It has been estimated that global betting on sport is worth over £600 billion a year, out of this figure, roughly 70% is bet on football! In this guide we will explore the huge range of bets that you can place on the beautiful game. We will use some real life examples and share some great hints and tips to help you get the best value out of your bets.
betway – Score £30 when you open a new account today!
Types of Football Bets Available Online
Football fans are really looked after when it comes to betting online! There are hundreds of events that you can wager on within a game and the thrill and excitement of watching a great game and also winning money, is what makes betting on football so popular in the UK. On this page we will probe into the different markets and share our views on the most profitable bets you can place.
Half Time Football Markets at Online Sports Sites
One of the best things about online sports betting is the creation of lots of betting opportunities that simply couldn’t have existed even 5 years ago. At high street bookmakers, as soon as the game started, the book was closed. Fast forward to today and at the best betting sites, once an event starts, that’s just the beginning!
If you like playing it safe, then the ‘draw no bet – 1st half’ market could very well appeal to you. In this, you are predicting that one of the two teams will be leading at half time, if the scores are level then you will receive your stake back. It’s worth noting that the odds will be reduced compared to a straight selection.
Example: Everton are hosting Crystal Palace at Goodison Park, Everton are quoted at 33/100 (£10 would pay £13.30) and Crystal Palace are quoted at 2/1 (£10 would pay £30). If the match is a draw then the stake is returned.
Another very similar bet is ‘double chance – 1st half’, in this bet there are 3 possible outcomes. The first is that Everton are winning or the game is a draw. As the bookmakers are predicting a dominant Everton performance the odds are very low for this at 1/9 (£10 bet would return £11.20). The second option is that either Everton or Crystal Palace will be leading, the odds for that in this example are 4/7 (£10 bet would return £15.80). The final option is Crystal Palace or a Draw and they will offer 8/15 for this to happen (£10 bet would return £15.40).
Both teams to score (BTTS) is a very popular bet among football fans, the beauty is in the simplicity. Will both teams score? Yes or no? It’s as simple as that! If we stick with the Everton and Palace game for comparison, the odds on both teams to score is 7/2 (£10 bet would return £45). The odds on both teams not to score is 9/50 (£10 bet would return £11.80).
The next half time market to mention is ‘total goals 1st half’. This is done on an ‘over’ or ‘under’ basis.
| Bet | Odds | £10 bet returns | Bet | Odds | £10 bet returns |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Over 0.5 | 1/3 | £13.40 | Under 0.5 | 41/20 | £30.50 |
| Over 1.5 | 33/20 | £26.50 | Under 1.5 | 3/7 | £14.30 |
| Over 2.5 | 23/4 | £67.50 | Under 2.5 | 1/12 | £10.90 |
| Over 3.5 | 18/1 | £190 | Under 3.5 | 1/100 | £10.10 |
Looking at the odds offered, you get a sense of what score-line the online bookmaker expects it to be. Next let’s have a look at the ‘correct score 1st half’ market. Predicting an exact score is a lot harder than predicting who will be leading or indeed the total number of goals scored, the good news is that this means the odds are also increased to reflect this difficulty.
| Score | Odds | Returns | Score | Odds | Returns | Score | Odds | Returns |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-0 | 3/1 | £40 | 0-0 | 2/1 | £30 | 0-1 | 6/1 | £70 |
| 2-0 | 8/1 | £90 | 1-1 | 13/2 | £75 | 0-2 | 23/1 | £240 |
| 2-1 | 16/1 | £170 | 2-2 | 55/1 | £560 | 1-2 | 28/1 | £290 |
| 3-0 | 24/1 | £250 | 0-3 | 110/1 | £1110 | |||
| 3-1 | 45/1 | £460 | 1-3 | 125/1 | £1260 |
As you can see from the table above, for a £10 stake, you can win a big amount. Even going for a fairly safe bet such as Everton to be winning 1-0 at half time can quadruple your money.
Next up is a couple of simple bets that won’t need much introduction, home team to score and away team to score. Just like the both teams to score bet, this is a straightforward yes or no.
Keeping with our same game of Everton v Palace, the home team to score ‘yes’ is 69/100 (£10 bet would return £16.90) and for the home team to score ‘no’ is 21/20 (£10 bet would return £20.50). Crystal Palaces odds are away team to score ‘yes’ is 5/3 (£10 bet would return £26.70) and home team to score ‘no’ is 41/100 (£10 bet would return £14.10).
The final bet we will look at in this section is the timing of a goal being scored. Again, this is a simple yes or no answer to the question “will a goal be scored between 00:00 – 14:59”? There is also an alternative time frame of 00:00 – 29:59.
| Time 00:00 – 14:59 | Time 00:00 – 29:59 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yes | Odds | Returns | Yes | Odds | Returns |
| 41/20 | £30.50 | 3/4 | £17.50 | ||
| No | Odds | Returns | No | Odds | Returns |
| 8/25 | £13.20 | 24/25 | £19.60 | ||
Our Verdict: If there is only one game played in the Premier League (such as Monday night football or Friday night football) then I love the half-time market. I usually use the half-time markets as side bets. As with any betting, I would always recommend a bit of research. It doesn’t take long and a regular routine can pay dividends in the long run. For example, in the Everton v Palace game I wouldn’t be looking at Everton’s last 5 games but rather the last 5 fixtures they had at home. Did they score early? Do they tend to score earlier or later in a game? Do they concede much? There will always be surprises but at least understanding the character of the team can help.
Full Time Football Markets at the Best Betting Sites
The full time markets are almost identical to the half time markets but the odds on a surprise happening are lengthened. To show this in an example, for Crystal Palace to be winning 0-1 at half time the odds are 6/1 (£10 bet would return £70), for Crystal Palace to be winning at full time the odds are 13/2 (£10 bet would return £75). This isn’t a massive difference but if you are placing lots of smaller bets, this small increase can make a difference.
Our Verdict: The best advice I would give to someone who is new to betting on sports is to ensure you know what the odds are telling you. When you bet on sports online, the odds are not really the actual chance of you winning but more of a subjective estimate of what the bookies think is likely to happen.
If you see odds of 1/1 (or evens as it’s called), the bookmakers have placed a 50/50 chance of that happening. Any odds that are longer, means the bookmaker thinks that is less likely to happen. The table below gives examples of the implied probability and also the net return. Remember though, the bookies don’t know in advance, they are just making educated guesses the same as anyone. It’s a cliché now but don’t forget Leicester’s unlikely title triumph!
| Probability (implied) | Fractional Odds | Net Return |
|---|---|---|
| 99.01% | 1/100 | 1% |
| 80.00% | 1/4 | 25% |
| 75.00% | 1/3 | 33% |
| 66.67% | 1/2 | 50% |
| 50.00% | 1/1 | 100% |
| 40.00% | 3/2 | 150% |
| 33.33% | 2/1 | 200% |
| 13.33% | 13/2 | 650% |
| 5.00% | 19/1 | 1900% |
3-Way Handicap Betting in Football
I would love to tell you that I used to be a great footballer but the truth is when I was a young lad, if I was picked for a team the opposition would often think it was fair to give my team a head start due to my lack of tactical awareness and poor physical condition. This is an analogy I would relate to 3-way handicapping in sports betting!
This type of betting really comes into its own when on paper, one team seems much stronger than the other. Let’s look at a recent game in the Premier League. Liverpool are playing Swansea at the Liberty Stadium and the bookmakers have Liverpool unsurprisingly as strong favourites. The price for a Liverpool win is 11/25 (£10 pays £14.40), the draw is at 19/5 (£10 pays £48.50) and a Swansea win is at 7/1 (£10 returns £80).
I have a gut feeling that Liverpool will win but only by 1 goal. So using Handicap betting, I give Swansea a 2 goal head start and go for a Swansea win. If Liverpool win the game 1-0, my bet would still come through as it would be 2-1 in Swansea’s favour. For this I would receive odds of 3/5 (£10 returns £16).
Our Verdict: I like to use handicap betting in cup games, you’ll be surprised at how many minnows are able to pull off either a surprise result or hang on for dear life to claim a draw. Giving the underdog a one or two goal head start has paid dividends plenty of times. Another favourite competition for this tactic is the Uefa cup, I don’t know if the bigger clubs just underestimate the opposition but every season that competition throws up surprises and you can get some tasty odds at the best betting sites.
Betting on Corners in Football at the Best Betting Sites
There are a surprisingly large number of bets you can place in relation to corners and it would be easy to dismiss this market as nothing more than a novelty bet but I will explain in the verdict section why I don’t believe this is the case. Let’s first have a look at some of the bets;
- Total corners (over and under an amount)
- Total corners by the home team
- Total corners by the away team
- Team A to win & over 10.5 corners
- Team A to win & under 10.5 corners
- Draw and over 10.5 corners
- Draw and under 10.5 corners
- Team B to win & over 10.5 corners
- Team B to win & under 10.5 corners
- Over 2.5 goals & over 10.5 corners
- Over 2.5 goals & under 10.5 corners
- Under 2.5 goals & over 10.5 corners
- Under 2.5 goals & under 10.5 corners
Our Verdict: Over the last 10 years I have become really interested in the statistical side of football, the internet is a godsend for nerds like me and it is possible to analyse even the smallest detail to try and gain that valuable edge. Sites like www.whoscored.com are a wealth of information and within seconds I can see a team’s average shots per game, attempted blocks, possession and any other stat I wish to find. I will often look at the expected line ups and then dig deeper into the individual player’s stats. A player who takes a lot of shots but has a modest goal return can be a golden ticket for lots of corners, it’s not always the case but I have done well with this tactic.
Will He? Won’t He? – The Goal Scorer Market in Football
The best period I ever had when betting on football online, was when Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney were on fire for Manchester United. I managed to catch the sequence right from the beginning and used to back both of them to score in just about every game. Of course by the end the odds were half of what they were at the beginning but it was fun while it lasted.
The best online sports site not only allow you to bet on the first goal scorer but now you can bet on them being the last goal scorer, to score at any time and a new twist is that with some players you can bet on them not to score at all. You can even back players to score at least 2,3 or even 4 goals. If that’s not enough variety for you, you can bet on the method of the goal such as header or inside or outside of the penalty area.
Our Verdict: If I have learnt anything about the first goal scorer market, it is how much I hate defenders! I have lost count of the times in which I have backed the leading goal scorers for both sides, only to see someone like Chris Smalling hit a Pele type volley into the top corner (ok I admit I’ve used quite a lot of creative license in that sentence). Joking aside, it is a fun market, I do however find the both teams to score and the over and under bets as more profitable (and less stressful) in the long run.
Player Cards at the Best Online Sports Sites
Football has had its fair share of pantomime villains over the years, players like Vinnie Jones, Joey Barton and Roy Keane have divided fans opinions and supporter’s loyalties. Love them or loathe them, football’s bad boys do at least make the game more interesting.
All the best online sports betting sites allow you to bet in the big games, if a player will be yellow carded or not. You can also bet if a player will be sent off.
Our Verdict: There are certain games that almost always provide plenty of bookings. One of these fixtures is Tottenham v Chelsea, this season saw the record broken as a remarkable 9 Tottenham players were booked in a feisty encounter that saw a record 12 players shown a card. Another fixture that usually sees a few names taken is the Merseyside derby between Liverpool and Everton. At the beginning of a season I tend to bet on the cards market more than I do mid-way and towards the end of a season. Why? Every year new directives are given to referees and we tend to see a turbulent few months until it calms down, a good side bet. I will be tinged with sadness when Sergio Ramos finally retires, his 21 red cards whilst playing for Real Madrid is a constant source of amusement.
Games with the most yellow cards in the English top flight
| Team | Against | Number of Yellows | Date | Players booked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spurs | Chelsea | 9 | 2/5/2016 | Vertonghen, Rose, Walker, Dier, Dembele, Lamela, Eriksen, Kane, Mason |
| West Ham | QPR | 8 | 1/10/2012 | Jasskelainen, Collins, Nolan, Noble, Diame, C.Cole, McCartney, Tomkins |
| Arsenal | Leeds | 7 | 26/11/2000 | Adams, Keown, Sylvinho, Luzhny, Lauren, Parlour, Henry |
| Derby | Sunderland | 7 | 3/2/2001 | Carbonari, Eranio, Burley, Powell, Christie, Morris, Riggott |
| Leeds | Spurs | 7 | 24/11/2002 | Bowyer, Wilcox, Burns, Smith, McPhail, Bakke, Kewell |
| Everton | Liverpool | 7 | 25/3/2006 | Weir, Hibbert, Stubbs, Kilbane, Neville, Cahill, Ferguson |
| Man United | Spurs | 7 | 2/2/2008 | Van der Sar, Brown, Vidic, Rooney, Ronaldo, Tevez, Nani |
| Man United | Chelsea | 7 | 21/9/2008 | Neville, Evra, Ferdinand, Scholes, Berbatov, Rooney, Ronaldo |
| Wolves | Newcastle | 7 | 28/8/2010 | Van Damme, Berra, Henry, Jarvis, Doyle, Zubar, Guedioura |
| Aston Villa | Chelsea | 7 | 2/1/2011 | Friedel, Clark, Collins, Petrov, Reo-Coker, Agbonlahor, Heskey |
| Chelsea | QPR | 7 | 23/10/2011 | Cole, Luiz, Terry, Lampard, Mikel, Meireles, Ivanovic |
| West Brom | Chelsea | 7 | 9/11/2013 | Olsson, Ridgewell, McAuley, Yacob, Brunt, Amalfitano, Long |
Wincast, Scorecast & Player Specials Market
These combo bets are becoming more and more popular at online sports sites and are often used as headliner bets on the sites.
Scorecast – A scorecast is a single bet on who you feel will score the first goal and what the final score will be. Although it is easy to think of them as a ‘double’ they work the same but you don’t have to increase your stake as you do with a double bet. For example, if I was to lay a £1 double on Manchester United beating Liverpool 2-1 with Anthony Martial scoring first, it would cost £2 but the same bet as a scorecast will cost £1.
It’s worth remembering that own goals don’t count and are ignored. So if we imagine the Manchester United v Liverpool scenario and I have a scorecast of 2-1 with Martial scoring first, if Liverpool scored the first goal via an own goal but then Martial scores the next goal and United go on to win 2-1, my bet would win.
Wincast – A wincast is similar to the scorecast but is an easier bet as you don’t need to declare the score, only who you think will win and who will score. For example, I have a wincast of Liverpool and Daniel Sturridge. If Sturridge scores first and Liverpool win then my bet is a success, any other combination such as Roberto Firmino scores first or the match is a draw would result in this bet losing.
Specials – The player specials bet is quite a difficult one to give an overview on, as each online sports betting site usually has its own offers and are unique to a particular company or event. They do however tend to have a similar theme. For example, you may see ‘Arsenal and Chelsea to win and Costa to score 2 goals’. For this special, the odds are boosted and you would achieve a better return then if you had placed these bets as singles.
Our Verdict: The holy grail for a lot of football punters is correctly predicting a scorecast. They are notoriously difficult to predict as there is so much that can happen to ruin your bet. The flipside of this is that when you win, you win well! A tactic I use often is to not to put all my eggs in one basket and instead rather than one big scorecast bet, I place one scorecast, one wincast and a few singles to cover the score I feel is most likely.
Hints and Tips for Betting on Football Online
- Don’t go crazy with covering bets. Covering bets can be a great way of offering a bit of protection and can help insure against a lot of eventualities within a game. But, if you do too many, you are impacting the amount of money that will be returned.
- Shop around for the best offers and odds. When you first open an account at an online sports betting site you will no doubt take advantage of a welcome offer which will boost the amount you have to use at the site. There is no reason why you cannot take advantage of another offer at another site, joining at least two sites gives you the opportunity to compare the prices being offered. Although it’s rare to see a huge variance in prices offered, it can and does happen!
- Have reasonable expectations. When I first started betting over 25 years ago, I didn’t really have a clear strategy. I knew about Football but from a fan perspective rather than a statistical view and I would be attracted to bets that offered the potential for a high return. There is nothing wrong with this approach but the simple fact was that I hardly ever saw a return which became disheartening. I am much more likely now to bet on the total number of goals (over / under) in a game and play the both teams to score market (BTTS).
- Think the unthinkable. If we take the Premier League as an example, it is perhaps the most competitive league in Europe with at least 7 or 8 clubs each year with a reasonable chance of having a sustained run for the title. Even clubs that are hotly tipped for relegation are receiving a huge amount of television money. What this means is that shock results are not so much of a shock anymore. Although this may seem to contradict the “have reasonable expectations” tip, As Leicester’s Claudio Ranieri said, “dare to dream”. I have had some great successes on backing smaller teams against the big boys, you only need two bets to come through on a combination bet such as a Trixie to give a nice pay-out.
- Stats, stats and more stats. Make use of the tools that the best online betting sites provide you with, on every football betting site you can bring up a huge array of historical data to help you make selections. Of course, what happened 12 years ago when Bolton played Burnley has very little relevance today but knowing that Burnley this year have a leaky defence and concede more towards the end of a game can help you make an informed decision.
- Enjoy it. I have stopped betting on my favourite team and not just because I’m pretty sure I jinx them every time I place a bet on them but because it impacted on my enjoyment of the match. There has been plenty of occasions when a midfielder has been clear through on goal and I’ve wanted him to do a 50-yard back pass to set up the player who I had a fiver on to score first! I even went through a treacherous stage and I would bet against my own team, if we won I didn’t mind about losing on the bet but if we lost at least I had won the funds to drown my sorrows.
*** Turn your Football Knowledge into Cash at 888sport with Treble the Odds ***
Betting on football is by far my favourite type of online betting. Every week I am seeing innovations within the industry which make betting exciting, engaging and a totally different experience than being in some smoky bookmakers like it was when I first started enjoying a flutter.
Live betting (or in-play as it is also called) is a revolution, it allows you in real time to assess a game and change your betting accordingly. I also love the fact that the best online betting sites have some amazing promotions that mirror the football calendar and no matter what time of the day or night it is, there is always a football match somewhere in the world that I can have a bet on.