Super Bowl betting confusing? The AP shows you how to do it

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) — Sports betting is now legal in two-thirds of the country, and more Americans than ever before have an opportunity to place a legal bet on Sunday’s Super Bowl.

With sports betting ads blitzing the airwaves with come-ons and promotions, things might be a bit confusing, especially for first-time bettors or those who don’t fully understand how things work.

Here is a guide to betting on the big game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Kansas City Chiefs. We will deal here only with legal options from sportsbooks approved and regulated by government authorities in the U.S.

WHAT IS A POINT SPREAD? OVER/UNDER WHAT?

Two of the most popular bets are on the point spread (the number of points by which a team must win the game in order for the bet to be a winner) and the total, also known as the over/under (the total number of points scored by both teams).

Contrary to popular belief, the point spread is not a consensus on how many points oddsmakers think one team will win by. Rather, it is a number designed to generate as close to an equal number of bets on both sides as possible. That way, the oddsmakers are guaranteed a profit through a cut of the action, called the vigorish, or “vig.” (Many books, hoping to sound less wiseguy-ish, call it “the price.”) Most sportsbooks will keep 10% or more of a winning bet before paying you the rest, but they keep 100% of all losing bets. Prices on Super Bowl bets can vary significantly, so it pays to shop around to get the lowest price you can before making a bet.

Beating the spread is known as “covering.” For the Eagles to cover their spread of 1.5 points, they must win the game by 2 or more points. Conversely, underdog Kansas City can cover by either winning the game outright, or losing by less than 2 points....