Perception in Football Betting

And between merit and public perception, it is the public perception that makes the difference for the oddsmakers who make the football betting line. One of the biggest misconceptions out there is that when a football betting line reads, for example, Green Bay -7/Detroit +7, that the oddsmakers think that Green Bay is 7-points better than Detroit. Actually that is not at all the case in Internet football . What the Internet football betting oddsmakers believe is that the public thinks Green Bay is 7-points better than Detroit. Whether they really are or not is totally irrelevant as the oddsmakers want a line that attracts equal action to both sides, regardless of merit. It is all about perception in football.

Another factor that is built into the football line is home field advantage. The universal conventional wisdom is that home field is worth three points for the host in football betting. Some teams, however, may actually have an extra point or two tacked on to their home football betting lines as they are known as a tough host at a tough venue. Other teams, such as past editions of the Arizona Cardinals or Detroit Lions, may actually have had football betting lines in which there was no real home field price tag added to their lines.

Recent power teams such as the Pittsburgh Steelers, New England Patriots, or Dallas Cowboys may also be charged for being public favorites as the masses tend to wager on a straight up rather than pointspread basis, which means that sometimes the best teams are the worst values on the pro football betting board.