A sportsbook is a place to place a bet on sports. A sportsbook accepts bets from both individual sports bettors and businesses. Many sportsbooks are legal in every state, though some are not. They also vary in the services they offer. In some states, sportsbooks must be in person to accept bets; others can be online.
A sportsbook earns its money by collecting a percentage of each bet, called the vigorish. This percentage is also known as “juice” or “vig.” This service was available in only a few states as recently as 2018, but more than twenty states across the country have legalized sportsbooks.
Some sportsbooks offer Asian handicaps. This is a betting system that combines two different types of bets, one based on a soft handicap, and one based on a hard handicap. The difference between these two types of bets is that one team has a virtual advantage over the other.