The types of football bets facing any punter may be cause for confusion. These days, there are many different ways of betting on football matches. The majority of people only bet on the final outcome of a game based on 90 minutes.

2021 Super Bowl Betting for Dummies and Novice Bettors by Chris Vasile - 1/30/2021 The Super Bowl is perhaps the only sporting event that draws in people that have no clue what’s going on for 3. How To Bet on Sports Online How to Read Sports Odds and Betting Lines. I’ve titled this Sports Betting For Dummies. It’s a tutorial for those who want to start betting on sports or those who want to gain a. Matched Betting For Dummies. Hey - my name's Jeremy, I've been matched betting for over three years (sorry bookmakers!). In that time I have made over £20,000 profit (apologies again bookies) and I'm. The first step for sports betting dummies is to understand the betting lines. Sure, you know the sport of basketball inside-out and always know what’s happening in the NFL. In general, you have a good feel of who will win on a given night.

However there are several other ways that you can bet to on football games. In this article, we will explain some of the most common types of football bets.

Once you understand the different types of football bets available, you will be able to make a better judgement on which type of football wager best suits you. This in turn will aid you in making more money from your betting on the great and varied game of football. Read on for our exhaustive football betting guide.

Types of Football bets – The Top 10

Let's now take a look at the Top 10 types of football bets most punters make and explain each one briefly.

Full time result

This is by far the most common type of football bet and is usually based on the match result after 90 minutes. It can normally be called WLD (which stands for Win Lose Draw). Usually, the home team is denoted by 1 while the away team is denoted by 2. So if you believe that the home team will win, you select 1 and for an away team win, you pick 2.

Goals: (Under/Over)

It is also referred to as over/under and it is essentially a two-way bet regarding whether the total number of goals scored will be more than the one quoted or less. In most cases, the bet appears to exceed or even be less than 2.5 goals although there are also many variations such like 0.5, 3.5 or even 4.5. This is also pegged to the end of the normal time. This type of football bet is quite a common one as it only involves two outcomes. In most cases, it is not difficult to predict low and high scoring games even if you do not know anything regarding what the final outcome might be.

Example:

Aston Villa v Arsenal: over 3.5 Goals

Wins if 4 or more goals

Loses if 3 or less goals

Football Accumulator

Since Full Time Result appears quite simple to predict, many bettors try multiple bets in which they bet on several matches and try to correctly predict each of those results. However, it is often very tricky. If you get any prediction wrong, you lose on the bet. To enhance your chances of winning, read football accumulator tips first.

Correct Score (CS)

Under these types of football bets, one has to predict the correct score within the normal 90 minutes of football action. Scores are normally quoted as either Home Team Score or Away team score. The odds tend to be quite high because of the fact that there are several possible score lines for any match. However, predicting the right score and winning is not easy. To win in this football bet, you need to understand the scoring habits of your team.

Example:

Newcastle 0-1 West Ham

• Wins if West Ham wins 1-0
• Loses if the score is any other

Half time/Full time

This is also sometimes called double result and it involves predicting half time score as well as the score after 90 minutes all in one bet.

For example:

Let’s assume that Manchester United are playing Manchester City.

There are nine possible results for this bet. There are three possibilities by half time which can be a win for Man U, a win for Man City or a draw. The same possibilities are also there at full time.

Below is an example of the manner in which the options can be quoted.

Half time score – full time score.

In the case of Man U vs. Man City, Man U-Draw means that Man U will be lading at half time but the final score will be a draw.

First Goal Scorer FGS

This involves predicting that a particular player will score the first goal. It has an option of “no goal scorer” which definitely means that there will not be any goal scored in normal time.

Example:

Everton v Fulham: Lukaku to score first

Wins should Lukaku score opening goal

Loses in case any other player other than Lukaku opens the scoring

Draw No Bet (DNB)

This bet is pretty much like the full time result bet but does not have the draw option.

You bet on either team winning by full time but if it is a tie, you receive your stake. Its disadvantage is that odds on each team emerging victorious will be reduced as a result of the draw.

It only has two outcomes of betting and you can bet on it very easily. That is Draw No Bet Explained.

Example:

Southampton v Leicester City: Southampton (DNS)

Wins if Southampton win the game

You get back your money if the game ends in a stalemate

Half Time result (HTR)

This means correctly predicting the scores at half time. The score here also includes any goal scored even in the injury time of the first half.

Just like full time bet, half time result bet also involves three possible outcomes of Home Team Win, Away Team Win or a draw.

If you feel that it is a tight game with no team willing to take risk of venturing forward, you can bet for a draw at half time.

Example:

Tottenham v QPR: Half Time Draw

You win if the teams draw at half time and you lose if one team leads at half time.

Each Way Bet on First Goal Scorer

This is a later version in which bookmakers give you the chance of winning in case your chosen player nets second or third goal of the match.

Half of the money that you stand to win goes on first goal scorer bet while the other half will be on the player scoring first, second or even third goal.

You will have something such as ¼ outright odds.

For instance, if you bet £10 each way that Alexis Sanchez score first for Chile at 16/1, ¼ odds and Sanchez scores the second goal, you take home £40 (£10 x 4/1 =£40).

That is how Each Way Bet on First Goal Scorer works.

LGS or Last Goal Scorer Bets

This is similar to first goal scorer bets although in reverse. Bookmakers normally quote the same odds for a given player to net last as to net first. You could exploit this bet if you understand your players and your team well.

Cash Out your Football Bets

One of the more recent types of football bets is the Cash Out feature. At Betfred you can Cash Out your football bets when you want. The video above showcases this punter friendly feature.

A new feature becoming common amongst online bookmakers is to cash out your bets while the event is till running. This gives you added control of your money. If you feel the game is about to turn against you cash out your winnings or stake before the match ends.

Types Of Football Bets Conclusion

There are many different ways of betting in a football match through the various types of football bets.

Other than the common full time score bet, you can actually make a return even if your team loses. The above are the main types of football bets available at many betting sites.

Next time you go betting do not restrict your wagering to only one bet. You can choose to spread your bets by trying out some different bets. You just need to know you team very well.

How NFL Odds, Lines, Point Spreads and Totals Work

When you wager on NFL football it’s important that you understand clearly and concisely how to read odds and how they work. This is basic information that you must know in order to make informed bets.

You’ll need to know how the rotation number, point spread, moneyline and over/under are used and what each means. Each of these terms may be called by another name. The rotation number if often referred to as the number or the rotation mark, moneyline becomes line, point spread is called the spread, and over/under becomes the total. When you come down to it, these are the major terms that can be lumped under the heading odds.

Bookmakers use odds to even out the bets, getting gamblers to wager on both sides of the line by leveling the playing field. Although there is overall parity in the NFL, there are teams that are haves and others that are have-nots. Indianapolis is still superior to Cincinnati but when they play each other the bookies have to get about half of the bettors to put cash on the Bengals. This covers the sportsbooks ensuring they’ll make a decent amount of cash on just about every game.

When you read NFL odds, you’ll first see the date and time of the game on the left and then immediately to the right, there will be two numbers with the name of each team next to one of each numbers. That number is called the rotation number.

Rotation numbers are standard from sportsbook to sportsbook. The number becomes a way to refer to the game and team without mentioning the teams name. It’s a sort of shorthand. Also, the rotation number allows each book to list the games in the same order—numerically. It is, in essence, a way to keep all of the games that are posted each day and throughout the week organized. That makes it easy for the bettor and the bookie.

Horse Betting For Dummies

As an example, let’s consider a matchup between the Indianapolis Colts and the Cincinnati Bengals. In our scenario, the Bengals are the home team, which means they will be listed last and the Colts, as the visitors, will be on the odds slip first. If Indy’s rotation number is 101, then Cincy’s rotation mark would be 102. When you place a bet live at a Vegas sportsbook or over the phone, you would say the number of the team on which you want to wager and not the name.

To the right of the team’s name are the different types of odds. Usually the spread will be first. You may then see the moneyline (although some books list these on another slip) and then, finally, the over/under. Thus, all of the basic bets are in one place, allowing for easy access.

The point spread, which is the most popular type of bet, lists the favored team with a minus sign and a number and the underdog with a plus sign and the same number as the favorite. (If neither team is favored, they will be listed as EVEN or PICK.)

The team that has the minus sign, which is the favorite, has points deducted from its final score, while the dog, with the plus sign, has points added. The favorite must beat the spread, which means they have to win by more than the negative number to pay off. The underdog pays off in two instances—if they win outright or if they lose by less than the spread.

In our scenario, Indianapolis is at -10.5 and Cincinnati at +10.5. If you bet on the Colts at -10.5, which means they are favored, they must win by 11 or more for you to collect on your bet. If you wager on Cincinnati, which is the underdog, your bet pays off if they win the game outright or if they lose by less than 11.

Sometimes with NFL odds you’ll see a spread posted as a whole number. Decimals or fractions are usually utilized to ensure there won’t be a tie. If in our example the spread was reset to 10 with the Colts favored and they win by 10, then the game is considered to be a tie, which in betting terms is called a push. If there is a push all bets are off and the sportsbooks return all wagers back to the bettors.

Many people will say that the odds on a spread bet are even, paying 1:1. But this is not true. The actual odds are 0.90:1. For every dollar bet, you can win 90 cents. When checking out the spread, you’ll usually see a number listed next to each spread. That number, which is your stake, is posted as -110. This number tells you how much you have to bet to win $100. If you put $110 on either team, you stand to win $100. If you bet $11.00, you can win $10.00. Every NFL point spread works this way.

The moneyline is different. First, with the moneyline whichever team wins the game pays out. There’s no giving or taking away of points. How do the bookies even the playing field with the moneyline? They do it by making bettors wager more on the favorite to win less and allowing them to bet less to win more on the dog. The favorite is posted with a minus sign and a number. That number represents the amount of cash that has to be wagered in order to win $100. The underdog, on the other hand, is listed with a plus sign in front of a number. That number shows how much a bettor wins when they bet $100.

Taking the exact same match up and odds above, Indy would be listed at -380 and Cincy at +355. When wagering on the Colts, the favored team, a sports bettor would be required to bet $380 to make $100. If they take the Bengals, who are the underdog, a $100 bet can result in a $355 profit.

By the way, there is a relationship between the spread and the moneyline. The exact relationship can vary a bit depending on the book, but the correlation works in this manner:

Horse Race Betting For Dummies

When considering NFL odds, the last type of basic bet you’ll see listed is the total or over/under. The over/under is a prediction regarding the total number of points that both teams will score. As it is with the spread, the total is usually posted as a fraction or decimal and the stake is the same as it is with the point spread (-110)

With NFL odds the over/under can vary but usually it’s somewhere between 35 and 47 points. Let’s say in the Colts and Bengals game that the total is posted at 37.5. If Indy scores 27 and Cincy gets 13 points, the total would be at 40 and the over would win. But if the Colts rack up 35, and they shut out the Bengals, the total of 35 would be under.
If, as it is sometimes with the spread, the total is listed as a whole number, the result may be a push. Let’s say the total is 37 and the Colts score 24 and the Bengals 13 for a total of exactly 37 points. If this happens all bets are returned on the push.
If you are able to interpret NFL odds and know what the various terms mean, such as the rotation number, point spread, moneyline and over/under, you’ll have a basic understanding on what you are betting. Prior to wagering make sure you see our NFL odds page, which carries all the latest odds from the top online sportsbooks. Remember that the odds makers are attempting to even the out the bets on each game. The sports bettor has to analyze each game and the odds and make their bets accordingly in order to win cash.