In the event that you are serious about making a little money from watching your favorite sports, you could consider making a bet. Conversely, if you really want to be in with the chance of winning you should take some time in understanding sports betting odds.

Firstly, there are many of distinct terms that should be considered in almost any knowledge of sports betting odds. The ‘stake’ is the sum of cash that you’ll be betting; ‘short odds’ mean that the likelihood of the event occurring is high; ‘odds against’ means that the return for winning is more than twice the total amount of the initial bet placed. Remembering these terms shall take you one step closer to understanding sports betting odds.

When displaying the odds of sporting events, Stanford official decimal odds or fractional odds tend to be used. If you want to understand sports betting odds then you shall need to understand these systems. Fractional odds will be more popular within the UK, and are represented in a way that states the total available to the greater. For instance, odds of 4/1 (four-to-one) mean that, should they win, the higher could make $400 on a $100 stake.

A far more common system for displaying sports betting odds is the decimal system. These odds are worked out by dividing 100 through the chance that an event has of winning. For instance, an event with a 20% chance would work out at 100 divided by 20, which is 5. In the US odds are given differently again, as a positive or negative number where a number next to a positive states how much you will win for a 100 stake, or possibly a negative means the amount you need to bet to win 100. Understanding these methods shall take you some way in understanding sports betting odds, leaving you with an even better chance of picking the right sides.