by
Reviewed by
Fact checked by
Before any bettor begins their journey online, it’s imperative they get to grips with the seemingly endless list of gambling terms and general sports betting terms. We will trawl through the complete glossary of sports betting terminology and provide explanations for their meaning, as well as offering some delving deeper into the specifics of things like betting odds meaning, Major Leagues and events, and colloquial gambling terminology. From flat bets to pk in betting, we’ll cover all the everything our readers need to know to get them started betting online.
Major Sports Leagues and Events
Golden Boot Awards
Golden Boot awards are offered in a variety of different sports. Though, generally speaking, they are awarded in soccer. The award is given to players who manage to score the most goals in a particular season.
NBA
The National Basketball League is the biggest basketball league in the world and one of the most profitable major sports leagues on the planet. The competition boasts teams from across the US, as well as in Canada.
MLB
Major League Baseball has been around for well over a half-century now and continues to draw in millions of fans and viewers each year. The competition features teams from the US and Canada and is concluded with the World Series each year.
MLS
Major League Soccer is the newest major American sports league, founded in 1993. Soccer remains the most popular sport on the planet and fans from across the world follow the MLS, as it offers a unique collection of players from North and Latin America, as well as old European league veterans.
NHL
There is no league like the National Hockey League, with players from across the world traveling to spend their careers there. With a number of teams in Canada, as well as the US, the competition to make it to the season finale, the Stanley Cup, competition in the NHL is fierce.
NFL
The National Football League is the biggest major American league and features teams from across the US. With the largest revenue out of all major leagues, the NFL never disappoints. It’s concluded each year with the Super Bowl.
NCAA
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is the collective name for all major sports leagues. The NCAAB (basketball) and the NCAAF (football) are two of the most popular.
March Madness
March Madness is one of the most exciting markets to wager on each year. The event is entirely related to college basketball and draws in millions of bettors from across the US, as they attempt to predict a winner.
Hart Trophy
The Hart Memorial Trophy is an award given out annually to the MVP (most valuable player) of the NHL. The trophy was donated by David Hart, the father of Cecil Hart, an NHL hall of Famer and former longtime head coach of the Montreal Canadiens.
Vezina Trophy
Similarly to the Hart Trophy, the Vezina Trophy is awarded annually and is given to the goaltender MVP. The General Managers (GM) at the end of each season vote who this will be.
Selke Trophy
Otherwise known as the NHL best defender award, this NHL trophy is for the best player that season, demonstrating the most skill as a defender.
Calder Trophy
This award is given to the rookie first-year NHL players who performed the best that season. The first NHL president was Frank Calder, which is why this trophy is named as such.
Ted Lindsay Award
The Ted Lindsay Award is another name for the MVP award handed out at the end of each season in the NHL. Ted Lindsay was a former player, as such the award was named after him as an act of respect.
Vince Lombardi Trophy
The Vince Lombardi trophy is named after the famous NFL coach who saw great success during his days in charge. This award is therefore gifted to the best coach throughout the football season..
Stanley Cup
The Stanley Cup is the most prestigious trophy in all of the NHL, with the team performing the best throughout the regular season and postseason picking up the award. The NHL Finals sees a head-to-head best of 5 series end with one Stanley Cup winner.
Larry O’Brien NBA Championship Trophy
While in the NHL the winners of the postseason are awarded the Stanley Cup, the NBA team that triumphs in the basketball postseason are awarded the Larry O’Brien Trophy.
Rose Bowl
The Rose Bowl is a major sports stadium in Pasadena, California, which annually hosts the oldest bowl game in college ball. It usually takes place on January 1st and draws in thousands of spectators each year.
Triple Crown
There are quite a few Triple Crowns. But, the US version of the Triple Crown is made up of the Kentucky Derby, the Belmont Stakes, and the Preakness Stakes. If somehow a horse wins all three of those races, they are awarded the Triple Crown!
The Grand National
The Grand National is one of the most famous horse races in the world, alongside the Kentucky Derby and the Royal Ascot. The race takes place annually at Aintree Racecourse in Merseyside, England.
Drafts
Between the end of one season and the start of the next, major leagues in the US hol
d Drafts to decide which players will be selected for major teams. The Drafts provide a very popular market for bettors as they offer great betting opportunities. Drafts take place in the NBA, NHL, NFL, and MLB, with the youngest major league the MLS looking to adopt a Draft system in the coming years.
Sports Gambling Glossary
Added game
Added games are simply more games added to the schedule by popular demand. Often they replace events that have been canceled, but added games can occur for a variety of reasons.
AET
A popular sports betting term and often referred to as just “extra time,” especially in sports like soccer. AET is an acronym for “Added Extra Time” and refers to the extra time added at the end of a soccer game, which is brought about by injuries or incidents during the regular time.
Alternative Lines
Alternative or alt-lines provide bettors with the opportunity to raise or lower the match odds with the relevant price change. A bet to show an interest in a different betting line than the mainstream lines offered.
American Odds
American odds are all based on a unit of 100, they refer to the alternatives to decimal or fraction odds. A plus (+) sign indicates the underdogs, and a negative (-) represents the favorites. In straight betting terms, American odds are only really applicable for US bettors. While in other countries, bettors work with fractional and decimal betting odds.
Ante-post
Also known as futures, these are risky bets that are made well in advance of the event taking place. A very common bet wager in sports betting.
Arb
Short for Arbitrage.
Arbitrage
It’s a betting strategy employed that takes advantage of slight discrepancies between the odds at various bookmakers. This strategy involves a bettor wagering on both sides of an event, at different bookies, guaranteeing a return regardless of the outcome.
Asian Handicap
Similar to spread betting in some ways, Asian Handicapping offers from a quarter to multiple goals. Generally linked to soccer, but not exclusively, this betting market doesn’t allow for ties.
ATS
An acronym commonly used for “Against the Spread”. Betting Against the Spread means betting for the underdog in accordance with the lines offered at the sportsbook.
Banker
They are safe bets around which parlays are often built. Used in parlays, Bankers are the bedrock of bet. Having a banker with a few other riskier bets is a common thing to see on a players’ bet slip.
Best-price percentage
The Best-price percentage is the percentage chance of winning. Meaning a match with even odds stands at a 50% best-price percentage.
Bet
Actual or promotional money (free bets) used to make wagers.
Betting exchange
Betting exchanges are websites where bettors can wager against other bettors rather than against the bookmaker. Betting exchanges make money by taking commissions on bets placed.
Betting strategy
Fairly self-explanatory. Betting strategies are applied all the time by gamblers, as they employ various techniques, statistical analysis, and superstitions to create a plan they often stick to.
Bonus
Bonuses and promotions are regularly offered by major sportsbook providers and act as an incentive for bettors to play with their book, or reload (reinvest) funds using certain payment methods.
Book
Any website or mobile app that offers betting markets on certain sports markets; horse racing is a racebook, sports betting is a sportsbook.
Bookie
A very popular and common term in the gambling world, the bookie is short for Bookmaker, which is the same as a Linemaker. Bookies set the prices at a sportsbook.
Canadian line
Combinations of moneyline and against-the-spread bets, a betting line that is commonly offered in ice hockey.
Chalk
Another term, although not so common in the US, for the favorite in any game or event.
Closing line
Closing lines are the final odds that are posted before lines close. They rarely look the same as opening lines, unless the event has had no interference from outside leading up to the event.
Co-favorite
Often seen in futures and ante betting, co-favorites are when two or more teams priced at the same odds.
Commission
This is the money bookmakers take to stay in business. Also, see juice or vigorish.
Correct score
These are wagers used by bettors to predict the exact score at the end of a game. A risky bet, unless the bettor has a tip or is more sure of something.
Cover
Often used by bettors as a shorthand way of saying “covering the spread,” which is a term we will cover below.
Decimal odds
Another odd type, something we see more in UK betting markets than anywhere else. Smaller odds (1.5 opposed to 7.0) represent the favorites.
Dime
It refers to wagers placed at (-110) where the juice is 10% of the wager. A dime is also a slang term for wagers worth $10, $100, or $1000.
Dog
Dog is a short way of saying underdog. Underdog refers to the party least likely to win involved in the wager.
Double action
A Double Action is muli-wager bet. These bets require bets to be won, tied, or pushed for the next bets to be considered.
Double bet
A bet placed on two wagers. The winnings from the first are rolled over to the second bet. Like parlays, you must win both to win the double bet.
Double result
Common across most sports, these wagers bet on the winner at halftime and at the end of the game. An example of this would be if the Lakers are winning at half time and The Mavs were winning at full time.
Double-header
Doubleheaders are two games played on the same day between the same two teams. These mainly happen in baseball.
Draw
You’ll also hear this called a push in sports betting. It represents any match that ended in a tie. The original stakes are returned.
Drift
A drift represents a steady and gradual growth of odds.
Each-way
Bookies regularly offer each-way bets in order to spread the risk for bettors. A win bet and a place bet constitute an Each-way bet. An example of this would be a horse to win and another horse to place in third.
Edge
An edge is a common term, also used in everyday vocabulary, meaning to have a slight advantage over another.
Even money
Even Money is when a wager returns the same amount as the original wager. The bettor may win or lose the same amount as the original risk. Not a good bet.
Exotic
Often referred to as prop bets or special bets, exotic bets are often a wager geared towards being more entertaining. They are normally unrelated to the outcome of a particular event or game.
Expected goals
Expected goals, or other scoring systems, represent the number of goals that are predicted to occur in a half or throughout an entire game.
Expected value
An expected value is something that can be calculated or estimated by bettors and represents the amount a bettor expects to win across a wager or variety of wagers.
Favorite
One of the most common phrases in gambling vocabulary. The favorite is the team or individual most likely to win – the opposite of an underdog.
First half bet
A fairly self-explanatory type of wager. The bet is on who or which team will likely be ahead during the first half of a particular match or event.
First/last goalscorer
This type of wager is very common and is based on the first/last person to score in a particular match or competition.
Fixed-odds betting
Fixed-odds means whenever you bet, the bet won’t change as the date of the game or event approaches. The closing line will not change after your bet.
Fractional odds
Yet another type of odds used to calculate probabilities of bets coming in. Often used in racebooks. When compared with American odds, fractional odds displaying 2/1 is the same as +200.
Futures
Another very common betting market. Futures odds come with a higher level of risk, as there is a much longer time between the bet being paid out than a normal bet made with the event live or approaching in the coming days. Typically seen as a high risk bet.
Half-ball handicap
Wagers that are set at half points represent half-ball handicaps. An example of this could be in Champions League football and a bettor predicts Bayern Munich to win 3.5, meaning the over-under lands on 3 or 4, depending on which way the bet goes.
Handicap
Handicaps are used to level out odds. A handicap ensures the odds are attractive to bettors as they produce a competitive element for both sides of a bet, where possible.
Handicapper
A handicapper is a person who sets, bets on, or predicts a handicap.
Handicapping
Something that is embedded in betting, handicapping is by definition predicting the odds to even a game.
Handle
The handle represents the maximum a bookmaker will accept on a particular wager, a kind of total betting limit.
Hedging
Often employed as a betting strategy, hedging your bets refers to betting on the opposite side of the original wager to ensure the bettor wins.
Home field advantage
Having the home advantage, simply means the team is playing at their stadium, ground, or their usual playing field. The advantage of doing this can sway odds in that team’s favor.
If bet
Otherwise known as multi-wager bets, they rely on a variety of wagers to win in order to proceed through the bet. These often come about when a knockout tournament is involved.
In-play betting
Commonly known as Live Betting, in-play betting refers to the use of apps or through a desktop site to create wagers on a particular game or event as it’s happening. This has become increasingly popular in the betting industry.
Joint favorite
A Joint favorite is when at least two units such as players or teams are seen as equally likely to succeed.
Juice
Juice refers to the commission bookmakers take-off of winning bets. It is also known as “vig” or vigorish.
Kelly Criterion
John Kelly is famous within the gambling world, as he was the creator of a formula employed by bettors to try and maximise the value of their bets through statistical predictions.
Landing on three/seven
This is the most common score differential seen in football.
Limit
Sportsbooks always set the limits. They are in place to limit the maximum and minimum each player can stake on any bet.
Line
Bets that are handicapped to make both sides equal.
Linemaker
This is the same as an oddsmaker and refers to the person/employee that creates the odds for a bookmaker.
Live-betting
As we mentioned already, Live-betting is much the same as in-play betting and refers to the ability for bettors to wager on games or events as they’re happening.
Lock
An uncommon term used to describe a bet that is certain to come in. A certi bet.
Longshot
A longshot is as it is in general English vocabulary. It refers to someone betting on an underdog. A high-risk high reward bet, with a low probability of success.
Margin
A margin refers to two separate things; one is a point spread and the other is the oddsmakers commission on a match.
Match bet
A match bet is any bet on a wager with two sides in a head-to-head match-up.
Moneyline
Moneyline bets are the most popular wager in sports betting. A simple wager. One bet on which individual or team they expect to win or lose. Not based on other aspects of the game, such as score.
Multiple
A multiple, or multi bet is any bet that has multiple wagers within it. They are also known as parlays, combos, or accumulators. Below are some examples of multis:
- Double: One parlay on two different sides.
- Treble: One parlay on three different sides.
- Trixie: Four bets on three sides: Three doubles and one treble.
- Patent: Seven bets on three sides: Three doubles, three singles and one treble.
- Yankie: Eleven bets on four sides: Sic doubles, four trebles, and one four-bet parlay.
- Lucky 15: Fifteen bets on four sides: Six doubles, four trebles, four singles, and a four-bet parlay
- Lucky 31: Thirty-one bets on five sides: five singles, ten doubles, ten trebles, one five-bet parlay, and five four-side parlays
MVP
Common in all major American sports leagues, an MVP stands for Most Valuable Player.
Nap
A bet seen as a certain winner, like a lock. The best bet to win on any match or event.
No action
When a bet has been pulled from the betting market.
Odds
The balance of advantage on a bet. Odds determine the risk versus reward for bettors.
Odds format
We’ve discussed the three types of odds already, but to remind you we have American, Decimal and Fractional odds to choose from.
Odds on favorite
The side that is most likely to win.
Oddsmaker
Much like a linemaker. The person who decides what the odds will be, with some of the best normally coming out of Las Vegas.
Off the board
When a bet is yet to be posted. Sudden changes to the weather or injuries to players can drastically affect the odds, with bookmakers placing the odds on OTD.
Outright betting
A type of ante or futures bet. Outright bets make a prediction as to the overall outcome of a competition, league, tournament, etc…
Over
An over bet is based on the value set by the oddsmakers, the over is betting on the result to go over the set value.
Overbroke
An assessment made of the markets when they are in favor of the bettors, opposed to the bookmakers – as is normal.
Overround
Overround is when the markets are in favor of the bookmakers, rather than the bettors.
Over/Under
The bookmakers will fix a certain figure. From this figure, bettors can wager over or under and the bet will be decided on the resulting score.
Parlay
The same as a multibet, when a combination of bets are made into a single wager.
Payout
This is the amount a bettor wins on a bet, including the original stake placed.
Pick ’em
A Pick ‘em is a betting market where the odds are the same on both sides.
Point Spread
A figure oddsmakers decide to represent the gap between the winning and losing teams.
Post time
This is the term used to define the time horses and greyhounds are set to begin the race.
Power Ranking
Power Rankings are common in major American league sports. They are ranking based on a variety of different statistics, based on current form and overall performance.
Price
The price is a figure based on odds and potential rewards. It’s the amount it costs to play a particular bet.
Prop (proposition) bet
We touched on this before, but prop (proposition) bets are very popular and represent bets that aren’t associated with the outcome of the game. Instead, prop bets focus on more entertaining markets to add value to the viewing experience of a game or event.
Puckline
The puck line is the number of goals that an underdog must stay within or a favorite must win by to cash a winning ticket.
Push
What is a push bet? A push is when a bet is tied or drawn, or lands on the spread. This is when the money is given back to the bettor with no loss or gain in funds.
Quarter bet (see first half, second half bet)
Sports that involve quarters, such as ice hockey, will allow for quarter bets on the first , second, third, and final quarter.
Reload
This is when someone adds additional funds to their bookmaker account.
Rotation number
This is something you often see in Las Vegas, which is when the bookmaker assigns a number to a bettor.
Round Robin
This is another type of parlay bet which is based on three legs or more than covers all wagers.
Run line
A run line is a handicap, against-the-spread baseball wagering option. The figure is normally set at 1.5 runs at the start of a game. You may see it changing on live betting markets.
Scalping
Scalping is an exercise where bettors switch between various sportsbooks in order to take advantage of all the bonus offerings available at each.
Sell
Sell is when a bet is received as being too high. Over the odds. One to avoid.
Sharp
This is a person within the betting community that is considered to know the game well and invests a good amount of time into gambling. From this they gain experience and know-how other rookie bettors don’t possess.
SP
The SP or starting price represents the opening odds for greyhound and horse races.
Special
We discussed them before as prop bets, which represent the same thing, a different kind of betting market differing from standard lines such as money lines and parlays.
Split-ball handicap
Two handicapped bets on a single wager that have differing values is otherwise known as a split-ball handicap.
Sportsbook (general term)
This is another name for a bookmaker. Associated with sports rather than casino games or racebook odds. A place where odds are posted, bets are accepted and money is made.
Sportsbook (at a casino or other offline venue)
This is thought of as a benchmark value used by all bookmakers, the number of points at the end of a game.
Spread betting
In order to make a spread bet, you place a bet for or against the spread set by the bookie.
Stake
A stake is the amount of money you put on a bet. Sometimes known as the risk, it’s the amount you wager on any given bet.
Staking method
A staking method is a strategy, which allows bettors to budget their bankroll (total fuds) so that not too much is spent in one sitting.
Straight bet
A straight bet is just a single bet. Opposed to say a multi/parlay bet or an accumulator.
Teaser
A teaser bet is a kind of parlay bet where the odds moved slightly in your favor.
Ticket
When a bettor has made their selection of bets, they will see a ticket appear on their account. This is where the bookmaker lists all bets from the selection.
Tie
A match is when a game or event ends with an even score, also known as a draw.
Tip
Often passed on from sharps and tipping sites, a tip is when information or insights are shared about a particular bet.
Tipster
Tipsters are the people that offer bets to gamblers.
Totals bet
A totals bet is made based on the accumulative score by one team, or in some cases both teams.
Tout
A tout is a professional bettor who offers tips, often for a small fee.
Under
We touched on the over/under before. An under simply represents any wager that ends beneath the set value assigned by the oddsmakers, which is the opposite of an over bet.
Underdog
The underdog is the team or individual who is considered the least likely to win the game or event. The opposite of a favorite.
Vigorish
The commission added to bets by oddsmakers, otherwise known as “vig”.
Wager
Also referred to as a bet, the wager is the game or event they’re betting on.
