and their best and worst match-ups.
