Match Result Markets
These markets settle on the outcome of the match itself, and they are where most football betting starts.
1X2 Betting
The simplest football market, and the one every other result market is built from. You back one of three outcomes at full time: the home win (1), the draw (X) or the away win (2). Nothing else counts, so reading the game correctly is no use if the scoreline lands on one of the other two.
Example: Crystal Palace host Chelsea. The home win is 15/2, the draw is 7/2 and the away win is 2/5. A £10 stake on the draw returns £45 in total if the match finishes level, and nothing on any other result.
Punters use it when they have a clear view on the result and want a price that reflects it, without any of the cover the markets below provide.
Double Chance
Double Chance covers two of the three 1X2 outcomes in a single bet, so only the third one beats you. Every combination is shorter than the individual prices it replaces, and that is the trade for the extra cover.
Example: In the same match, Palace or draw is 15/8, Chelsea or draw is 1/12, and Palace or Chelsea with the draw removed is 1/5.
Punters use it on fixtures that look tight, where the outright price on one side does not justify the chance of a draw.
Draw No Bet
Draw No Bet removes the draw rather than covering it. You back a side, and if the match finishes level your stake is returned. The price is shorter than the 1X2 equivalent because one of the three outcomes can no longer lose the bet.
Example: Manchester City are 1/6 to beat Tottenham on Draw No Bet. A £20 stake returns £23.33 if City win and £20 back if the match is drawn.
Punters use it when they are confident which side is stronger but wary of a stalemate.
Correct Score
Correct Score asks for the exact scoreline rather than the winner, which is why prices run much longer than 1X2. Bookmakers list every plausible score and will usually price an unusual one on request.
Example: Arsenal to beat Brighton 1-0 is 6/1. Only that scoreline pays: a 2-0 win loses, and so does 1-0 the other way.
Punters use it on matches with a predictable shape, such as a strong home side expected to win narrowly.
Both Teams to Score
Both Teams to Score, shown as BTTS, ignores the result completely and asks only whether each side finds the net. You pick Yes or No, and it settles at the final whistle.
Example: Newcastle against Brentford, BTTS No is 11/10. Any scoreline where one side fails to score wins the bet, a goalless draw included.
Punters use it when they have a read on how a game will play out but not on who wins it. It is also the building block for many of the enhanced prices bookmakers promote.
Handicap Betting
A handicap gives one side a head start or a deficit before kick off, then settles on the adjusted result. It is the standard way to get a workable price on a heavy favourite. Our guide to bet types covers how handicaps apply across other sports.
Whole-number handicaps leave a tie possible, and stakes are returned when that happens. Asian handicaps use half-goal lines so a tie cannot occur, and split lines such as -1.0 and -1.5 divide your stake across two handicaps at once.
Example: Manchester City are 1/4 to beat Fulham, which is short enough to put most people off. On the Asian handicap City -1.5 the price is 4/5. City must win by two goals or more; a one-goal win loses, because the adjusted result is a Fulham victory.
Punters use handicaps when a mismatch leaves the outright price unappealing, or to back an underdog with a goal of cover.
Goals Markets
Goals markets settle on how many goals are scored and who scores them, independently of the result.
Goalscorer Markets
Bookmakers price every outfield player to score the first goal, the last goal, or at any time in the match. Strikers carry the shortest prices and defenders the longest, and own goals never count. In live betting the same idea returns as next goalscorer, restricted to players on the pitch, sometimes alongside the method of the goal and the period it falls in.
Two combinations sit on top of these. Scorecast pairs a first goalscorer with the correct score, and Wincast pairs a first goalscorer with his team winning. Both run to long prices because every leg has to land.
Many bookmakers apply each way terms to first goalscorer bets, paying a fraction of the price if your player scores at some other point in the match.
Example: The home side’s main striker is 3/1 to score first. He scores the second goal instead, so under each way terms the bet pays at a fraction of 3/1 rather than losing outright.
Punters use goalscorer markets when they have a view on a player’s role in the side rather than on the result.
Goal Bands and Team Goals
Goal bands group the total number of goals into ranges, usually 0-1, 2-3, 4-5 and 6 or more. They can cover the full match, a single half, or one team’s tally on its own. Related markets ask which side scores first, second or last.
Example: You take the 4-5 goals band in Liverpool against Aston Villa at 7/2. A 3-2 result falls inside the band and wins, while 1-0 falls outside it and loses.
Punters use bands when they expect a particular kind of game without wanting to commit to an exact score.
Over/Under Markets
Over/under markets, also called totals, ask whether a countable statistic finishes above or below a line the bookmaker sets. Lines usually sit on a half, such as 2.5, so the bet cannot finish level: two goals is under 2.5 and three is over. Whole-number lines exist too, and those are normally voided if the total lands exactly on the line.
Goals attract the most interest, with 2.5 the usual divide between a low and a high-scoring match and alternatives available from 0.5 upwards. The appeal is that neither side matters, only the total.
Cards work the same way but on a points scale rather than a straight count, and the scale differs between bookmakers. A yellow is commonly worth 1 and a red 3, so a match with seven yellows and one red scores 10 points. Check the scale first, because it is not standardised.
Corners count only once the kick is actually taken. They tend to arrive in clusters, which makes the market move quickly.
Example: You take over 2.5 goals in a Premier League fixture at 4/5. Three goals or more wins the bet, and a 1-1 draw loses it.
Punters use totals when they have a view on how open a game will be rather than on who wins. A closing variation across all of them is odd or even, which asks only whether the final count is an odd or even number.
Half Markets
Half markets settle on one 45-minute period, or on the relationship between the two.
Half Time / Full Time
You name the leader at the break and the winner at full time, which gives nine possible combinations. Prices run long because the two legs are linked, and longest where the match has to turn around between the halves.
Example: Draw at half time with a home win at full time is 3/1, against 8/15 for the home win on its own. The bet needs the match level at the break and the home side ahead at the end.
Punters use it when they expect a specific pattern, such as a favourite breaking down a stubborn defence late on.
To Win Either Half
This treats the two halves as separate contests and needs your side to win at least one of them. A team can lose the match and still win the bet.
Example: Brighton are 11/10 to win either half at West Ham. West Ham take the first half 2-0, but Brighton win the second 1-0, so the bet wins despite the result.
Punters use it as a softer alternative to backing an underdog outright.
To Score in Both Halves
A bet on one team finding the net in each period. Extra time in cup competitions does not count. The market sits alongside half time correct score and half time/full time correct score, which apply the same thinking to exact scorelines.
Example: A home side is 5/2 to score in both halves. Two goals before the break and none after loses the bet, even though they scored twice.
Punters use it on attacking sides that tend to score across a full 90 minutes rather than in one burst.
Specials and Outrights
Specials cover events inside a match that are not tied to the result. Outrights, also called ante-post, run across a whole competition.
Winning Margin
This asks by how many goals the match is won without naming the winner, with separate options for a score draw and a goalless draw. A two-goal margin at 7/2 covers 2-0, 3-1, 4-2 and any other result with the same gap, in either direction. Punters use it when they expect a comfortable win but have no strong view on the exact score.
Clean Sheet
A clean sheet is awarded when a side concedes nothing. You can take it on a named team or on either team keeping one, and it settles regardless of the result, so a goalless draw wins it for both sides. Punters use it on organised defences and on sides expected to control a match.
Cards and Penalties
Beyond the over/under totals above, bookmakers price whether a red card is shown, whether a penalty is awarded, and whether a spot kick is scored or missed. A heated fixture or a player already on a yellow is the usual reason these markets draw attention. Results minute markets sit alongside them, asking whether something happens inside a set window, such as a goal between the 70th and 80th minute.
Outrights and Ante-Post
Outright markets run for the length of a competition: the league title, the top four, relegation, or the leading scorer. Prices shorten as the season progresses and the picture clears, so betting early means a longer price and a longer wait. Placed online, an ante-post bet settles automatically with no paper slip to keep.
Example: You back a side at 12/1 to win the Premier League before the season starts. By March the same side is 2/1, but your bet stays at the price you took.
Punters use outrights when they have a view on a full season rather than a single match. The trade is that the stake is committed for months.
Combining Football Bets
Most football bets can be combined. A double or treble joins two or three selections from different matches and an accumulator joins four or more, with every leg needing to win. A Bet Builder does the same job inside a single match, pairing markets such as a home win with over 2.5 goals and both teams to score.
Combining lengthens the price and lowers the chance of any return, because one wrong leg settles the whole bet as a loss. Our accumulator guide explains how multiples are settled, the accumulator calculator works out the returns before you commit, and our Bet Builder section covers the single-match version.
Written by Leon Marshall Chief Editor at bestbettingsites.co.uk