Bets are the amount of money placed on a given outcome in a sporting event. They can be made on the winner of a game or on different aspects of a game such as total points, over/under bets, and moneyline bets. It is important to understand all of these betting options in order to make well-informed decisions when placing your bets. In addition, you should always be aware of your bankroll and avoid chasing bad bets, which is when you try to recoup your losses by placing additional bets.

Point spreads are used to make uneven games more fair by predicting certain conditions that will affect the final score and result of the game. For example, if one team is clearly stronger than another, oddsmakers may set the point spread at a number that makes it hard for the favorite to win outright but allows the underdog to lose by less than a certain amount and still win the bet. These bets can also be combined into parlays.

Over/Under bets, also known as totals, focus on the combined score between the two teams rather than who will win. The oddsmakers set the number that they think the teams will score and you predict whether the total will be over or under that amount. This type of bet is available for many sports and can be quite lucrative if you are correct in your predictions.

Lastly, futures bets are long-term bets on events that will occur in the future. These bets are based on things like divisional playoffs and championships and can offer a substantial payout if you are correct in your prediction. However, these bets can be difficult to win if you don’t have the right information about the players and teams involved.