There is no such thing as a half point in sports, but there is in sports betting!  The half point ensures that a side will win and that the match will not end in a push, where the spread equals the actual difference in points between the two teams.  In a push all bettors get their money back, which is no good for the oddsmaker!  Half points also give oddsmakers more control over lines, allowing them to set more specific values.

Spread betting has moved outside the ambit of sport and financial markets (that is, those dealing solely with share, bonds and derivatives), to cover a wide range of markets, such as house prices.[5] By paying attention to the external factors, such as weather and time of day, those who are betting using a point spread can be better prepared when it comes to obtaining a favorable outcome. Additionally, by avoiding the favourite-longshot bias, where the expected returns on bets placed at shorter odds exceed that of bets placed at the longer odds, and not betting with one’s favorite team, but rather with the team that has been shown to be better when playing in a specific weather condition and time of day, the possibility of arriving at a positive outcome is increased.

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