We often get asked the question, ‘what is the best sport to bet on?’ and the answer is surprisingly simple. The best sport to bet on is the one you know most about.
Of course, knowledge clearly isn’t enough otherwise every sports fan would be rolling in money and the bookmakers would be out of business. So, what else do you have to do to make your sport bets winning bets?
Here we discuss the most popular sports to bet on including easy to follow betting tips and advice for each one, so that you can enjoy the game, the gambling and the winning.
Sports Betting Strategy
Before we get started let’s get a few sports betting basics out of the way. To have a chance of making a profit you should have a betting strategy in place. Don’t panic – you don’t have to be a sport gambling guru or a mathematical genius to have a killer betting strategy.
Just by sticking to a few simple rules you can easily boost your betting profits. Check out our tips on how to create a fool-proof betting strategy. The nine simple tips mentioned here can be put into practice for every sport and for every bet – so it’s a perfect starting pace.
Much of what will make any sport bet successful isn’t down to who is on the ring or what happens on the field, but it is in fact, down to you and what you know. Blind betting with no research or attention to detail rarely, if ever pays off.
Betting is more a game of wits than it is of luck. To win, you need to have the heart for the sport, and a head for the betting.
So let’s look at those sports which have captured the hearts (and souls) of so many of you and let’s see if we can help you make some money of them.
Major League Baseball
In a regular season of Major League Baseball there is a whopping total of 2, 430 games played. The incredibly long-season means that you have more opportunities to place bets meaning more chances to win, potentially.
Even though you have a larger betting window, the variety of bets you can place on MLB are limited compared to that of the NFL or NBA. Therefore, since MLB is a low scoring game, the majority of bets are moneylines, but you also have the option of totals, runlines and future bets.
Despitehaving less betting variety, baseball betting remains one of the most popular sports to bet on and by just paying attention to a few details it can be a rather lucrative sport to get into.
The Power of the Underdog
Baseball was once considered the quintessential American sport, but according to recent research the favorite sport of America is now pro-football. However the fan base of MLB remains large and loyal with the Yankees still the most popular team throughout the land.
While teams like the Yankees and the Red Sox may be topping the popularity charts, much of that is purely based on historical affection and doesn’t necessarily reflect their wins or performance.
You can use this to your advantage. Don’t be tempted to follow the crowd, but instead look for the home underdog, or the bad team with the good pitcher, or the small favorites, bet which will have great odds and come up trumps.
Bet on the Homecoming Team
As we previously mentioned the MLB season is a long one, taking the teams out on tour for long stretches of 7 -10 games. So here is a nice easy betting tip, put your money on the team that has just returned to the nest as they tend to make it a winning home coming party.
National Football League
The new sports darling of America is the NFL, with over 33% of sports fans naming pro-football as their all-time favorite sport. It has a multitude of betting opportunities with up to 32 possible wagers per week, including but not limited to point-spreads, futures, parlays, over/unders and half-time lines. Of course we don’t advise you bet on all of them!
Find one that you’re comfortable with and you can begin to build a strategy on that particular type of bet for this particular sport. Becoming an expert in the bet as well as the sport will have you miles ahead in the game.
Until that time where you hit expert level, we can of course give you an overview of what to look out for when betting on the NFL.
With so much choice what’s the best bet to go for?
In the NFL, just as with baseball, betting against the favorite can work in your favor since 50% of games are won by underdogs. One NFL betting tip is to look out for the team that has won the past 5 or 6 games.
It is extremely rare that any team would win all 16 of their games so there’s a pretty good chance that their next game will be the end of their winning streak and the beginning of yours.
Point-Spread Betting
In NFL the most popular wager is the point-spread. Beware of late spread change – this will likely have been instigated by the bookmakers trying to attract more bets in one direction to protect their profit. It’s a good idea to know how sports betting works and how bookmakers make their profit, so that you can make yours.
The public bet is huge in NFL, being the nations’ favorite sport that makes sense.  So it’s often a good idea to monitor the lines carefully, and then do what the sharp bettors do and go against the public.
National Basketball Association
There are 82 games played over the course of a 6 month season in the NBA, so plenty of chances to nab a few winning bets.
The age old saying ‘the early bird catches the worm’ can be applied to your NBA betting strategy. Go for an overnight bet the moment the line is set as they tend to offer the best value as it’s a way for the bookies to peak betters interest and get the ball rolling.
Paying attention to line movement is sport betting 101, so make sure you know what to look how for and how to make line movement profitable.
Look out for instances where a top team was beaten by an underdog in their last match. Chances are the losing team is going to come back hard in their next game and win. Equally the team playing their second or third match away in a row is more likely to be tired and read for a fall. Make their loss, your gain.
Betting a Game of Averages
If you want to up the excitement of an NBA game you can always hold back and make an in-play bet. When it hits half-time, log on to the official NBA website where you can check out the percentages of the game you’re watching.
If, say Cleveland Cavaliers have been shooting at 56% but their average is 42% then you can assume that they won’t be able to keep up this high performance. Compare that to the percentages of the opposing team and you can make an informed, smart bet on the one more likely to win.
Ultimate Fighting Championships
For me personally, the mixed martial arts sport is one of the most exciting to bet on. It is fast, furious, intense and somewhat unpredictable, which might not sound like a smart bet but sure is an exciting one!
With just two opponents in the ring there are less variables and external factors acting upon the outcome. Yet at the same time this also means the pressure on those individuals is much greater, and with such a physical sport the results are often hard to predict.
However, that said you can still study each opponent, their fighter history, strengths and weakness, what styles do they prefer, are they more defensive or an attacker. You can also apply statistical data analysis to your UFC bet to increase your winning chances.
Prepositional Bets
There is more to UFC betting than just money line bets of who will win, and these other options are where the big bucks can be won. Â For example, going for a prepositional bet on who will win and how they will win could net you a huge return on your wager.
Or in the event of two well matched fighters you could try your luck and predict a draw. While it is a rare occurrence in the ring, the odds will be amazing and if it happens, you’ll hit the jackpot.
Put Your Money Where Your Head and Your Heart Are
So what have we learned? Basically, each sporting event holds profit potential and having a few tips and tricks up your sleeve can help you unlock it and reap huge rewards.
The best sport to bet on is the one you love to begin with, but don’t let your heart rule your bankroll. Remember knowledge is key, so stay tuned for more sports betting info and insider tips.
