Sports betting is a growing industry. With the excitement of sports coming back after being put on pause with Covid, it’s as if they didn’t skip a beat. In the article “Sports Betting Market Size Worth $140.26 Billion By 2028: Grand View Research, Inc” posted by Bloomberg.com, this is estimated to be 10% growth for the next decade. So why is this important you might ask, well sports betting is becoming increasingly legalized across the country. There are nearly 30 states you can place bets on for sports (including Pa), and more on the way. Betting has a bad reputation, and I can definitely understand why people might be against it. Gambling is an addiction and for many, they can’t control their urges and gamble more than they can afford to lose, but I’m here to explain why gambling in moderation can be okay. Below are reputable places to place sports bets.

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These are three of the larger sportsbooks out there, and setting up an account with them is really easy. Go to their website, create new account, type in your username and password, and then link your credit card. Then you deposit money into your account, and that way you can’t gamble more money than you have.

This week I will be giving a breakdown on setting up your betting system, and each week after, I will be working on creating a bet that I think is worthy, and explain my thought process behind each decision. I recommend using the unit system. When you start out, use an amount that won’t hurt you to lose. Something like $10-25 is a good “unit”. So for your initial deposit, put 4 units worth in. Now from there, when you make your bets, for the events that are more profitable but riskier, you can put in half a unit, or a lesser amount, and for the bets you are more confident in with lower odds, you can place more units.

A way I like to make the odds higher is by creating a parlay. A small bet, where all of your predictions have to be right or you lose. Each week I will be making a parlay of 3-6 teams. In particular, college football, NFL, and MLB will be the focus of these bets. Some may argue that betting on sports ruins sports, but according to the University of Texas at Austin, “Many people find they become more engaged and interested in the action when they have placed a bet”. Additionally, this allows for sports to gather more viewers. You can bet on a team that you normally wouldn’t watch and this would be a cool way to watch the game you love on nights when your team isn’t playing.

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Some may argue that betting on sports ruins sports, but according to the University of Texas at Austin, “Many people find they become more engaged and interested in the action when they have placed a bet”. Additionally, this allows for sports to gather more viewers. You can bet on a team that you normally wouldn’t watch and this would be a cool way to watch the game you love on nights when your team isn’t playing.

Now that sports betting is no longer illegal, people should give it a try. Unlike regular gambling at a casino, it isn’t just chance. You can prep and do research, and if you want to skip those steps that’s fine because I have you covered with the latest sports predictions. I hope you enjoyed my introduction to sports betting, and I’ll see you next week with my first take.

Signing off for now-

Hanley Predicts