Across the United States, sports fans aren’t just glued to their televisions and smartphones watching a game; they are placing bets—sometimes thousands of dollars. It’s a big business: Americans wagered billions on the Super Bowl alone last year, and sports betting has been booming since the Supreme Court legalized gambling in 2018.

While betting on sporting events has long existed among some diehard fans who place bets with each other, most of the action takes place at online sportsbooks. These sites offer a wide range of wagering options, including moneylines, spreads and parlays. They also offer prop bets, which are specific outcomes of a game that don’t show up in the box score (like how many touchdowns Patrick Mahomes will throw).

The most common bets involve team and individual player performance and overall totals. These are the bets that will earn you a payout if your selection wins. To make the most of your wagers, you should shop the lines to find the best value. For example, if a team’s odds are -180 to win and a rival is -100, you should make your bet with the lower number as it will yield a higher profit.

Another important factor to consider is the unit size. You should never bet more than a small percentage of your total bankroll, as this will allow you to weather the inevitable ups and downs of sports betting. A good rule of thumb is to set a goal for the number of units you’d like to bet and stick with that amount. If you’re not sure how to start, try setting a unit size of 1-5% of your bankroll.

Betting on your own team can be a great way to increase the enjoyment of a game, but it’s important to keep in mind that you are likely to lose most of the time. To avoid this, you should always wager on teams or players that you know well and have a solid understanding of their strengths and weaknesses.

Sports betting is a highly addictive activity that is not recommended for casual gamblers. The combination of peer pressure from your group of sports-loving friends, the ease of using mobile apps, and the odds stacked against you by professional bookies makes it very easy to get caught up in the thrill of winning and losing. It is important to understand that if you don’t have superior knowledge of the sport, or your ability to calculate risks, you will lose money. Moreover, this addiction will only lead to further problems down the road. Hence, it’s best to stay away from betting on sports for a living. Rather, use it as a form of entertainment and to add more excitement to your watching experience. It will surely be more rewarding than putting your hard-earned money down on an unknown outcome.