Americans Spend a Fortune Betting on Super Bowl Annually

There is one day every year where Americans place more bets than any other day, Super Bowl Sunday. As the Denver Broncos meet the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl 50, Sunday February 7, millions of people will place some type of bet on the game even if they don't care about football. Most of the bets are friendly bets, like the squares that people buy at Super Bowl parties or in the office.

People just love to place bets on the Super Bowl and this one is not different. In fact, this year, it is estimated that Americans will spend at least $4.2 billion betting on the Super Bowl, according to the American Gaming Association. More than half of adult Americans will have some money at risk on Sunday's game. In 2015, Nevada's casinos received $116 million in bets on the Super Bowl last year through the casinos' sports books.

The Super Bowl sees many so-called proposition wagers, or prop bets, that in some cases have nothing to do with how the two teams play. Prop menus saw an increase years ago to spice up routinely boring games. Prop bets are entertaining and have since became a big part of Super Bowl weekend. Some examples include, which team will win the coin toss, which team will score the first (or last) touchdown and which team will draw the first penalty. You can also bet that Americans will wager billions of dollars in the process as the Broncos and Panthers battle.