How to bet on football? Check out our football betting 101!
What Makes A Good Bet? Expert Football Betting Tips
The betting industry and football have gone hand-in-hand for many years now, which is why you see so many teams with companies as their sponsors. It is part of the weekend routine for many fans to head to their local stadium to watch a game in person while placing a bet or two to add to the excitement. Similarly, sitting down on a Super Sunday with a nice accumulator or two to keep an eye on can be a classic footballing experience.
What should you always remember about gambling?
Betting on football can enhance the whole experience, but remember to always gamble responsibly. Gambling should be fun, but once that fun stops, so should you. Never gamble with money that is not yours, or funds you cannot afford to lose. NordicBet wants you to stay safe and have fun when gambling at all times. That is why we have various measures in place to help you control your gambling. Set limits to block yourself from gambling any more than you can afford. Use the Time Out or Self Exclusion options to give yourself some time away from gambling. You can even set session time limits to ensure you don’t spend any more time than you want to gamble on football.
But for those of you who want to place a bet, what makes a good football bet? What expert tips are there for football betting? And what are the smartest football bets to place?
Fortunately for you, we have created an ultimate all-you-need-to-know guide on football betting!
How can I bet on football online?
The beauty of the online world is that you can place a bet at any time for any available match. You are not limited to matches you watch in person or even matches being shown on TV. If you live in England, you can bet on La Liga. If you live in Greece, you can bet on the Premier League. Even if you live all the way in South America, you can still place a bet on Ajax to beat PSV Eindhoven. The possibilities are limitless.
All you have to do is log into NordicBet, create an account, and place your bet either via website or mobile app. It couldn’t be easier. Of course, there are lots of different types of bets you can place, and we will go into a lot more detail later on in this guide.
How does football betting odds work?
For those who have not placed a bet before, football odds can seem like an alien language. But don’t worry, we are here to talk you through it. And it isn’t nearly as complicated as it first seems. Odds are always presented in one of two forms, fractional or decimal. We will even let you choose which option you prefer in the settings.
Fractional odds are presented as follows. You might want to place a bet on Liverpool beating Everton in the Premier League and see that the odds are 2/1. This means that you will receive €2 for every €1 you wager, plus you will have the original stake returned too. So, if you place that €1 bet at 2/1 and Liverpool win, you will receive your €1 back plus €2 in winnings, making for a total of €3.
Decimal odds work slightly differently. That same Liverpool win would be presented as 3.0 instead of 2/1. That basically means that you will receive €3 for every €1 you bet. So, once again, if you put a €1 bet on Liverpool to win at 3.0, you will receive €3 in total winnings if the bet comes in. That includes the €1 you wagered in the first place. Simple, right?
What makes football odds change?
Football odds chop and change all the time because it is an ever-changing sport. There are so many factors that go into determining what the odds should be for a particular bet. Let’s continue to use that Liverpool vs Everton example. A few days before the game, the odds might be at 3.00 for Liverpool to win. However, if it is then announced that Mo Salah is injured and cannot play, the odds might increase because Liverpool might have a tougher time without their best player. Odds also change the more people bet on something. If lots and lots of people bet on Virgil Van Dijk to get a yellow card, the odds will likely decrease. You can also often bet in-play while the game is still going on. If Everton are all over Liverpool and look to be the better side on the day, the odds for Liverpool to win will likely go up and the odds for Everton to win will come down. There are so many variables to think about.
How can I bet on football and win?
Unfortunately, there is no one-way ticket to a winning betting slip. Otherwise, everyone would do it. However, the best piece of advice is to bet on what you know. If you have an in-depth knowledge of something, you may have an edge when it comes to betting. For example, if you are a Liverpool fan, then you may know more about the current form of the team, who is likely to get a yellow card, and who their manager is likely to name in his starting line-up. Similarly, if you watch a lot of PL football, you may stand a better chance of being able to predict five winning teams in an accumulator. If you have never watched Dutch football in your life, then predicting Eredivisie results may be harder. That being said, the beauty of betting is that luck often comes into play whatever happens.
What are the smartest football bets to place?
The smartest football bets to place are obviously the ones that win. But if you want an expert tip for the next season, then yellow cards could be your friend, particularly in the PL. Referees have been pretty card-happy this season, especially with the new rule that players get immediate yellows for kicking the ball away or protesting too heavily to the ref. You can often see some rather unlikely yellows shown to players who otherwise rarely get booked. The same can be said for red cards. Pairing up yellow card bets with bets on results, number of corners, and goal scorers can be a great way to boost your odds too.
Let’s use that Liverpool vs Everton example again. You might be able to get Virgil Van Dijk to be yellow carded at 3.00, both teams to score at 4.00 and Mo Salah to score a penalty at 8.00. If you put all three of those things into one bet, you would get odds of 36.00. So, a €10 bet would return €360 if all three of those things actually happened.
What is a good football bet for beginners? What is an accumulator?
If you are new to football bets, then a good place to start is basic results betting. This is when you simply place a bet on a team to win, lose or draw. The odds for these kinds of bets are usually nice and easy to understand and are a good way to learn the process of online betting. Once you feel comfortable with that, you can look for increased value by betting on accumulators. This is when you bet on multiple results all within the same bet. For example, instead of putting three separate bets on Liverpool to win at 3.00, Tottenham to win at 4.00, and Crystal Palace to win at 5.00, you can put an accumulator on that includes all three games. An accumulator for Liverpool, Tottenham and Crystal Palace all to win at those odds would give you a 25.00 accumulator. €1 on that accumulator would return €25.
What is a bet builder? What is a same-game multi?
One of the most popular forms of football betting is currently the bet builder, which is also sometimes referred to as a same-game multi. As the names suggest, this type of wager involves the punter building their own bet using multiple scenarios within a single match. So, instead of just betting on the result, you can increase your odds by going into more detail on your bet slip. A certain player to get carded at 3.00. Both teams to have 5+ corners at 6.00. Both teams to score at 4.00. A certain player to score at 5.00. A certain team to win at 4.00. Suddenly, this collection of bets with rather small odds has been built into a 361.00 same-game multi. Of course, the more scenarios you build into your bed, the ‘less likely’ it is deemed to happen, but €5 on a winning 361.00 bet builder would return €1800 in profit.
What is a player prop bet? What is a player stat bet?
Thanks to technological advances in recent years, we now have so many stats at our fingertips. As such, bookies are now able to offer betting markets on a wide array of different player stats. These player prop bets can involve wagering on the number of shots, shots on target, fouls, tackles, and offsides a player clocks up during a game. Of course, football is an unpredictable game, and these kinds of player stats are rarely consistent across an entire season. Just because a player ran offside three times in the last game doesn’t mean they are guaranteed even one offside in the next. However, player prop bets are becoming more and more popular, especially when placed into a same-game multi.
What is an Asian handicap bet?
You may be familiar with the term handicap from the world of golf, and the idea is pretty similar here too. With these bets, the team you are betting on has a handicap to play against, as well as the opposition. This can make things a lot more interesting when big teams come up against smaller teams. For example, Manchester City against Luton Town may not seem like an interesting game to bet on. After all, Man City would be heavy favourites and you wouldn’t get very good odds on them winning. However, with the Asian handicap, the playing field is levelled.
Let’s say a bookie offers you a -2 handicap on Man City and a +2 handicap on Luton Town. If you bet on Man City to win, not only do they have to beat Luton, but they have to do so by more than a two-goal margin. Because they have a handicap of -2, a 3-0 win would actually be just a 1-0 win in betting terms. If Man City win by a two-goal margin, their handicap would actually make the result a draw and you would get your original stake back without any winnings. And if Man City lost, drew or won by just a single goal margin, the handicap system would put it down as a Man City loss, meaning you lose your bet. Alternatively, if you bet on Luton to win with a +2 handicap, you would earn your winnings if they lost by a one-goal margin, drew, or won.
Some bookies also offer half-goal handicaps to completely eliminate the possibility of a draw. For example, Man City might be given a -2.5 handicap or Luton Town might get a +1.5 handicap.
What is a correct score bet? What is a scorecast bet? What is a wincast bet?
A correct score bet is when you bet on the exact score result of a 90-minute match. For example, you could bet on Tottenham to beat Everton 2-1.
A scorecast bet combines a correct score bet with a goalscorer. For example, you could bet on Tottenham to beat Everton 2-1 and Heung-min Son to score one of the goals.
A wincast bet is when you bet on a goalscorer and an outcome, but without the exact score. So you could bet on Tottenham to beat Everton and Heung-min Son to score, but it wouldn’t matter if they won 2-1 or 15-0.
And there you have it, these are some of the best betting tips for football betting. Are you ready to apply your knowledge?
