MLS Betting Guide

Ways and Places to Bet on the MLS

From the 2021 to 2022 season, MLS viewership increased by 16% and recorded its best viewership season since 2007. Many factors may contribute to this, including talent increase, social media advertisements, and even rumors that players like Lionel Messi may end up donning an MLS jersey soon. With all that being said, the want and need to bet on the league has also increased, and sportsbooks are now offering stellar odds and markets to do so.

Bettors can find a wide variety of bet types for the MLS that, include in-game bets, live bets, team futures, and player futures. Most sportsbooks offer endless possibilities for profiting off one’s favorite MLS team. Within each game, bettors can wager on three-way moneylines, point totals, exact correct scores, goal-line bets, and even more game and team props.

Like with all sports, we suggest having multiple sportsbook accounts in order to get the best possible price on any wager a customer may be looking to make. The best sportsbooks for MLS betting happen to be some of the most popular shops on the market, including Caesers, FanDuel, BetMGM, DraftKings, and WynnBet. Comparing odds amongst these shops can help bettors maximize their profits on all MLS-related bets.

With all sports betting, the importance of research is thoroughly important, and that is no different when wagering on the MLS. Finding betting trends and checking injury reports is a good start when placing an MLS wager. An example of pre-game research could include seeing that Atlanta United FC is 2nd in second-half goal scoring this season, and their opponent is 27th in 2H goals allowed. Finding a statistical mismatch like that may lead to a bet on Atlanta United’s 2nd Half moneyline of (+190).

How to Bet on the MLS

The tricky aspect of betting on soccer moneylines is that there are three options, meaning bettors can wager on either team, or they can bet on a draw to happen. This does offer some added value on moneyline bets but also means there are two ways to lose a wager instead of just one. Due to this aspect, blindly betting on favorites in the MLS is not a betting strategy we recommend.

Other helpful areas to look at before wagering on an MLS game include looking at the previous meetings between the two teams playing, checking which players may be with the national team instead of with the MLS club, and what goalies have had the best success when on the road. There are plenty of other ways to research a game, but this information can help with all types of bets, even outside of moneylines.

One of the other most common bet types for soccer betting is point totals, and if handicapped properly, this can be one of the most profitable bet types for MLS games. Bettors can choose from odds listed by the sportsbook or take a shot at an adjusted total with varying odds. Research is critical to do for this bet type as well, as even though it is not a perfect science, it can hopefully help minimize cold streaks.

MLS Futures Betting

Holding a futures ticket for a team to win a championship or a player to win an award has long been a common way for sports bettors to also turn a profit. Fans of the MLS have the possibility to place these future bets prior to the season and also during the season, as most sportsbooks will update the odds as the year goes on. In most shops, bettors can find a “Future” tab that will list out all the odds and markets that are available.

If bettors were looking to make a futures bet for the league today, they would be able to find options that include betting on the winner of the MLS Cup or betting on the league leader in scoring at the end of the season. At the time of writing this, Los Angeles FC has the best odds to win the Cup at (+430).

Live Betting the MLS

Like all sports, nothing in gambling is a guarantee, but researching stats and matchups will make developing a betting strategy in the MLS a much easier task. Soccer can certainly be unpredictable, like most sports, but the good news for bettors is if they misread their pregame wager, they always have the option to live bet on the game, which is a widespread method used in soccer betting for all leagues.

Live betting has become a massive area in the sports betting world, and soccer is a large part of that. For fans looking for an added layer of excitement to their MLS-watching experience, the ability to live bet which team will score the next goal, along with plenty more live betting markets, is available across most sportsbooks.

Simply going to your preferred sportsbook and finding the “Live” tab, a bettor can find a live MLS game and begin placing live wagers. Of course, this should always be done within the means of the bettor, as live betting can be an easy way to ruin a bettor's bankroll if they are not careful. Aside from that, live betting can be very profitable if a bettor can watch the game and pick up on big patterns or momentum swings.

Betting Player Props

Putting together parlays with player props is one of the most common ways people sports bet across all sports, and the ability to place bets on props is available in the MLS. Often, bettors will have to wait until the day of the match to find player prop odds, but once they are listed, customers can bet on a wide range of prop markets, usually in the form of over/under bets.

Examples of prop markets could include the number of saves made by a goalie, the first player to score a goal, how many assists a player will have, how many shots a player will have on target, and many more. Research is also essential with these types of wagers, as looking at a player's past results against an opponent or recent success can go a long way toward having success in these types of bets.

Finding the Best Sportsbooks to Bet on the MLS

As we mentioned previously, all the top sportsbooks on the market offer MLS odds and betting markets for bettors to wager on, but if a customer is new to sports betting, we’ll go over the best things to look for. If sports betting is legal within a customer's state, we recommend only dealing with licensed shops only.

When looking to sign-up for a new sportsbook, a good thing to check prior to doing so is what their new and existing customer promotions look like. It’s unlikely bettors will find MLS-specific new customer promotions, but they will be able to find suitable promos from many legal sportsbooks. Finding the top three new customer promos offered in a bettor's state and creating accounts with those sportsbooks is a good place for a new bettor looking to place some MLS wagers to start.

Aside from promotions, one of the best things to look for is what sportsbooks consistently put out the best MLS odds in both pre-game and live markets. Finding the three best sportsbooks in terms of MLS odds can help increase winning margins by always guaranteeing the best payout for a wager. Other areas to look for that are not specific to the MLS include payment methods, good customer support, and an overall user-friendly layout.