Future Odds Wagering

If you could consistently predict the future, is it not reasonable to assume you could become a very wealthy person? Think of the advantages you would have if you could predict how the stock market or specific stocks would perform. What if you could predict the latest and greatest innovation, getting involved as an investor or participant?

Sure, we are quite aware that predicting the future is impossible. It's something that only works out in the movies. With that said, it might be fun to try to make money by predicting the future. How might you do that? Retail and online/mobile sports betting operators love to offer future odds wagering. This presents an opportunity for experienced and recreational sports bettors to look into the future and make an investment in what they see as a vision. It's a fun concept, so let's investigate.

What is Future Odds Wagering?

Future odds wagering involves the placement of bets on outcomes that will be determined at some point in the future. The future might be as close as a day or two away or as far out as maybe 4 years. Most future odds wagering opportunities fall somewhere in the middle of these timeframes.

Futures odds wagering opportunities typically involve predicting the future performance of a team or player. These performances might take place in traditional sports leagues (NFL, NBA, etc.), tournaments (NBAA March Madness, World Cup Soccer), or special events like the Olympics. It's even possible a bookmaker might post future odds on something like a certain film to win "The Oscar." The bottom line is a sports bettor making a future odds bet will be betting on some outcome that will be determined in the future.

How Future Odds Betting Works

It all starts with a retail or online/mobile bookmaker deciding to post future odds on something that is going to occur in the future. They generally like to post said odds on things that they believe will draw interest from the betting community. The only caveat is bookmakers might wait to post certain odds until they have adequate information about that which they are posting. Let's take a look at future odds markets that are generally easy to find in the U.S.

- Which team will win the Super Bowl (might be up to a year in advance and could remain a viable market until the end of the NFL season).

- Which team will win the World Series or Al/NL Pennant (might be up to a year in advance and could remain a viable market until the end of the MLB season).

- Which team will win the NBA Championship (might be up to a year in advance and could remain a viable market until the end of the NBA season).

- Which team will win the Stanley Cup (might be up to a year in advance and could remain a viable market until the end of the MLB season).

- Which golfer will win the Masters Odds will typically be posted a week or two before the event after entries have been compiled and remain a viable market until the start of the tournament.

- Which player will win the U.S. Open (tennis) Odds will typically be posted a week or two before the event after entries have been compiled and remain a viable market until the start of the tournament.

- Which team will win the World Cup (soccer) (might be up to 4 years in advance and could remain a viable market until the start of the event).

- Which MLB player will hit the most home runs during the regular season (might be up to a year in advance and could remain a viable market until the start of the MLB season).

- Which NFL player will win the MVP on the season (might be up to a year in advance and could remain a viable market until some point during the NFL season.

- An NFL team will win at least X number of games during the regular season (might be up to a year in advance and could remain a viable market until the start of the season).

These are just examples of future odds markets that might be available at some time during the wagering year. Some retail and online/mobile bookmakers are prone to offering more future odds markets than others.

When future odds are posted, they represent a paid oddsmaker's predictions based on statistical data and other relevant information. Since they involve predictions into the future, the odds on every entrant might look quite attractive. That is typically done to reflect the extra risk that comes with time. Let's look at two examples.

Example #1: A bettor might want to bet on player X to hit the most home runs during the MLB season. There is a risk that player might get injured during the season, which would adversely affect their chances of winning the home run title. That adds extra risk and the odds on each player would reflect that risk.

Example #2: A bettor might want to bet on a team to win the Super Bowl. They are likely making their prediction based on a healthy roster. Should an elite player get injured, that might adversely affect the team's chances of even going as far as the playoffs. That adds extra risk and the odds on each team would reflect that risk.

When bettors place their future odds wagers, they get the stated odds. If a lot of action comes in on a particular team or player, bookmakers will alter the odds in an attempt to pull in more wagers on other players. What they don't want to do is get caught with a strong position on any team or player. That would expose them to possible losses and we know how much bookmakers dislike losses.

Note: Most future odds markets have small wagering limits. However, established bettors might be able to get more action by simply speaking with the operator's management.

Just for fun, let's take a look at the Top 10 teams currently listed to win the 2025 Super Bowl (per Caesars Sportsbook):

San Francisco 49ers @ +575
Kansas City Chiefs @ +575
Baltimore Ravens @ +900
Detroit Lions @ +1300
Cincinnati Bengals @ +1300
Houston Texans @ +1300
Buffalo Bills @ +1600
Philadelphia Eagles @ +1600
Dallas Cowboys @ +1800
New York Jets @ +2000

As you can see, the odds on every team are quite attractive at face value. However, to wager on any team requires taking a leap of faith that everything will go smoothly for your chosen team. If you are right, the financial reward can be quite lucrative.

Summary: In all likelihood, you'll never get rich placing future odds wagers. However, it is a fun way to get action on a particular team or player. If you have a favorite team in a favorite sports league, there would be nothing wrong with throwing a few bucks down on that team to boost your interest in the team's performance.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: When I see a posted line of +1500, what does that mean?
A: Odds are thought of in incremental bets of $100, though you can wager smaller amounts. The plus sign (+1500) indicates "you will get" $1500 for $100 if you predict correctly. If there was a minus sign (-1500), that's the amount you would have to wager to win $100.

Q: Are refunds available on future odds wagers at any point?
A: The only time refunds will be issued is if the bookmaker decides to cancel the betting option. Otherwise, all action stays put.

Q: Can you use a future odds wager as part of a parlay?
A: No. All future odds wagers are treated strictly as straight bets.