How to Bet on Fantasy Sports

Fantasy sports betting is quick, easy and fun, with contests finishing in just a matter of days while offering the chance to win huge paychecks. The process of betting on fantasy sports is far less complicated than it looks at first glance, but players who want to win big will need to take a few things into consideration.

Learn Your Scoring Rules

Each fantasy sports betting site will have its own scoring rules for every sport they offer. For example, a player on DraftKings would score two points in an NFL contest if one of their offensive players grabs a two-point conversion during a match. However, they would lose a point if a player on their roster lost a fumble.

No matter which sport you choose for your contest entries, make sure that you read and understand the rules and how you can earn points. A better understanding of the rules will help you choose your lineup carefully as you think about which players are capable of scoring the most points for you in a contest.

Choose Your Contests

Most fantasy sports betting sites will offer a huge variety of contests across a number of sports, with a wide range of entry fees. You could try some beginners-only contests to gain experience or jump straight into the big games for the chance to win hundreds of thousands of dollars. The choice is yours! Here are the main contests offered across most sites:

Head-to-Heads: While this might look like the easiest fantasy sports betting contest to master, Head-to-Heads can be risky. They work by pitting one player against another, with the winner taking the whole pot, and if you end up facing an experienced shark on game day your account balance could be in for a world of hurt. However, they can be great fun if you like to keep things as simple as possible.

Multipliers: Multipliers, sometimes referred to as Boosters, Double Up or Triple Ups depending on the prizes paid, are contests that offer the top percentage of the field (those who earn the most points) a prize worth two, three, four or even five times their initial entry fee.

50/50s: These simple contests award prizes to the top 50 percent of entries into the competition, with winning players usually receiving twice their entry fee.

Leagues: This is the term used to refer to most contests on sites like DraftKings and FanDuel. Leagues offer players the chance to square off against at least two opponents. Prize pools vary, with some leagues offering prizes for the top three players and others providing a cash prize for the top player alone.

Tournaments: Tournaments usually offer huge guaranteed prize pools, but the competition can be enormous. First-place prizes can quickly reach six figures, but players might be up against a field of 10,000 or more.

Satellites: Satellite games are a popular for those who enjoy the challenge of getting ahead of the field and moving on to big-time contests. These competitions will see the top player or players in a contest gain entry into a bigger event as part of their prize, giving them the chance to compete for even more money without having to shell out an eye-watering entry fee.

Beginners Tournaments: Some sites offer special tournaments for new players so that they can gain experience without having to go up against more seasoned opponents. If this opportunity is available to you, don’t hesitate to take it – such games usually offer smaller fields and lower entry costs and can help you get a feel for how everything works.

There is a contest out there for everyone; the best thing you can do is enter a few and track your results to see what sort of competition best suits you.

Choose Your Team

You’ve found your contest and reviewed the rules – now it’s time to pick your team. Keeping track of all the latest player news via social media and traditional news outlets can give you the tools you need to make those all-important selections for MLS, NFL, NBA and a host of other sports. Your main goal is to assemble a team that will score you the most points – this isn’t the time to pick players simply because they come from the team you’ve supported since childhood.

Almost all of the major fantasy sports betting sites provide a blog or fan zone in which staff impart tips and advice to players. Take advantage of this and read through the recent articles while you choose your team. You might pick up helpful advice that will become invaluable once your lineup is locked in and the competition starts.

For example, you might have a star football player in a league tournament scheduled for this weekend, but you find out that he can’t play due to injury after reading a blog post on DraftKings. You can then quickly change your roster before the game starts, ensuring that you don’t miss out on valuable points.

Consider Salary Caps

Some sites have salary caps for lineups, meaning that you need to carefully consider the cost of each player before creating your team. For example, FanDuel sets a salary cap of $60,000 per lineup while DraftKings gives you $50,000 with which to play. If you really, really want Tom Brady for a weekend Head-to-Head, you need to decide whether or not he’s worth the projected asking price if there are other players you want to use that cost a similar amount. Players with lower associated costs might represent better value and could prove to be pleasant surprises come game day.

Manage Your Bankroll

Similar to poker, players on fantasy sports betting sites refer to their budget as their bankroll and they take it just as seriously. Managing your bankroll doesn’t just mean keeping track of what you spend on contest fees – you need to track the amount you win, lose or devote to fees over the course of your career on a fantasy sports betting site. This will help you identify patterns that could be tweaked or altered to improve your experience and hopefully fatten your bankroll. If you find that you’re spending a large chunk of your money on 50/50s and losing while your performance in leagues is much better, you can make the switch and give yourself a shot at increasing your overall winnings.

Keep it Fun

Above all, don’t forget to have fun when you bet on fantasy sports – this is your chance to show off your knowledge of basketball, hockey, American football, soccer and a host of other sports while picking up the chance to win big. Where else could you get that thrill?