Those of us involved in sports betting regularly probably realize that in truth, there was never really any "start" point when individuals began betting on sports. It appears pretty natural to place some kind of wager whenever there's a contest between two different sides, whether or not it is a competition between individuals or between two different teams.

In fact, you will find records to show that as long as there are already matches between people, on any side, you will find folks who want to add some excitement to the competition through wagering. From the gladiatorial contests in ancient Rome to foot races on North America's Great Plains, all cultures have put bets involving money or goods once they are watching a competition.

Today, as always, sports betting is much more sophisticated than those ancient wagers. All around the world, bookmakers both big and small follow several different systems which permit them to make money off of people's penchant for punting. Whether we are discussing professional or amateur leagues, you can bet that you're going to be able to find someone ready to take your wager.

It's important to recognize that the story of sports betting will be as much about these "middle men" than it really is about the sport one is betting on. Bookies setup their odds according to very complex mathematical formulas, which help them to to find out how they may make money off of people's bets. They do not want too much "action" (money wagered) on one side or another, in order to avoid losing their profit. As a result, they have thought up ways to encourage people to bet on each side.

One of those ways is to offer higher payouts if the team receiving less bets win. Individuals who take the "underdogs" stand to win a great soccer deal additional money per dollar bet than those who take the favorites.

Similarly, the point spread is used to encourage betting on both sides of the given match. Both methods permit the sports books to come out of each match with some money.

The story of sports betting involves not only book makers, but also the law. You might be experienced with the popular image of the bookie; a thug who takes money and can behave violently when not paid. Conversely, there are lots of legal, above board sports books today who are legally sanctioned to take sports bets. In North America, all of these books run out of Las Vegas.

In other areas of the world, sports betting is legal but is also highly regulated. Governments, and sports bodies also, desire to protect the honest competitive nature of sports. With the sheer sum of cash being bet on the outcome of games, it may be tempting for players to forget about competition in favor of a bribe or any other type of payout. The history of most sports contains stories of players throwing games in order to receive money from a bookmaker. Laws for example the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act seek to prevent this from happening by prohibiting sports betting in certain cases and places.

Of course, the next chapter in the story of sports betting may make such efforts moot. Today, sports books are among those businesses that have capitalized on the opportunities available online. Bettors in North America no longer need to make the trip to Vegas to be able to put some money down on their favorite team; instead, the capability to wager is just a click of the mouse away.

Not just tend to be more people able to wager on sports through the Internet, the total amount of information available increases the chances of making good bets in a way that has never been seen before. As always, the information also means that books are able to compensate, although the opportunities for making some serious money (at some risk) remain around.

It's safe to say that betting on sports is one area which has happened throughout human history, and an issue that shall happen as long as you can find competitions between people. Today, the net has taken the story of sports betting to the next level; the end of that chapter has yet to be written!