What Is the Spread for the Super Bowl? How to Bet It, How It Moves & More
- If you’re new to NFL betting, this is the right place to learn how to bet on the Super Bowl point spread
- This article provides a beginner’s overview to NFL point spreads and shows how to bet the spread in San Francisco 49ers vs Kansas City Chiefs
- Learn about odds movement and line shopping before you put your money down
There is no bigger betting event in the world than the Super Bowl. Every year, thousands of people who have never laid a wager before make their first bet on the Super Bowl. If you’re one of the people considering doing just that, you’ve come to the right place to learn how to bet bet the spread in San Francisco vs Kansas City.
First, what is the point spread for Kansas City vs San Francisco in Super Bowl 58? At the time of writing, it’s San Francisco -2.5.
Super Bowl 58 Point Spread
| Team | Spread |
|---|---|
| San Francisco 49ers | -2.5 (-105) |
| Kansas City Chiefs | +2.5 (-115) |
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What Does “Point Spread” Actually Mean?
So San Fran is a 2.5-point favorite and KC is a 2.5-point underdog, but what does that 2.5 number mean?
For the favored Niners, it means that, in order to “cover the spread”, they have to win by three points or more. For underdog Chiefs, it means that a loss by one or two points would still count as a win “against the spread” (ATS).
Hypothetically, if I bet on the Niners -2.5 but they only win 24-23, I would lose my wager. But if I bet on the Chiefs +2.5 in that scenario, I would win my wager even though the 49ers won the Super Bowl.
The team that is favored will always be listed with a negative number (indicating they have to win by a certain number of points in order to cover) while the underdog will be listed with a positive number (indicating they can lose by a certain number while still covering).
At this point, you may be wondering, “What about the -110 after the spread?” The three-digit number after the spread indicates how to calculate the payout should your bet win. A negative three-digit number (which both are in this case) shows how much a bettor would have to wager in order to win $100. For San Francisco (-105) bettors would have to wager $105 to win $100. For KC (-115), bettors would have to wager $115 to win $100. The screenshot below shows this in action.
Of course, betting $105 will be a little rich for most beginners and there is no requirement to wager anywhere near that amount. The odds attached to the spread (i.e. -105 and -115 in this case) can still be used to figure out the potential payout, no matter how much you wager.
You could, for instance, divide by ten and bet $10.50 on San Francisco -2.5 (-105) instead of $105. In that case, you would win $10 if the Niners win by at least a field goal.
Usually both sides of a standard NFL point spread will have a negative three-digit number attached. But you will see positive numbers as well, especially when exploring “alternate spreads” (more on this later). Positive three-digit (or four-digit) numbers indicate how much a bettor would win on a $100 wager. Examples to follow.
Do Point Spreads Change?
Yes! Sportsbooks/oddsmakers are constantly assessing whether to move the point spread, or keep it as is. A bundle of factors go into the decision but, for present purposes, it’s important to know two things: (1) if you bet the spread and then it moves, the change doesn’t affect your bet; the line you bet is the line you get; (2) different sportsbooks can and will have different point spreads for the same game.
Most sportsbooks opened the 49ers vs Chiefs Super Bowl 58 point spread at San Francisco -2. Less than an hour later, most had lowered it to San Francisco -1.5. In the ensuing days, it climbed to 2.5, even higher than where it started.
The shifts are usually based on how much money has been bet on either side of the spread (and by whom). If sportsbooks can generate equal betting on both sides of the spread, they stand to make a profit no matter who wins.
With each sportsbook looking out for its own bottom line, there can and will be discrepancies in point spreads at different sportsbooks. For a game as big as the Super Bowl, there doesn’t tend to be much variation, especially by game day. But differences still exists. As of Tuesday night, FanDuel had the spread at San Fran -2.5 (-105) while DraftKings had it at -2 (-105). So bettors wanting to back San Francisco ATS would be better off doing so at DraftKings, where a two-point 49ers win would result in a “push”, i.e. a tie. (In the event of a push, bettors get their stake back. ) While bettors wanting to back Kansas City ATS would be better off wagering at FanDuel.
What Is an “Alternate Spread”?
An “alternate spread” (often abbreviated to “alt spread”) is an option offered by many sportsbooks for bettors to move the line up or down. The “alt spread” option at DraftKings (shown in the screenshot below) allows bettors to move the spread anywhere from San Francisco -14 to Kansas City -12.5.
The odds/payout will, of course, change with the spread. Above, you can seen an extreme example. If bettors wager on Kansas City -12.5 (meaning KC would have to win by at least 13 points to cover the spread), the odds increase to +533: the bettor would win $533 on a $100 wager (or $53.30 on a $10 wager).
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Sascha was a hockey player in his youth, a lawyer in his capricious mid-20s, and has been with SBD since 2014. He specializes in football, basketball, politics, baseball, and hockey.
