Europe or other parts of the world, you’re going to encounter the two other types of listings. If you’re an American bettor, then chances are you’ll be using the U.S. Those are the basics to understanding odds. In real life, the Colts probably have less of a chance of winning and should pay more while the Bears are even more likely to lose than the odds reflect and should also pay more. The important thing to understand is they’re not “real.” They are skewed to ensure that the sportsbooks make a profit.īuilt into the odds is the sportsbook’s commission, which is silently collected on every bet. Odds are Skewedīetting odds can be given in various ways. As you can see, regardless of the format of the betting lines, the payout is the same. In this example, on a $1.00 bet on Chicago you would get back a total of $5.00 and on a $2.00 bet on the colts, you’d realize $3.00. To understand how much you will win, you would multiply the amount wagered by the betting line. In this system, the smaller the number the less risk involved and the better the chances are that a team will be victorious.
