Football Betting Markets

One of the best places to start betting is football. You can find the most matches, tournaments, events, and over a hundred different daily and outright football betting markets. If you are a newbie to online sports betting, our football betting guides are an excellent source to introduce you to the basics. For more experienced players, the key point is to advise on what and how to bet on the most popular sport.

Football Betting Markets Explained

Before you build your strategy on football, you should understand the variety of betting options and their meaning. Besides the Win-Draw-Win, Handicap and Totals markets, there are several soccer bets that you can find only at football, like Cards, Corners, and Offsides. Betting on players’ statistics categories, such as Goalscorers, Shots on Target, and Yellow/Red Cards, increases prop bets’ options. Our step-by-step football betting markets explained section introduces you to the sport’s secrets.

Basic Football Betting Rules

What is the Draw No Bet

What is Both Teams To Score

What Is European Handicap

Football Managers & Betting Analysis

What is Asian Handicap

Asian Total Goals – Over/Under

How Does Betting on Penalties Work

Premier League Top 4 Betting Guide

Premier League Relegation Betting Guide 2023/24

Premier League Betting Sponsors 2023/24

Football Manager Betting

What is the Draw No Bet

What is Both Teams To Score

What Is European Handicap

What is Asian Handicap

Asian Total Goals – Over/Under

Main Football Betting Markets

The sum of the best bookmakers for football categorizes the markets as main, popular, and secondary ones, where you can find special props and outrights. That’s pivotal for bettors to adapt, maximizing the chances of success. Think that you can explore a Champions League clash, finding up to 200 different markets and 2,000 betting selections.

So, the markets’ categorization it’s undoubtedly handy. Before expanding your knowledge, you need to learn all the main markets and the basic types of soccer bets you can place. We have created many football betting guides, pointing out the tips you must follow to become a successful bettor.

Full-Time Result

A lot of beginners are wondering What is moneyline in betting. Essentially, it is the WDW option where you have to predict the 90-minute result. You can also find it as 1X2, Final Result or Match Result. Here are the three betting options and their meaning under that 90-minute option:

1: The home team will win the match.
X: The match will end in a draw.
2: The visitor team will win the match.

The odds value and extensive research based on current form, injury news/bans, and stats are exceptional advisory factors to help you bet on the full-time results.

Double Chance

Double Chance, or DC bet, can be in variants 1X, 12, and X2, where you can combine and cover two of the three potential outcomes, fading the other. Let’s see a double chance example on Portugal vs. Turkey clash for the World Cup qualifying round and understand the three betting options and their meaning:

1X: Portugal to Win or Draw.
Χ2: Draw or Turkey to Win.
12: Portugal to Win or Turkey to Win.

All bettors want to get the best return on their investment, so our guide for What is a Double Chance Bet analyzes what you should check before placing a DC.

Half-Time/Full-Time Result

These types of football betting markets have nine possible outcomes (i.e., 1/1, 1/2, 1/Χ, Χ/1, Χ/2, Χ/Χ, 2/1, 2/2, 2/Χ), and you must predict both the half-time and the full-time result to place a winner.

For example, if you bet on Manchester City vs. Manchester United derby, the 1/1 selection, Manchester City must lead at the half and full time. Many players prefer HT/FT bets due to the higher odds. You should pay attention to all the related team stats, chasing favourites that can reach a win from the 1st half.

Handicaps

Handicaps are bet types where the bookies give the favourite teams a virtual advantage or set the underdogs at a disadvantage point. There are two ways for handicap betting, the European or 3-way handicap with three possible outcomes and the Asian, which is more prevalent among bettors, a 2-way handicap with two outcomes.

Handicap bets aren’t a simple wager type like the WDW and Totals markets, but if you understand how they work by reading our football markets explained section, you can take an edge over bookies and boost your winning chances.

European and Asian handicaps are accepted in almost all team sports, like basketball, ice hockey and baseball, where bookies divide two teams’ chances to 50:50 theoretically by adding a specific number of points, goals, and runs to the underdog.

Football remains the most popular, and the reasons are simple:

• It’s a low-scoring sport, so it’s easier to analyze key stats for each team’s offence and defence.
• There are different and unique handicap markets, not only for goals scored.

For instance, you can bet on cards and corners, two statistical categories that don’t exist in other sports. We have created guides with tables and examples, providing deep knowledge for both Asian and European handicaps. 

Totals

The Over/Under football betting markets call you to predict the total number of goals scored, cards, penalties, and offsides by each team or player in a match. Bookmakers set the lines, and your mission is to bet on the Over/Under compared to that projected number.

For several bettors is a profitable 2-way market that increases winning chances. Over tends to be more popular than the Under, especially in low lines like 1,5 total goals, 3,5 cards, or 9,5 corners.

Goal Range: You have to predict the margin of goals scored in a match. The most common ranges include 0-1 goals, 2-3 goals, 4-6 goals, 7 or more goals, besides lines (e.g., 1,5, or 2,5, or 3,5, etc.) for Over/Under betting both for half and full-time.

Total Cards: A unique market that refers to how many cards will be awarded during a football match. Bookies will offer various types of soccer bets concerning the total number of cards, both 3-way and 2-way options, a specific number of cards for each team and which team will receive the most bookings. The top football bookmakers might even allow you to wager on whether a red card will be shown in the game.

Total Corners: Corner kick betting options include the number of total corners (e.g. Under 10, exact 10, Over 10), a specific range of corner kicks (0-4, 5-6, 7-8, 9-10, 11-12, 13-14, 15 or more), as well as a 2-way handicap bet (i.e., Over/Under 10,5). These options are usually offered among other similar bets for live betting, such as a team to win the next corner and the first team to reach 5 corners.

Both Teams To Score

This option analyzes how to predict if both teams will score or not. The No Goal option is confirmed if one team fails to score or if the match ends as a goalless draw. Stats are an essential part of the analysis because you can evaluate the winning chances with a more reliable approach.

For instance, the percentage of goals scored or the clean sheet percentage can lead you to conclusions about the teams’ ability to produce goals. For more info, we have created a dedicated guide on What does BTTS mean in football betting. 

Secondary Football Betting Options & Their Meaning

After the main markets, it’s time to move to secondary betting options. Bookmakers tend to give as many options available to bettors. So, these are markets that don’t affect the outcome of a football match, such as the team will keep a clean sheet or score an own goal or concede a penalty. Our football betting guides include several valuable tips to help you wager on secondary football bets.

Correct Score Market

When you bet on the correct score of a football game, you must predict the exact final score to win. If you are a low-stakes bettor, this market has value because you can find juicy odds. It’s difficult to hit the target and predict the score frequently as several factors can affect it.

However, our football betting guides aim to offer you all the necessary information using maths and the teams’ statistical background.

Draw No Bet Market

Placing a DΝΒ bet means removing the draw on a 3-way market, betting either on a home or an away win. If the event is tied, you get your stake back no matter who you bet on. We also offer tips that only advanced players can distinguish.

For example, there’s no difference between the Draw No Bet market and Asian handicap 0.0, but sometimes bookmakers offer different odds. You should always check that point to take advantage of higher prices.

Goalscorer Markets

The most popular goalscorer market refers to the anytime scorer. Your selected player must score at least one goal until the final whistle to win. Other options also exist, such as predicting if a player will score the first or last goal or if he will score two or more goals in football betting games. So, click here if you like goal-scorer betting.

Win to Nil Markets

This betting market is unique for football betting. To make a profit from a Win to Nil bet, your preferred team must win and keep a clean sheet at the same time (e.g., 1-0, 2-0, etc.). If you want to back a favourite searching for higher odds, you can place it only if you think your team will not allow the opposite side to score a goal.

However, you may lose a bet early in the match if the favourite you bet on concedes a goal; so, read our football betting guides for Win to Nil bets and evaluate the pros and cons.

Combos

Combos are combinations of twο bets from the same event, and they are considered like the bet builder’s precursor. You can secure higher odds betting on combos, but the winning possibilities are lower than a bet based on one market. These types of soccer bets include:

Winner & number of goals: You must predict which team will win and how many goals will be scored in a match. A similar bet exists in the case of a tie (e.g. draw & under or over 2.5).

Winner & Both Teams Τo Score: Pretty much the same as the above, you are called to bet on the full-time result and predict whether both teams will score or not.

Total Goals & Both Teams To Score: Another combination in which you have to predict if both teams will manage to find the net (or not) and how many goals will be scored.

Correct Score Half-Time & Full-Time: An increasing number of bookies offer that combination bet, where you have to guess the score both at half-time and full-time correctly.

Scorecast: In order to win, you have to accurately predict which player will score the first goal and what the final score will be at full-time. You can search for a combination of an anytime scorer and final score or the first scorer and winner of a match.

Outright Bets

An outright, long-term, future or Ante Post bet is a wager placed on the outcome of an entire competition, tournament or league. That bet type needs plenty of research, so our released football betting guides for outrights indicates which factors you should consider finding a tournament’s winner, like the World or European Champion or a domestic league’s winner.

You must do your homework before the competition starts and enjoy higher odds. You can also place outrights on which teams will be relegated at the end of a season, the first goalscorer or the MVP of the tournament or league.

Football Betting Guides on the Top Leagues

Some football bettors think it’s easier to bet on lower divisions and less popular domestic leagues. Bookies haven’t a massive incentive to ensure their odds are correct; they may make mistakes on the prices due to a lack of information about teams’ news or other carelessness. However, most try to make money from the elite leagues:

Champions League: A great range of football markets is offered for Tuesday’s and Wednesday’s Champions League matches. The European powerhouses fight every year for the honour to reach the summit of Europe. You can bet on handicaps and totals for group matches where the strong teams can reach easy wins. Furthermore, draws and DNBs are better for knockout clashes where teams are more balanced.

Europa League: The second tier of European football offers numerous opportunities. Especially in the group stage, you can find high odds for the BTTS market and chase underdogs that can cause upsets. We also like to focus on markets like correct scores and totals on higher lines (e.g. 3,5 goals or 7,5 cards).

Premier League: Top teams and star players’ transfers inspire us to bet on English football. What's more, bookies provide an array of specials for the EPL. From how to bet on football transfers to relegation and top-4 betting, we have created numerous guides on these types. 

Serie A: Betting on Italian rivalries, like Roma vs. Lazio and Internazionale vs. Milan matchups, is a great challenge for beginners, advanced, and high-rollers football punters. It will be helpful for you to discover the markets with the most competitive odds for special bets based on cards, offsides, penalties, and other statistic categories.

La Liga: Spanish La Liga offers bettors a great range of outright bets based on the championship winner and the teams that will be relegated. The rivalries between Real Madrid and Barcelona or Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid are optimal choices for everyone who bets on draws, both half-time and full-time, and handicaps.

Ligue 1: It’s one of the most competitive leagues in Europe, where the teams are based on the players’ physical strength. If you analyze the stats, you will see that one from five games finishes at a 1-1 draw. That means the draw, BTTS, and Under 2,5 markets have value.

Bundesliga: The German championship hosts one of the most successful clubs in Europe, Bayern Munchen, which weakens the volume for the title winner’s outright market. However, if you prefer betting on WDW and Over/Under goals, there are solid favourites and high-scoring matches during the season.

Why follow our Soccer Betting Guides?

Whether it’s betting on football or other sports, you should always search for the edge over the bookies. Even the most experienced players need to upgrade their knowledge with a thorough analysis of the team news, stats, and all the info that bookmakers use when it comes to football. Our football betting guides point you to what to examine before placing a bet.

We analyze the different markets and delve deeper into their secrets, combining both stats, teams’ and athletes’ factors. From moneylines, totals, and handicaps to specials, outrights, and live markets, we call you to think about finding value in soccer betting and making money from all elite and secondary leagues worldwide.