What are Exotic Wagers
In addition to the typical prop bets, there are a wide variety of what are known as exotic wagers, on subjects from entertainment to politics to sports. They typically are focused on a major event, such as the Oscars, a presidential election or the World Series.
The NFL’s Super Bowl is famous for the unusual exotic bets that bookmakers conceive to draw interest from casual bettors. The number of exotic bets available is limited only by the bookmaker’s imagination, and for the Super Bowl they can number in the thousands across the sportsbooks.
One of the most popular exotics at the Super Bowl is the over/under on how long it takes the performer to sing the national anthem. You can also bet on which color Gatorade the winning coach will be doused with, and you will find bets on whether a certain NBA player will score more points than the Super Bowl teams combined over a specific time frame.
In Super Bowl 54, bookmakers set up exotic wagers on Pelicans rookie Zion Williamson and how he would perform in relation to teams or players in the big game. One shop had Williamson’s point total at -3.5 (-110) against 49ers running back Raheem Mostert’s total carries (-110). Another shop had the Pelicans star’s points (-110) against the first-half total points of the Chiefs-49ers matchup -5.5 (-110).
Bookmakers take it as a challenge to come up with interesting exotic bets to pull in customers, and it often works. The Super Bowl is the biggest single-day gambling event in the world annually, and a lot of its success can be attributed to the fun exotic bets.
It is estimated that up to 65 percent of the wagers on the Super Bowl are on prop and exotic bets, and the more off-the-wall the wager, the more money that comes rolling in.