There’s a dearth of wagering options available to fans when it comes to European soccer. It’s precisely this incredible selection that makes betting on soccer one of the most popular pastimes the world over. But, by that very same token ironically, it can also present as a daunting task for the uninitiated.
If you’re looking to make your first soccer bet, the following breaks down all the pertinent information, betting and strategies involved. Heck, even if you’re a dab hand at soccer betting, there’s something here for everyone.
Unquestionably, the top five soccer league in Europe where the best players ply their trade are as follows (listed in no particular order):
The top five major soccer events on the calendar are as follows (listed in no particular order):
Soccer betting encompasses traditional moneyline betting and totals (over/under), but it also includes bets such as the Asian handicap, double chance, parlays, draw no bet and more – some or all of which might be foreign concepts to novice soccer enthusiasts.
To keep things simple in this introductory column, we’ll look at the most popular soccer bets and elaborate each one with some insight and strategy talk. Before we get started, there’s one important titbit to keep in mind: soccer wagers are decided in full-time, which is 90 minutes of play and any added time due to injury and stoppage during those regular 90 minutes.
As with any sport, the simplest type of bet is the moneyline bet. With most sports, this bet involves picking either team A or B to win. Soccer is unique in that games can end on a draw as well. Thus, when betting on a soccer match, the moneyline will offer three options: team A, team B or the draw result.
It doesn’t get more straightforward than the moneyline, but there’s nevertheless some strategy to betting on the outcome of a match. Things to consider when betting on the outcome of the game include home advantage, team form, head-to-head trends, player injuries, type of competition involved and so on. Moreover, these considerations form the basis for any sound betting strategy.
More and more athletes are investing their time and energy into honing their craft both on and off the field. Today, more so than ever before, there’s a depth of knowledge at their disposal and boundless trained professionals at the ready that are eager to help turning them into the best athletes in their field. From training regimes, fitness sessions, healthy living and so on, athletes are setting the bar high.
This is an important trend to take stock of as it has, amongst other things, brought about such parity in sports that gone are the days of the so-called “Invincibles” in sport. Any team or athlete can be beaten on any given day and that makes for some very exciting betting. It also makes for difficult handicapping in certain situations. Enter double chance betting in soccer, which can address some of the indecision rather nicely.
Double chance betting is a type of soccer bet that allows bettors to pick between two of the three potential outcomes on offer in moneyline betting for considerably understated odds of course. For example, a better might chose team A and/or the draw, team B and/or the draw or team A and/or team B to win.
By betting on two of the potential three outcomes, a bettor’s probability of winning the bet increases. Thus, the return on such a bet decreases in proportion. That said, it is a particularly useful bet when considering a matchup between two well-matched sides where it’s difficult to determine any glaring advantages and disadvantages.
Conversely, it’s an option also to consider in a matchup that features a plucky underdog where the probability of a positive result is greater than the three-way moneyline odds would imply. Therefore, splitting the bet between an outright win and a draw can increase the chance of winning against the soccer odds.
Draw no bet is a bet that nulls and voids a bet if the game results in a draw. So, in essence, by reducing the betting to a two-way moneyline bet, it works like a push bet in NFL betting.
A bettor bets on either team A or B on the no draw bet. The bet wins if the bettor picks the correct team to win. Alternatively, it loses if the bettor picks the wrong team to win. However, if the game results in a draw, the bettor’s stake is returned just like a push bet in the NFL. As with the double chance bet, the return on investment is lower than moneyline odds but not as much as the double chance bet.
Opting to bet the draw no bet is particularly useful in close matchups where teams are likely to cancel each other out. There’s comfort in knowing that the stake will be returned in the event a draw results in such tight circumstances.
However, it’s even more important to feel confident about the choice team’s chances of winning before placing the draw no bet. Nothing is ever guaranteed in sports betting, but doing your research and due diligence before placing a bet with any online sportsbook, is key.
Betting the total is self-explanatory. It’s a bet that allows bettors to bet on the total score and decide whether the final game score will be OVER or UNDER a specific value projected in soccer betting markets irrespective of the game’s winner. This is useful when a bettor is uncertain which team is the best bet to win a game, but where the total feels like the safer option in order to win.
Soccer is a low-scoring game and the most common total used for soccer games is 2.5 with the OVER and UNDER priced according to bookmaker’s expectations. To win the OVER 2.5 the final score must involve three or more goals. To win the UNDER 2.5, the final score would involve two or less goals.
The Asian handicap is the equivalent to the point spread that’s commonly used with American sports such as the NFL, NCAAF and NBA. It’s the great leveller in sports betting that opens value bets on both sides of the coin because teams are spotted a handicap to cover which will be determined by the goals scored in the game.
The purpose of an Asian handicap is to eliminate the possibility of a draw thereby reducing the game to two options: team A or team B winning. There are two common forms in which the Asian handicap appears: half goal (increments of .5) or whole goal (increments of 1).
In the case of the former, a team is spotted an advantage of .5, 1.5, 2.5 and so on with the minus sign denoting the favourite and the plus sign denoting the underdog. The team that scores more with the handicap applied is dubbed to be the winner.
For example, if betting on Chelsea to beat Manchester City with a handicap of -1.5, the Blues will have to score 2 goals or more for the bet to win. The bet is lost if Man City wins, the game results in a draw or Chelsea wins by merely a goal.
The Asian handicap is a great bet to turn to when presented with a lopsided match that is reflected by an overwhelming favourite and massive underdog. In such cases, the underdog’s probability of winning in moneyline betting is so low that it’s considered to be a longshot soccer pick. It’s therefore much better to bet on an underdog with the Asian handicap in such an instance, especially if a bettor feels they’ll be more competitive than the odds would imply.