While the vast majority of gambling, whether it be casino or sports betting, is based on short term results, there are other ways to put your skills to the test. While most sports bets concern a single game, match, or event, if you want to take a long term approach, the futures bet is for you.
While the options aren’t quite as eclectic as they are for prop bets, futures are probably the closest to props in terms of unique betting markets. They’re basically like prop bets with a real long lens. Here are some of the most common outcomes you might find for futures bets:
- Who will win the championship or trophy?
- How many wins a player/team will earn during a given season
- Whether a given team will make it to a given round of a tournament/playoff
- Who will win a given award such as MVP or Rookie of the Year?
- Over/unders on player stats such as goals, touchdowns, yards, points per game, etc.
- Who will win a given division or conference?
Basically, a futures bet is a bet that has a long scope and will take a significant period of time to payoff or not payoff. More than any other type of bet, you have to play the psychic here, because you’re not predicting the performance of a participant in one event or game or match, you’re usually predicting a performance that will last an entire season.
That being said, there are benefits to making futures bets. While they are tough because of the sheer threat of time, sportsbooks are also aware of these pitfalls, and adjust their odds to reflect that. That’s all to say that futures bets will offer very generous odds at the start of season because that’s when there are the most possible outcomes.
Many futures betting markets are removed once a season starts, but those that aren’t will have ever-changing odds and lines as the participants jockey for their place atop their respective games. Futures bets are best left for those that know the sport in question and have a strong feeling about a certain player or sport.
It’s not hard to cash in on these bets if you follow the sport closely, but if not, they can be like reading hieroglyphics. Thankfully, places like Sports Betting Focus can help those that can’t read sports betting hieroglyphics figure out how they can still make money betting even if they’re not a die hard fan.