Every year, more and more sports receive live markets and there are very few major tournaments that you cannot bet on live. Whether you’re into baseball, soccer, football, other American sports, or even snooker, you’ll be able to find live betting markets at your favorite US sportsbooks.

NBA

Live betting on the NBA is all about points spreads. The game can change so much from quarter to quarter, let alone half to half. You can use your intuition when you bet on basketball as home teams can power through deficits and defy the odds.

NFL

Sportsbooks are big on offering prop bets and micro markets for NFL games. Totals are another popular live betting option with the odds for the over/under on the final score regularly shifting, and you can sometimes bet on each quarter too.MLB

You can develop a live betting strategy for micro-betting markets on MLB games. This includes betting on the next pitch or run. Additionally, spread betting on the “Run Line” is quite common for in-play bettors. Here we tested the best MLB betting sites for you.

NHL

Totals and spreads will likely be the focus of your NHL live betting strategy. Pay close attention to the dying minutes where the puck line and totals can be affected by a late goal due to the trailing team’s goalie leaving to play the role of an additional attacker.

Tennis

Tennis live betting strategy is usually all about spreads and totals. However, some sportsbooks do offer micro-betting on single points during a set.

Soccer

Soccer is a popular sport among live bettors even if they don’t like soccer itself. The over 1.5 in-play betting strategy is a strong one and bettors won’t need a lot of soccer knowledge to take advantage. Betting on totals and spreads is the most popular way to enjoy live betting on soccer in the US.

Golf

Golf is a long game and live betting gives you ample time to place strategic bets. Think back to 2005 when Tiger Woods won the Masters as a favorite but he slumped seven shots of the lead after the first round. His live odds would have shifted wildly in value if live betting was available.

Other

Numerous international leagues including Nippon Pro Baseball, Championship League Snooker, ATP and WTP tennis, and Australian Aussie Rules football all have live betting that sports fans can enjoy.

Pros and Cons of Live Betting

As a more reactive form of gambling that takes some of the advantages away from the algorithms and techniques used by traders to produce the odds, in-play betting provides an enormous advantage to sports bettors who have a great knowledge of their chosen sport. If you can read a game, live betting will provide distinct advantages.

Pros

• Less statistic-based and more reactive betting
• Can easily convert a losing bet into a winning one
• Odds favor bettors more than bookmakers
• More arbitrage betting opportunities

Cons

• Odds can move quickly, and you need to pay close attention
• Live betting strategy won’t always match up with the game situation
• Live Betting vs Pre-Game Betting – Which is Better?

Frankly, live betting is the better option. It is far more difficult for bookmakers to generate odds that are both accurate and advantageous to their handle when the action unfolds so quickly. When pricing pre-match markets, it is all too easy for bookmakers to provide a wide probability margin, resulting in tight odds that are not exceptionally valuable.

Just watch a live game and observe the odds. You’ll likely see how slow the odds can be to accurately reflect what is potentially going to happen in a game because the odds are data-driven and are fixated on the immediate occurrences.

For example, it is not uncommon for live odds to inaccurately reflect a big comeback. Say the LA Lakers score a couple of points while facing a deficit. You know it, everyone watching at home knows it, the way the points were scored is signally a massive comeback. However, the data just shows a couple of points against a larger deficit and so the odds reflect that data.

You can place a bet with incredibly valuable odds before the live odds truly reflect that comeback. And this is merely one example of how live betting is superior to pre-game betting.