Las Vegas is notorious for setting lines on future events well in advance of the date. The most well-known of such props is on the Super Bowl, where betting commences just as the NFL season opens. Lots of futures are offered for tournaments, league championships and the like, in all sports. They are also offered on political elections and uncertain outcomes of all kinds.

The terms of the futures bets may be very attractive for anyone with strong opinions about which teams will survive until the end of a season or tourney. Futures attract a great deal of action. In addition to the Super Bowl, one can have action on NFC and AFC champions, any number of major golf and tennis tournaments, baseball games, basketball and any sort of tournament, like the NCAA's, the Stanley Cup, World Cup or World Series.

The player who works analytically rather than viscerally usually shuns futures. There are really two obstacles to making a "sharp" wager in the futures context. First, there is the time value of money. The amount of the bet is held without interest by the sports book from the time it is made until the time the outcome is determined. This could be many months. The monetary cost of this time should be figured into the cost of the bet, requiring the minimum acceptable edge to be somewhat higher. Also one has to consider the inconvenience of having a portion of the bankroll tied up for several months where it can not be put to work on other wagers. Second, the analytical bettor will not make a wager if there is insufficient information on which to form a rational prediction of the outcome. By their very nature, futures bets can not be made in light of a complete set of facts. It is almost always preferable to hold on to the bankroll, putting it to work instead on propositions that can be handicapped intelligently.

It may be a mistake to dismiss futures bets totally out of hand, but it is fair to be very skeptical of them. If the payoff is high enough, it may be possible, even with very fragmented information, to conclude that the bet has some value. Most futures will not fit this profile, however.