Whether you’re looking for a place to watch the game live or place a bet on the next big event, there are several important things you should know about official betting. These include the rules, restrictions, and legality of sports gambling.

New to Sports Betting

There are a lot of terms and phrases that you may not be familiar with when it comes to betting on sports. The most basic way to describe sports betting is to put money behind an outcome of your choice and get paid if that outcome happens. If you’re betting on a team to win, that’s called a moneyline bet; if you’re betting on a team to lose by a certain number of points, that’s a point spread bet.

In addition to moneyline bets, you can also place exotic bets. An “exacta” entails picking the first two finishers in order; a “quinella” is the same thing, but it can be placed on any pair of horses; and a “trifecta box” entails picking the first three finishers in any order. There are even more exotic wagers, such as a daily double and a pick six, which are both extremely difficult to hit.

The legality of sports betting in the United States has varied by state. Some have passed laws to allow it, while others have prohibited it. The National Hockey League, for example, has not taken a public position on sports gambling but has signed sponsorship deals with several betting providers. This is in part because the NHL is a smaller league and therefore less vulnerable to negative issues that have plagued some of its bigger counterparts.