Sports Betting » Sports Betting Guide » What is a Futures Bet?
In most instances of sports betting, wagers are settled within a few hours or days of being placed. However, this isn’t always the case. We’ve laid out everything you need to know about futures betting and how to deal with waiting as long as up to 12 months in some cases for your wager to be finalized.
Futures Betting Explained
Futures bets are wagers that focus on long term events such as which team will be the championship winner in their respective league or which player will win MVP or a range of other accolades. This is why they are called “futures bets”.
Understanding Futures Odds
Futures odds are the same as moneyline odds. The only difference being that the majority of futures bets don’t have (-) odds for favorites and instead there are only (+) odds for underdogs.
This is because in leagues such as the NFL and NBA, they are so competitive and factors are constantly changing throughout the season. This then results in sportsbooks having no team they would put at minus odds. Also it wouldn’t be enticing to wager on unfavorable odds and have to wait months for the result.
How to Make Money on Super Bowl 54
There is a great amount of money to be made by placing futures bets. In the table below, you can see the profit that can be made by betting on the top 5 favorite teams to win Super Bowl 54.
If you placed a $1,000 wager on each team, it would be a total of $5,000. As long as the Chiefs, Eagles, Bills, Bengals or 49ers won you would make a profit ranging from $1,500 to $4,000.
| Team | Superbowl 54 Odds | Wager | Potential Profit |
| Chiefs | +650 | $1,000 | $6,500 |
| Eagles | +700 | $1,000 | $7,000 |
| Bills | +900 | $1,000 | $9,000 |
| Bengals | +900 | $1,000 | $9,000 |
| 49ers | +900 | $1,000 | $9,000 |
This type of strategy is very popular with bettors who wager on long term events as there is a very high chance that one of the teams above will win Super Bowl 54. Therefore, as long as one of them wins the game, you will have made a tremendous profit.
The only risk on placing this wager would be if a team who is currently not very good has an outstanding season and wins SB54.
How to Place a Futures Bet
You can place a futures bet in a matter of minutes! Follow the following steps to get things started.
Get a Sportsbook Account
You will need to sign up to at least one sportsbook before you can place a futures bet. You can claim up to $2,250 in bonus bets right now as when you sign up as a new customer to BETMGM & Caesars Sportsbook if you’re in DC, Maryland or Virginia.
Welcome Bonus
Up To $1,000
Bonus Expiry
7 days
Welcome Bonus
Up To $1,250
Bonus Expiry
14 days
Find a Futures Bet
Once you have a sportsbook account, go to any sports league and there will be a “futures” section. In this example, we will look at the NFL. The day after the Superbowl, the following years odds are released. Here we can see what the betting lines are for each team in the NFL to win the championship next year. All you need to do now is select which team or teams you want to wager on and they will be automatically added to your bet slip.
Place Your Futures Bet
In this example, we have placed a $100 wager on the Chiefs. This is what it would look like in your bet slip. The final thing you would need to do now, is to place the bet and wait until the big game.
Sports Betting in Your Area
Which Sports Use Futures Betting?
Pretty much all sports in America have futures betting of some kind available on their games. Here’s the rundown on the top leagues in the US.
NFL – There will always be futures betting available for the Super Bowl. It’s been a tradition for severl years now. In the old days when sports betting was only legal in Vegas, many people would flock to see what odds they would set for the following year the day after the Super Bowl finished.
NBA – When the finals are finish in June, odds will become available for next years NBA finals winners. This means you can bet on any of the 32 teams in the league to win a chip.
NHL – Every year ice hockey teams battle it out to lift the Stanley Cup. After it concludes in June, new odds will emerge and you will be able to wager on all of the teams to get to the promised land.
MLB – You can bet on which team will win the World Series later this year. There’s a lot of games to play between now and then, considering this won’t happen until October.
Why do Futures Odds Change?
There are a number of reasons why futures odds can change over the course of a season. Here are some of the main causes:
- Performance – Sometimes a team can do much better or worse than predicted at the start of a season. Therefore, it makes sense that the odds on whether they could be champions changes.
- Trades – Players may be traded half way through a season. This could then damage the chances of winning a championship.
- Team Sale – Owners could sell a team and new management could come along and completely change the dynamics of the team.
Futures Betting FAQs
Typically, the maximum amount of time would be 12 months.
Yes, futures odds change over time. However, once you have placed your bet, the odds on your bet will be locked in and remain the same.
Yes, futures betting is typically very profitable due to the fact that you can bet on several teams to win a championship and a long as one wins you will be profitable. However, the downside is the long waiting times that comes with this.
Yes, every major sportsbook in the US has futures betting available for customers to wager on.
Other Sportsbook Bets
Check out our fantastic sports betting guide for every piece of information you could ever need about sportsbooks and wagers.
Moneyline Betting Guide
Learn more about moneyline betting in our helpful guide.
Spread Betting Guide
Get a better understanding of spread betting here.
