A Sportsbook is a legal way to place bets on a variety of sporting events. It also offers a wide range of bonuses and promotions to entice bettors. These can include a first bet bonus, odds boosts and free-to-play contests. The bonuses are essential in driving traffic to the site, which is why it’s important to offer them in an attractive manner.

A sportsbook offers a number of betting options, including over/under bets, futures bets and prop bets. Over/under bets are based on the total points scored in a game and are a popular option among sports bettors. Prop bets are wagers on specific occurrences or statistical benchmarks, and can be placed on both teams and individual players. Futures bets are long-term predictions and can include team and player markets, as well as season-long awards such as MVPs and championships.

To balance the action, sportsbooks must calculate vig. This is the amount they collect on each winning bet, which varies according to the likelihood of that result. When the sportsbook is on the wrong side of a bet, they must pay out more bettors than they take in, and their goal is to have as balanced an action as possible so that they can make a profit.

A Sportsbook also offers a secure environment for their customers, including the latest encryption protocols and powerful firewalls to prevent malware attacks. In addition to this, they have a team of security experts to monitor for suspicious activity and quickly respond to any threats. They also employ a variety of payment processing methods, from credit cards to mobile apps and cryptocurrencies.