Vegas Super Bowl Odds: Most Valuable Betting Trends Ahead of SBLII

Fans Bet Billions On Big Game

More money is bet on the Super Bowl than any other sporting event in the United States.

Americans spent about $4.7 billion betting on the NFL championship in 2017, according to an American casino trade group. And those totals continue to climb every year.

Everyone wants a piece of the action — whether you’re watching the big game at a Las Vegas sports book, a Super Bowl party at a local bar, or just enjoying the special event with a group of friends at home. The Super Bowl is also the most-watched program on television every year … and there’s no close second.

Gamblers aren’t the only ones betting big on the matchup between the AFC and NFC champions. Just look at what advertisers are willing to pay to push their products in front of a Super Bowl audience: Buying a 30-second spot costs more than $5 million on average, according to Variety.

The New England Patriots will try to defend their title in Super Bowl LII. They are five-point favorites over the Philadelphia Eagles (early betting lines provided by bovada.lv).

The Patriots have won five Super Bowls, including two of the last three. The Eagles have never won the Lombardi Trophy, but they have been to the Super Bowl twice — they lost in Super Bowl XV to Oakland and XXXIX to New England.

For the first few decades of the Super Bowl, which started in 1967, the favorites dominated against the spread. The teams picked to win by oddsmakers hoisted the Lombardi Trophy 70 per cent (14-6) of the time in the first 20 title games.

But that trend has definitely not continued throughout the history of the championship. As a matter of fact, the smart bet has been to wager on the underdog in the last 16 years.

The team getting the points in the spread is 12-4. It took the biggest comeback in the history of the championship to stop that streak from continuing last year when the Patriots, favored to win by three points, stunned the Atlanta Falcons 34-28 in overtime. The New England victory also halted a five-game winning streak where the underdogs won the game outright.

The NFC holds a 26-25 edge over the AFC in the first 51 Super Bowl matchups. The Pittsburgh Steelers have the most Super Bowl wins at six, while the Dallas Cowboys, New England Patriots and San Francisco 49ers all have five.

Super Bowl Betting Trivia

• Biggest point spread: In Super Bowl XXIX, the SF 49ers were 18.5-point favorites over the San Diego Chargers. The 49ers covered the spread and won 49-26.

• Smallest point spread: In Super Bowl XLIX, the Patriots and Seattle Seahawks ended up as a pick ’em game. The Patriots won the game 28-24 when Russell Wilson was picked off on second-and-goal from the one-yard line.

• Overtime games: In Super Bowl LI, the Patriots rallied after being down 28-3 in the third quarter to force the first and only overtime game in championship history.

• Most appearances: Even though the Steelers have won the most Super Bowls with six, the Patriots have played in the NFL final a record nine times. They have won five times and lost four.

• Oddsmakers right on: Twice in 51 games oddsmakers have picked the exact point spread of the game. In Super Bowl XXXI, the Green Bay Packers (-14) beat the Patriots 35-21 and, in Super Bowl XXXIV, the St. Louis Rams (-7) beat the Tennessee Titans 23-16.

Favorites have gone 35-16 straight up and 27-22-2 against the spread in the Super Bowl. A team has been favored by 10 points or more 14 times. They have gone 7-6-1 ATS.

The Patriots were the last team to be favored by double digits in Super Bowl XLII. They lost as 12-point favorites 17-14. The biggest upset came in Super Bowl III when the New York Jets beat the Baltimore Colts 16-7 as 18-point underdogs.

The over/under bet has gone 26-24. There was no point total offered in the first Super Bowl. The highest total betting line was 57 points, with both sides winning once each. The lowest total betting line offered was 33 points. The over won in Super Bowl XXXV, while the under took the other three.

While the betting lines change year to year, there’s one thing that remains the same for every Super Bowl: The lineups to make a bet are huge at Las Vegas sports books on the Strip.

Vegas Super Bowl Betting Lines History (1967-2017)

SB Matchup ATS Win Final TOT O/U 51 ATL vs NEP NEP -3 FAV NEP 34 ATL 28 57 O 50 CAR vs DEN CAR -5 DOG DEN 24 CAR 10 43.5 U 49 SEA vs NEP Pick ’em N/A NEP 28 SEA 24 47.5 O 48 SEA vs DEN DEN -2.5 DOG SEA 43 DEN 8 47.5 O 47 SF vs BAL SF -4.5 DOG BAL 34 SF 31 48 O 46 NYG vs NEP NEP -2.5 DOG NYG 21 NEP 17 53 U 45 GB vs PIT GB -3 FAV GB 31 PIT 25 45 O 44 NO vs IND IND -5 DOG NO 31 IND 17 57 U 43 PIT vs ARI PIT -7 DOG PIT 27 ARI 23 46 O 42 NYG vs NEP NEP -12 DOG NYG 17 NEP 14 55 U 41 IND vs CHI IND -7 FAV IND 29 CHI 17 47 U 40 PIT vs SEA PIT -4 FAV PIT 21 SEA 10 47 U 39 NEP vs PHI NEP -7 DOG NEP 24 PHI 21 46.5 U 38 NEP vs CAR NEP -7 DOG NEP 32 CAR 29 37.5 O 37 TB vs OAK OAK -4 DOG TB 48 OAK 21 44 O 36 NEP vs NO STL -14 DOG NEP 20 STL 17 53 U 35 BAL vs NYG BAL -3 FAV BAL 34 NYG 7 33 O 34 STL vs TEN STL -7 Push STL 23 TEN 16 45 U 33 DEN vs ATL DEN -7.5 FAV DEN 34 ATL 19 52.5 O 32 DEN vs GB GB -11 DOG DEN 31 GB 24 49 O 31 GB vs NEP GB -14 Push GB 35 NEP 21 49 O 30 DAL vs PIT DAL -13.5 DOG DAL 27 PIT 17 51 U 29 SF vs SD SF -18.5 FAV SF 49 SD 26 53.5 O 28 DAL vs BUF DAL -10.5 FAV DAL 30 BUF 13 50.5 U 27 DAL vs BUF DAL -6.5 FAV DAL 52 BUF 17 44.5 O 26 WAS vs BUF WAS -7 FAV WAS 37 BUF 24 49 O 25 NYG vs BUF BUF -7 DOG NYG 20 BUF 19 40.5 U 24 SF vs DEN SF -12 FAV SF 55 DEN 10 48 O 23 SF vs CIN SF -7 DOG SF 20 CIN 16 48 U 22 WAS vs DEN  DEN -3 DOG WAS 42 DEN 10  47 O 21 NYG vs DEN NYG -9.5 FAV NYG 39 DEN 20 40 O 20 CHI vs NEP CHI -10 FAV CHI 46 NEP 10 37.5 O 19 SF vs MIA SF -3.5 FAV SF 38 MIA 16 53.5 O 18 L.A. vs. WAS  WAS -3 DOG L.A. 38 WAS 9 48 U 17 WAS vs MIA MIA -3 DOG WAS 27 MIA 17 36.5 O 16 SF vs CIN SF -1 FAV SF 26 CIN 21 48 U 15 OAK vs PHI PHI -3 DOG OAK 27 PHI 10 37.5 U 14 PIT vs LAR PIT -10.5 FAV PIT 31 LAR 19 36 O 13 PIT vs DAL PIT -3.5 FAV PIT 35 DAL 31 37 O 12 DAL vs DEN DAL -6 FAV DAL 27 DEN 10 39 U 11 OAK vs MIN OAK -4 FAV OAK 34 MIN 14 38 O 10 PIT vs DAL PIT -7 DOG PIT 21 DAL 17 36 O 9 PIT vs MIN PIT -3 FAV PIT 16 MIN 6 33 U 8 MIA vs MIN MIA -6.5 FAV MIA 24 MIN 7 33 U 7 MIA vs WAS MIA -1 FAV MIA 14 WAS 7 33 U 6 DAL vs MIA DAL -6 FAV DAL 24 MIA 3 34 U 5 BAL vs DAL BAL -2.5 FAV BAL 16 DAL 13 36 U 4 KC vs MIN MIN -12 DOG KC 23 MIN 7 39 U 3 NYG vs BAL BAL -18 DOG NYJ 16 BAL 7 40 U 2 GB vs OAK GB -13.5 FAV GB 33 OAK 14 43 O 1 GB vs KC GB -14 FAV GB 35 KC 10 40 O Chris Wassel Chris Wassel is someone who has covered a little bit of everything: business, writing, sports, food, grilling, the Olympics, injuries, politics, and more. He has climbed mountains like Mount Washington and Mount San Jacinto in Palm Springs, California, and for those who don’t know, he is also big into food challenges. With friends like Joey Chestnut and Casey Webb, Chris has tackled eating feats like finishing a 16-pound turkey or a 32-inch meat lover's pizza. Since 2013, he has focused on fitness, fishing, and sports while managing to fit in running, hiking, rock climbing, and even the occasional mini-triathlon. He can lift more than his body weight with ease and is the person you turn to when you want to know if a NASCAR rain delay means a Monday race. Over his career, Chris has worked at places like Amazon, USA Today, and various rumors and fantasy sports sites. He has been nominated for awards such as the Fantasy Sports Writers Association's Hockey Writer of the Year and has a collection of high-stakes fantasy trophies and rings on display at home. With all this, Chris sums it up best with his motto: "Shut up and play." Twitter Linkedin Facebook More articles... Chargers Strong Form To Continue In NFL Week 12 Washington Commanders To Keep It Close In NFC East Showdown With Philadelphia Eagles Eagles And Cowboys Tipped For Close Contest In NFL Week 10 Texans Favored For Thursday Night Football Victory In NFL Week 9