American Football Review

Introduction to American Football Betting

American Football is not a global sport, but it is huge for betting around the world. It is more akin to Rugby than Soccer. It’s a contact sport whereby the objective is to gain territory and score points. Matches run in four quarters of 15 minutes. If the scores are tied after regular time, overtime takes place. Therefore, there is always a definite outcome. The National Football League (NFL) is the main competition in North America. Thirty-two teams compete in Divisions and Conferences. The culmination of the season is the Superbowl which identifies the NFL champions.

Betting Events

There is only one American Football betting event that matters, and that is the NFL. Teams play in Divisions, and there are two Conferences. The clubs are franchises based in the major cities in the USA. The sport does stage minor leagues, but the NFL franchises are fixed so there is no relegation and promotion. The sport is played at a competitive level in other countries, but it is a niche sport. There are no state championships and international team competitions. The unofficial world champions are the winners of the Superbowl, which is one of the biggest viewed sporting events in the world. American Football is not an Olympic sport.

Betting Types

Handicappers in Las Vegas publish the match odds, point’s line and spread and bookmakers take these odds. The pre-match markets fluctuate in the days before a fixture. Significant injury news and team selection cause betting changes. American Football is a popular in-play betting sport because of its nature and fluctuations in the scoring. Bookmakers suspend live betting after a key event such as a touchdown or major injury. Bettors can place an ante-post wager on the outright winners of each Division, Conference and the Superbowl.

American Football Markets

The three most popular match markets are the winner, point’s total and spread. These markets are available for each quarter and half. Another popular bet is the first scoring play by team, player and method. American Football provides the scope for many players and team special bets which are called Props in US betting parlance. Bookmakers offer over 200 betting options for a typical fixture in the NFL. There could be over 500 Props for the Superbowl where bettors can select from markets on every aspect of the game. Outright betting is huge on the winners of the NFL.