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What is Sports Betting?

Sports Betting

Online Gambling on sports is the general activity of predicting sports results by making a bet on the outcome of a sporting event. Perhaps more than other forms of online gambling, the legality and general acceptance of betting on sports vary from nation to nation.

In North America, for example, online gambling on sports is generally forbidden with many sportsbooks banned from operation. In many European nations, bookmaking is actually regarded as an honourable occupation and, while highly regulated, is not criminalised.

Sports Betting Explained

Proponents of legalised online sports betting generally regard it as a hobby for sports fans that increases their interest in particular sporting events, thus benefiting the leagues, teams and players they bet on through higher attendances and television audiences.

Opponents fear that, over and above the general ramifications of sports betting online or gambling if you will, it threatens the integrity of amateur and professional sport, the history of which includes numerous attempts by sports gamblers to fix matches.

Although defenders counter that the best bookmakers will invariably fight corruption just as fiercely as governing bodies and law enforcement agencies want to do.

Online Sportsbooks / Bookmakers

Aside from simple bets, sports betting is usually done via an online bookmaker. In areas where online gambling on sports is illegal, bettors usually make their sports wagers with illicit bookmakers, where thousands of bookmakers accept bets on sport around the world including the two most popular: betting on football and betting on horse racing.

The Bookmaker earns a commission of normally ten percent on all losing bets, and pays out a predetermined amount to winning football bets. Online bookmakers generally offer two types of bets on the winner of a sporting event: a straight-up or money line bet, or a point spread bet.

Money lines and straight-up prices are used to set odds on sports such as soccer, baseball and hockey as well as individual vs. individual matches, like boxing.

European bookmakers use straight-up odds, which are quoted based on a payout for a single bet unit; for example, a 2-1 favourite would be listed at a price of 1.50 pounds, whereas an underdog returning twice the amount bet would be listed at a price of 3 pounds.

Aside From Sports Betting...

Other than gambling online on sports, one can also lay any number of casino games such as poker, blackjack, slots, baccarat, craps and roulette. Gambling is not an effortless way to win, it needs you to persevere and also to practice to become better.

One of the ways of doing is to get acquainted with the different aspects of each and every game you might facing at the online gambling site of your choice.