If the thought of betting on single games or events several times per week sounds like too much work, a future bet may the best alternative. Futures odds typically pay a higher return and focus on events and awards outcomes that we won’t know for months or even a year from now. This guide will explain future bets in detail with real-world examples, explain implied probabilities and pros and cons of placing a future bet wager.
Here are the best online sportsbooks in the United States that post futures odds and accept futures bets.
Unlike the most common sports betting wagers such as point spreads, moneylines and over-under point totals, futures bet are placed on events, series and awards that are decided later on as opposed to the same day or week. Those who bet on futures have the advantage of better odds at the open, while one drawback is that they can tie up your bankroll for months. So, it’s wise to set a futures bet budget prior to dipping your toe in those waters.
Future odds will come in a list form, showing each team/player and their odds to win. They are often ranked from best chances to win to worst.
For example, if you check the futures odds for Super Bowl, you will see the teams with the best chance to win will be at the top. Let’s say team A has futures odds of +500. This means you will win $500 on a $100 bet if team A wins.
Towards the bottom, you will see the odds of winning getting lower but they do provide huge profits. Even though +2,800 odds (winning $2,800 on a $100 bet) seem astronomical, it doesn’t come without risks.
Bettors can wager on futures betting lines in most pro sports and some college sports. Here are some of the sports betting futures markets you can choose at most sportsbooks.
NHL Hockey
Soccer: Association Football
College Football
College Basketball
PGA and LIV Golf
UFC
Boxing
When reading the tea leaves and placing a futures bet for down the road, it can be easy to get hung up on the negative aspects of futures wagers, but if you take a step back, the pros outweigh the cons.
Here we include a section of important concepts you need to understand before making bets. These concepts can have a huge impact on your end of the season bottom line.
Hedging your bets is perhaps the most important concept you need to pay attention to. Hedging your bets is in its most basic form, to be able to bet on multiple teams or players (depending on what sports you are betting on) across the season. It is nice to bet on one team and get paid when they win but why put your eggs in one basket when you can put them in multiple?
Let’s say you bet $100 on one team with 80 to 1 odds. Those are pretty high odds but if your team wins, you get $8000 and if they lose, you get $0. What can you do to prevent losing all your money? The answer is hedging your bets. This way you will lock up some winnings regardless of who wins.
As an example, let’s say the moneyline odds are as follows;
You can place a bet on team B to guarantee a portion of your winnings.
If you bet $20,000 on team B what can happen is;
If team B wins, you would win $10,000 for that bet and win $0 for your futures bet
If team B loses, you would win $40,000 for your futures bet but lose $20,000 on your team B bet.
If you hedge, no matter who wins, you make money. Yes, it is not $40,000 but it’s not $0 either. Now, it should be said that it is not wise to get greedy and end the season with $0. You should have a good understanding of when to hedge your bets and be prepared for it. You will need to have more money to hedge but, in the end, there is no real risk of losing money since you win regardless of which team takes the game.
A great strategy is to bet on multiple teams to win a season. If you bet $100 on three different teams to win, you are still going to profit regardless. This strategy makes sense because if you can narrow your options down to two or three teams you think can win, you will still be in the game if one of your teams loses and falls out of the season.
Most people will place futures bets from day one but futures bets will usually be available all throughout the season. The odds are going to adjust depending on how the season is going and how people are choosing to bet on different teams. This will create a lot of opportunities if and when the betting public reacts aggressively to something.
Let’s say your favourite team to win the Super Bowl has their superstar player injured mid season. The betting public will start betting heavily on other teams and move away from supporting this team. But if you know your team has a backup and you think the rest of the team will pick up the pieces, this is a great time to place a futures bet.
Once you get comfortable reading futures odds, know that each futures bet comes with an implied probability. This can help you determine if there is value on the board and if an oddsmaker is undervaluing a team or person.
The formula to convert odds depends if you’re betting on plus or minus money.
Negative American odds / (Negative American odds + 100) * 100 = implied probability
100 / (positive American odds + 100) * 100 = implied probability
At +300, the Chiefs implied probability of achieving the futures outcome is 25%.
Gamble Online is in the process of making an odds calculator available on the site. This will help to easily convert futures odds into that implied probability and help you find the best value on odds boards.
As the name implies, a futures bet is a wager that will be decided later in the sports and entertainment calendar. Examples of futures bets include odds to win the Super Bowl, odds to win MVP or even odds to take home the most Oscars at the Academy Awards.
If you’re familiar with reading moneyline odds, you can read futures odds as they are the same. If you’re unfamiliar, futures odds are easily explained like this:
| Teams | Futures Odds to Win Super Bowl 57 |
| Chiefs | +700 |
| Bills | +750 |
| 49ers | +1100 |
You can read +700 as 7-to-1, which means for every $100 wagered you can win $700 should Kansas City win the Super Bowl. At +750, $100 wagers pays $750 should the Bills raise the Lombardi Trophy and $1100 for every $100 wagered if San Francisco wins.
First you need to sign up for an account at one of the best online sportsbooks, accept a welcome bonus and fund your account. After those three steps are complete, head over to the operator’s sportsbook and start reviewing futures odds to place your wager.
Yes, nearly every online sportsbook we recommend offers some form of futures betting from sports, like NFL futures betting, to MLB MVP futures odds to Emmy nominees odds of winning an award.
Yes, but some sportsbooks don’t allow bettors to parlay futures bets. Since futures have low odds and pay well anyway, sportsbooks might not allow bettors to stack several bets with such a big payout. Also, only one team per league wins the championship each year, so parlayed futures bets must include multiple leagues or a championship and MVP race from the same league.
No. If you placed a futures bet by mistake and you immediately ask the bookmaker to void the bet, then the book might void the bet depending on its house rules. If you wait two months to cancel the bet, it won’t work. Some sportsbooks have an early cashout option if the bet has a high risk of losing. You cancel the bet by taking a reduced percentage of the original bet, meaning you’ll lose the bet automatically (but lose less cash).
Depends on your definition of wise, but futures bets can be of great odds value if you place them early enough in the sports calendar.
