Soccer Betting

by Tom Wilkinson

You might be surprised at how big soccer betting is around the world. In the United States it has really never taken off, but in some countries it is THE sport to bet, watch, and play.

Soccer betting is pretty straightforward but you do want to be aware of what you are likely to see when placing soccer bets. The most common line you will see in soccer betting is the three-way line. It gives you the option of betting either side or a draw. Here is an example from an English Premier League game.

Birmingham City +185
Blackburn +135

Draw +210
Total 2.5 under50

Here is what you are looking at. If you liked Birmingham City and they won, you would win $185 for every $100 wagered. If you liked Blackburn and they won, you would get $135 for every $100 wagered. If the game ended in a tie, and you bet that option, you would win $210 for every $100 wagered. All of these are in addition to getting your original $100 wager back. If you were betting the total you would have to lay 150 for every 100 you wanted to win on the under, while you would get 130 back for every 100 wagered on the over. This is a typical soccer line that you are likely to see.

Some places will offer straight money lines on soccer but the three-way line is now more common, since very often soccer games end in a tie. If you encounter a straight money line it will be similar to a money line in other sports like the NFL or NBA and have you risking something like $210 to win $100 on the favorite or get back $180 for every $100 you risk on the underdog.

The main soccer leagues available for betting are the English Premier, Italian, and European. Also every four years is the World Cup. That betting starts early as there are many qualifying matches before the main World Cup begins.

If you are looking at betting soccer you want to definitely know a little bit about how to handicap a match. Most people begin by looking at the two teams involved. That includes basic ratings, averages, streaks, injuries, home/away ratings, recent form, head to head statistics, etc. You can also get more involved and look at league data and also examine the odds and value associated with them.

Betting on soccer takes into account the same basic things we look at with other sports. The lines are a little bit different but the basic premise is the same. When we bet soccer we still look for things like motivation, injuries, hot teams, letdowns, etc. If you want to become a professional soccer bettor, or “punter” as they are referred to around the world, then you need to start with the basics. Handicapping Resources for soccer are everywhere and the amount of information available on the Internet continues to grow everyday. Soccer betting is definitely interesting and something you might want to consider if you have a love for the game.