Legal US Online Football Betting Guide
Betting on football has never been more popular, and according to the American Gaming Association (AGA), close to $100 billion is wagered on the NFL and NCAAF games each year, with domestic and offshore books splitting the action. But is any of this legal?
To learn more, read on to find out the laws involved with joining and using the best online sportsbook sites in our legal online US football betting guide.
Is it Legal to Bet on Football in the United States?
Depending on where you live, you may have more than one option for betting on football. Due to PASPA's repeal, state lawmakers are now allowed to pass their own legislation and determine whether to legalize sports wagering in their respective states. Multiple states have already legalized and launched domestic sportsbook gambling initiatives.
Legal international sportsbooks have accepted Americans for decades, and do not violate any US laws. Our brands, combined, cover the entire United States.
Best USA Friendly Sportsbook To Bet On Football Games
Bovada Sportsbook
50% Bonus Up To $1,000 For New Players
If you like betting on football, Bovada Sportsbook gives you the home-field advantage. Players familiar with the big brands know Bovada is a name they can trust. For football, Bovada has everything: NFL, the Super Bowl, college football, Canadian Football, Australian Rules Football, halftime odds, props, futures, teasers, parlays, and more.
Site Rating
Compability
Pros
US Friendly - Most US States Accepted
Most reputable name in online sports betting
Licensed by Curacao - Operates within Costa Rica
Generous 50% bonus up to $1,000 for new members
Easy deposits using credit cards or Bitcoin/crypto
Fast and reliable payouts guaranteed
Cons
Only US, Mexico and Brazil players accepted
Excluded States: CO, CT, DC, DE, KS, LA, MD, MI, NJ, NV, NY, OH, PA, WV
Limited deposit options compared to other sites
Top Legal USA Football Betting Sites
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Is It Safe To Bet On Football Games Online?
Yes, but only if you place a wager through a legitimate destination that is subject to strict industry oversight. Some states offer domestic options of this nature to expand the range of opportunities offered by reputable, US-facing offshore sportsbooks. Our staff has reviewed and vetted the sites linked to on this page and has verified that these sites are operating legally within the industry and always process their payouts for winning football bets reliably and effectively.
Betting On NFL Football
The most popular sports league in the United States in terms of individual game viewership is also the most popular sport to gamble on in the country with estimates of around $55 billion to be risked on the NFL for this season alone – meaning 98% of all NFL action comes from online offshore sportsbooks.
NFL odds and game lines feature much tighter margins and lower numbers when compared to its collegiate counterpart. This is because the professional tier of the sport is the pinnacle for American football, and playing the game perfectly is expected each week.
Games in the NFL can literally be decided on one play where the outcome simply swings one way because one player gave 100% and his opponent only gave 99%, making the phrase “game of inches” hold even more weight due the sheer amount of games being decided on only an inch many times in the past with more to surely come in the future.
Oddsmakers can predict all of this on a regular basis since they routinely know which side holds more value and, more importantly – which side can come up with that extra inch to guarantee a winning wager. Learn more from our page targeting legal NFL betting online.
Betting On NCAAF College Football
College football is where the sport began. It is by far the most popular college sport in the country today in terms of viewership and money gambled, with roughly $45 billion risked annually.
The NCAA organizes and legislates the sport, and Division I is where most of the action takes place since it features the best athletes, programs, and conferences. In late December, CFP games begin, heating up the action into the winter months.
The odds and lines may be bigger than the pros, but don’t get fooled into thinking that a team much less talented has no chance of winning or what the top priority should be: covering.
Betting on college football games is like investing in stocks where even the most reliable stock, or team, can plummet after just one bad product release or game played in this analogy. It can be a volatile market, to say the least, but the best gamblers, much like the best investors, can reliably predict when chaos will strike and reap the rewards after all is said and done each Saturday night.
The XFL
The XFL is back and this time the league is poised to last at least a few years giving the massive funding provided by Alpha Entertainment and owner Vince McMahon. The league is different from the NFL in many ways but one of the most notable differences is that the teams are owned by the XFL instead of franchise owners. There will also only be eight teams that compete in a ten-game season that concludes after a two-week playoff system.
The XFL is also geared to be gambling-friendly considering almost every team (except Florida) is located in a state that has passed or has pending sports betting legislation. Our guide to betting on the XFL will offer our advice on the best XFL sportsbooks and have you ready for the inaugural season of the revamped football league that is set to begin on February 8th, 2020.
The USFL
The United States Football League (USFL) returned to the field in 2022 after folding in 1985 under the business practices of Donald Trump Sr. Eight teams will suit up for the long-awaited reboot and will face off over the span of 12 weeks. Betting on USFL games is available to US bettors via online sportsbooks such as Bovada, MyBookie, etc., with props, futures, game lines, and more.
FCF
Fan-Controlled Football is no longer operating. There is a chance that FCF could return in the next year or two, but we here at LBO believe that this league is caput.
Our guide to betting on fan-controlled football will give you the inside scoop of what is happening in the league and which online sportsbooks are providing odds.
Types Of Football Bets
What is Football Point Spread?
A point spread in football is an estimated number of points by which the favored team is predicted to defeat the underdogs.
Example: New England Patriots over New York Jets (-7.5)
Whenever a negative number is given, the team favored must win by more than the margin for your bet to payout. In the example, to win a wager on the Patriots requires the team to win by 8 points or more to get paid. If a wager was placed on the Jets, the Jets don’t have to win the game, but instead, they only need to lose by 7 or fewer points.
How Do Over/Unders Work?
The over/under in football is where the sportsbook sets a number for a statistic and a wager can be placed on whether the outcome of the statistic will be higher or lower than the established number.
Examples: New England Patriots vs. New York Jets (47)
Philadelphia Eagles 2018 Season Total Wins (O/U 10.5)
If 2 teams are shown, typically attached to a (O/U) to indicate an over/under, the number shown is the combined point total of both teams at the end of the game. If a bet is placed on the over, the total points scored in the game must be over 47, and if a wager is on the under, then the total must be lower than 47. If both teams combine for exactly 47 points, then both sides lose because wagers are placed on the over or under and not the exact amount.
Futures with over/under odds are common too. Typically, this will be on a season win total or a end-of-season player statistic. As shown above, if the Eagles win total at the end of the season falls below 10.5 then the under wins, and if the total is above 10.5 the over wins. And again, if the set number is the outcome, then both the over and under lose.
Why Should I Bet on Futures Odds?
A futures bet on football is a wager placed ahead of time, sometimes weeks or months in advance, where the result and payout will not occur until a future date.
Example: Chicago Bears (+1200) to win Super Bowl 54
The most common futures wager in football each year will be on the Super Bowl. Odds for futures are simple: The +1200 indicates the payout in American odds, so to receive $1,200 if the Bears win the Super Bowl, risking $100 would be required. Other ways to show futures odds may be with fractions (12/1) or decimals (13.00).
You can learn more about wagering options from our guide to understanding the different types of NFL bets and how they work.