How To Bet On The Super Bowl

Most people pick a side for the Super Bowl, even if they ordinarily have no rooting interest in either participant. Even if it’s possible to sit through a regular season tilt emotionally unattached to its outcome, few of us are spending Super Sunday feeling completely neutral.

The game’s stakes are high, and interest is massive, so you’re likely picking a side for one reason or another. Perhaps you’re simply rooting for the underdog.

Moneyline

If you’re almost solely interested in the game’s outcome, a moneyline wager might be for you. You bet on which team wins, with a winning underdog paying out more than a victorious favorite.

In Super Bowl 58, most sportsbooks had the San Francisco 49ers as the moneyline favorite over the Kansas City Chiefs at -130 betting odds. That meant that if the 49ers won, a bettor who wagerd $130 on San Fran would’ve profited $100.

The Chiefs were listed as a slight underdog at +110, so a bettor who sided with KC with a $100 wager stood to win $110.

The moneyline is the most straightforward wager on the game.

Spread

If you like the favorite but want a slightly better payout, consider a bet against the spread.

Most books have San Francisco as a 1.5 or 2-point favorite at -110 odds in Super Bowl 58, so making a play on the 49ers means they have to win by at least 3 points to “cover the spread.”

The easiest way to determine whether a wager on a team that’s “getting points” is a winner is to simply add the point spread figure to the number of points that team has scored in a game and compare it to the point total of the other side.

For instance, as 1.5-point underdogs in the Super Bowl, the Chiefs would have covered the spread even if they were on the losing side of a 28-27 score.

However, the Chiefs defeated the Eagles, so the extra math wasn’t necessary.

Historically, Super Bowl betting favorites are 37-20 outright and 28-27-2 against the spread.

Total Points

Some bettors like to bet totals, also known as the Over/Under. These are good bets for folks new to sports gambling or who don’t want to get too caught up in which team wins.

The play is straightforward: the two teams will combine to score more or fewer points than the established total, usually with -110 odds on both sides of the bet, which includes the sportsbook vig.

The Chiefs and Eagles combined to score 73 points in Super Bowl 57. The Over/Under was 51.5, so someone who bet on the Over won their bet, while someone who bet on the Under didn’t cash in.

With the Over hitting in the 2023 Super Bowl, the game’s all-time record for Overs versus Unders is now even at 28-28 (there was no Over/Under for Super Bowl I).

The Over hitting at Super Bowl 57 broke a four-year streak of Super Bowls finishing below the posted total.

Super Bowl prop bets can cash during the game, and they’re an accessible and engaging way to track what’s happening on the field. Prop bets also carry the potential for more considerable payouts.

First Touchdown

One straightforward prop is a bet on which player will score the game’s first touchdown.

In Super Bowl 57, Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts was the first to find the end zone. His odds for scoring the game’s first TD were +600.

In 2024, the player with the shortest odds was 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey at +350.

If you like long shots – like anyone who two years ago bet on Cincinnati Bengals kicker Evan McPherson to score the first TD at a reported 3,000/1 – you could end up spending the game regretting the decision to defy the odds if a miracle happened.

The NFL’s rule that requires a replay review of every potential scoring play can be cruel to people who make first-touchdown wagers.

In 2023’s game, Eagles running back Kenneth Gainwell took a handoff and was tackled right at the goal line, with the officials initially ruling the play a Philadelphia touchdown. The call was reversed upon mandatory review, and Hurts scored on the next play, ending a painful sequence for bettors who had Gainwell to find the end zone first at 20/1.

And if you ignored all the “skill players” and bet on the field (any player not listed) to score Super Bowl 50’s initial touchdown, you would’ve profited. Broncos defensive tackle Malik Jackson became the first defender to score the first touchdown of a Super Bowl.

Anytime Touchdown

Hurts’ opening TD in the 2023 Super Bowl also helped those who bet on him to score a touchdown at any time during the game. You can make a wager on every active offensive player scoring a touchdown during the game, and some books will include select offensive linemen, defensive players and special teamers.

If you bet $110 on Hurts to score an anytime touchdown at -110, his TD gave the Eagles an early lead while helping you collect $100 in winnings.

The 2023 Super Bowl can also be instructive for bettors looking for a big payout on a Super Bowl touchdown. Kansas City linebacker Nick Bolton tied the game with his 36-yard fumble return for a score and helped cash tickets that included an anytime touchdown by a member of the Chiefs defense or special teams units (+600).

Not all sportsbooks will list every active player regardless of position, but the ones who had Bolton listed as an anytime touchdown scorer at +7500 paid bettors $7,500 on a $100 play.

Defense and special team Super Bowl TD wagers aren’t too far-fetched. There has been a defensive or special teams touchdown in 26 of the 57 Super Bowls (45.6%).

However, betting on an offensive lineman to score a touchdown is risky. It’s only happened once in Super Bowl history, so you’re better off putting your money elsewhere.

Super Bowl MVP

The number of Super Bowl player props has almost no limit. It can be fun to bet which player will win Super Bowl Most Valuable Player honors.

However, this category is still relatively new for many well-known betting parlors. Las Vegas books previously avoided taking wagers on outcomes that required a vote.

To no one’s surprise, the safest MVP bet has been on one of the game’s two quarterbacks, given that QBs have won the award 33 times out of 58, including last year when Patrick Mahomes won the award for the third time.

The first year Las Vegas books took Super Bowl MVP action, bettors who put money on Broncos linebacker Von Miller to win the award cashed tickets at +2200. People who bet on the MVP’s position collected at +550 if they took one of the game’s linebackers.

Player Stats

There are a wide variety of statistics-based Super Bowl player props, from ones based on how many passing yards each quarterback will have to those involving how many yards are gained by each team’s skill players.

You can also bet on how many field goals or points after touchdowns each kicker will convert, and you can plop some money down on the number of times each team punts.

Safeties & Other In-Game Outcomes

Game outcome props are interesting. You can make a bet on whether either team will record a safety. Given the scarcity of safeties – just nine in 58 Super Bowls – this is a fun play that can make things interesting whenever a team is backed up close to its goal line.

And if you’re really into a big payout on a small bet, test your luck by buying the long odds of a safety as the game’s first score, which happened the last time the Super Bowl had one.

When the Seattle Seahawks recorded a safety on the first Denver Broncos’ offensive play of Super Bowl 48, folks who bet on Seattle to score the game’s first points on a safety at +4000 cashed winning tickets of $4,000 on a $100 wager.

Bettors of a safety happening at any moment during the game at +550 odds won $550 on a $100 play.

One game outcome wager that’s increased in popularity is whether there will be a successful two-point conversion. With NFL coaches showing a greater willingness to go for two, there’s usually reasonably good value on a successful two-point try.

Bettors who made a play on a successful two-point try in Super Bowl 57 had to wait until the game was deep into the fourth quarter, but Jalen Hurt’s game-tying two-point conversion ensured that their wager would cash at +250 odds.

Not only that, but a newer betting phenomenon has become known as wagering on “an octopus,” which has become the go-to term for moments when a two-point conversion is scored by the player who also scored the preceding touchdown.

Given that more than 85% of two-point tries are scored by players other than the one who just found the end zone for a touchdown, the odds of an octopus happening in the Super Bowl are long.

Hurts’ two-pointer helped him pull off this feat, as his successful conversation came immediately after a two-yard TD scamper. Folks who bet on either team having an octopus cashed in on a 14/1 wager.

An even more obscure market than an octopus is the Super Bowl doink.

Overtime

You can make bets on whether the Super Bowl will go to overtime. Those odds are usually around 10/1.

It’s happened only once, when the New England Patriots stormed back from down 28-3 against the Atlanta Falcons in Super Bowl 51.

There are a few Super Bowl bets you can make that have little to do with the actual game.

Seemingly, many football gamblers love making a wager on the length of the national anthem – and yes, recent history can serve as a gambler’s guide, though there has yet to be much in the way of a definitive trend.

If you’re wondering, you can’t bet on Super Bowl commercials.

National Anthem Prop Bet

The Super Bowl national anthem usually goes Over the oddsmaker’s set time (around two minutes) roughly half the time. Meanwhile, Kelly Clarkson’s Super Bowl 46 rendition pushed.

In 2024, the Super Bowl 58 anthem performed by Reba McEntire lasted Under 90.5 seconds.

Some are skeptical about this bet, given the number of people with access to rehearsals and soundchecks and the debate about when the anthem clock should begin. Some believe the clock should start running when the music hits, others when the singer belts out a note.

There’s also the matter of anthem flubs, something Christina Aquilera was guilty of when she messed up the words while singing before Super Bowl 45, creating a controversy that caused some books to pay both sides of the bet.

Chris Stapleton’s national anthem rendition prior to the 2023 Super Bowl was memorable, not for its length, but for the camera shots of Eagles Head Coach Nick Siranni crying as Stapleton sang.

With the list of available prop bets getting longer every year, it would be unsurprising to see one that included odds on any coach or player being moved to tears during the anthem. However, for now, that’s a bet you’d more likely find at an offshore sportsbook than a legal one.

Coin Toss Prop Bet

More definitive is the Super Bowl coin toss, a favorite among gamblers who want to start the game with instant action. The coin flip is as close to a 50-50 as you’ll find in all of gambling.

However, because of the betting vig, this isn’t a bet worth making unless both sides have +100 odds.

Through 58 games, tails have a very slight 30-28 all-time lead. Coin toss wagers aren’t limited to how the coin lands.

You can also bet on which team wins the opening toss, whether the player who yells “heads” or “tails” will make the correct call, whether the team that wins the toss will take the opening kick or defer to the second half, and whether the team that wins the toss will end up victorious in the game.

Gatorade Color Prop Bet

Another prop deals with the Super Bowl Gatorade color that gets poured on the winning coach.

After the 2023 Super Bowl, Chiefs head coach Andy Reid was doused with purple Gatorade. It was the first time purple won since New York Giants Head Coach Tom Coughlan was showered with the color in 2012. Purple was a relative long shot (+850) in 2023 but had the shortest odds in 2024.

Purple was again dumped on Reid in 2024.

Since Super Bowl 35 after the 2000 season, orange has been the most popular color poured. During that time, no winning coach has been doused in red moments before being presented with the Vince Lombardi Trophy.

Sportsbooks have relatively low limits on this bet (such as $500).

With the proliferation of sports betting apps and states allowing them, live in-game wagering has grown in popularity.

This kind of betting allows fans to take advantage of an in-game trend, react to a sudden and perhaps unforeseen development, or grab better odds than may have existed before the game.

One of the more famous in-game betting scenarios came during the New England Patriots’ historic comeback from down 25 points against the Atlanta Falcons in Super Bowl 51.

With the Falcons leading 28-3 midway through the third quarter, the Patriots’ moneyline odds were 10/1, which represented a huge change in value from what it was pre-game. New England entered as a three-point favorite.

The odds grew to 16/1 in the fourth quarter as Atlanta drove for what could’ve been a game-sealing drive leading 28-20. A gambler who pulled the trigger at that moment on a $100 bet on Tom Brady and company to complete the comeback won $1,600.

The Chiefs didn’t mount a comeback nearly as impressive as New England’s in 2023’s game, but they still had to overcome a 24-14 deficit at halftime.

Since a losing first half for Kansas City ended with Patrick Mahomes hobbling to the locker room, the moneyline odds on the Chiefs moved to +280, giving bettors who were willing to make a bet on KC winning outright despite being down by 10 points a nice payout after their 38-35 win.

With all the money wagered on the Super Bowl and the thousands of different bets available, you might wonder how Las Vegas sportsbooks do when it comes to taking action on America’s biggest sporting event.

According to the Nevada Gaming Control Board, Las Vegas books have won on the last 12 Super Bowls, although the hold percentages vary by year. In fact, Las Vegas has lost on the Big Game just twice in over 30 years.

For 2023’s game between the Eagles and Chiefs, Nevada’s 185 sportsbooks took $153,183,002 in wagers, winning $11,287,594 for a hold percentage of 7.4%.

While Las Vegas books took well over $150 million in wagers and won at a clip that any individual bettor would be thrilled with, figures were actually down from the previous year.

The game between Cincinnati and Los Angeles saw $179,823,715 in handle, with books winning at an 8.6% clip.

Over the last 12 Super Bowls, Las Vegas’ most successful was the 2014 Seattle Seahawks blowout of the Denver Broncos. Sportsbooks that year had a hold percentage of 16.5%, winning $19,673,960 on $119,400,822 in wagers.

The 2018 “Philly Special” between the Philadelphia Eagles and New England Patriots was tough for Las Vegas. Sportsbooks took $158,586,934 in wagers – second highest of the last 10 Super Bowls – but won just $1,170,432 for a narrow 0.7% hold percentage, the lowest of the last 12 games.

A few likely factors contributed to the 2023 Nevada sportsbooks’ Super Bowl figures dropping from the previous year.

Fewer bettors rely on Nevada-based sportsbooks because of the widening availability of legal gambling across the country. It also probably mattered that Super Bowl 57 was the first NFL title game played in a state with legalized online sports wagering (Arizona).

Super Bowl 58 was held in Las Vegas.

The average hold percentage for sportsbooks over the last 12 Super Bowls has been about 8%, with more than $1.5 billion wagered in Nevada alone.

Hold percentages for sportsbooks can swing wildly from year to year. However, as you might expect, when it comes to the last decade’s worth of Super Bowls, Las Vegas has always won.

Arguably, the easiest Super Bowl bet is the moneyline, which is who will win the game.

It’s the easiest in terms of being the most straightforward. You don’t have to worry about the margin of victory, how many points are scored or any individual player’s performance.

However, it’s not necessarily the easiest in terms of your chances to win. Moneyline wagers are no easier to win than spread, Over/Under or prop bets. Odds are adjusted based on the type of bet.

Moneyline bets are recommended for new bettors because they are the most straightforward.

Regarding non-game bets, the coin flip is the most straightforward. However, the coin flip outcome has a result in mere seconds and isn’t a particularly interesting way to bet on the Big Game.

In terms of odds, the easiest Super Bet to win would be the wager with the most significant minus (-) odds. The minus odds indicate a favorite, while plus (+) odds indicate an underdog.

An example of a Super Bowl bet with significant minus odds would be on an elite quarterback to throw at least one touchdown.

The first thing to look for when choosing a sports betting app for the Big Game is promotional money. Many online sportsbooks have Super Bowl betting promos to give you more bang for your buck.

We recommend these apps for Super Bowl betting:

• FanDuel Sportsbook
• DraftKings Sportsbook
• Bet365 Sportsbook
• BetMGM Sportsbook
• Caesars Sportsbook
• Fanatics Sportsbook

The apps are available on iOS and Android.

These sportsbooks are available depending on the sports betting state.