How to Bet on the NFL

America has a whole host of popular sports, such as baseball, basketball and hockey, but football is the one that's the most loved of them all. From the multi-billion dollar Super Bowl to the regular NFL matches, it's a sport that appeals to sports fans everywhere.

As a game that's both exciting and technical, American football offers a lot of betting opportunities. If you're thinking of having a wager or two, here are some of the options you can consider for NFL betting.

NFL betting is wide and varied, so no matter how you like to bet, you'll be able to find something that catches your eye. However, there are some types of bets which are more popular than others. These include:

If you're new to betting, you're most likely to choose this type of bet. Also known as a straight-up, an NFL Moneyline bet is simply about picking the team that you think will win.

This is the easiest way to start for someone who's just looking to bet on NFL football online for the first time. With only two teams on the field, there's a one in two chance of being right!

Of course, bookies don't make it that easy, and if you're betting on the favourite, the returns you'll get will be much lower. Conversely, if you bet on the underdog and they romp home, you could get a very tidy payout.

Although more complex, a point spread is the most common of all the NFL betting trends. It's a way of evening the field for betting purposes, helping the underdogs to "win" and improving the favourites' payouts.

The underdog will be awarded a certain number of points; this is known as the spread. The other team must win by more points than the spread in order to win the bet. It doesn’t matter who wins the actual game; it’s the number of points they win by compared to the spread awarded for the game.

Spreads are often awarded in half points as this prevents the possibility of a tie.

The team who is the favourite is said to be "laying" the points. So, for example, if a team is laying 4.5 points in a spread, they'll need to win the game by at least five points in order for bets on them to be paid out.

The third type of most common bet is the predicted final score of both of the teams added together. The bookies decide what they think the total is likely to be, and punters decide whether the total will be over or under this figure.

Choosing this type of bet means you'll need to know your stats, such as the recent offensive and defensive scores, injuries, and results between the two teams.

Although the above three bets are the most common, there is a myriad of other wagers you can choose from on the NFL.

NFL prop bets include many different types of bets, but the one thing they all have in common is that the result of the game doesn't influence them. 

Prop bets are very popular during the Super Bowl but are also used during the regular season. They are usually connected to the performance of a particular player or the statistics of a team. However, you can generally find a prop bet on more or less anything you want - including the coin toss!

Some of the typical NFL proposition bets include:

• The highest-scoring quarter
• The number of touchdowns scored
• What will be the first scoring play?
• Total passing yards from a quarterback
• Total receiving yards from a receiver
• Total rushing yards by a running back
• Will the team that scores the first points win the game?
• Will the team that scores the last points win the game?
• Will the total number of points scored be odd or even?
• Will the first points come from a touchdown?

These are just some of the examples; NFL prop bets are one of the reasons why fans get so involved in betting on the game!

You'll find online NFL parlay betting, where there are multiple bets on a single ticket. You can place various different types of bets on other games, but by combining them on a parlay, you'll increase the potential payout.

The downside of a parlay is that to get any winnings, you'll need all of the bets on the ticket to win, and that can be pretty challenging.