Betting on football is one of the common forms of sports betting. Read up on our top ten football betting tips in order to make your betting experience the most profitable.
1. Follow football games.
It is essential to develop an interest in football before engaging in football betting. You should follow the important tournaments to get an idea of the teams and players. Football is played between countries and also between clubs and both formats attract considerable betting. Be up to date on the football news.
2. Understand the statistics.
The most popular markets are the match outcomes between two teams. A host of statistics is available to the bettor. This includes head to head results, home and away results and results of the last five games. Derive the maximum useful information from these statistics before betting.
3. Factor in the specifics.
There are items of information that will not be available from the statistics, but are important nevertheless. Is any key player unavailable due to injury? Is any key player carrying forward yellow cards from the previous match? Answers to such questions should be factored in the decision-making process.
4. Do not be enchanted by long odds.
The weaker team will have the longer odds. If a very weak team is playing a very strong team, then the odds for the weak team may be say 10 to 1. Such payouts are usually unattainable because such teams are unlikely to win.
5. Betting on draws.
The outcome being a draw is more likely in football than in some other sports like cricket or rugby. Therefore this outcome should not be ruled out in the match betting markets. Two equally strong teams can end up in a drawn match, particularly if neither of them needs a win to progress in the tournament.
6. Understanding full time score.
In elimination matches, penalty kicks are used to determine the winner in the case of a drawn match. However, most online betting sites offer match outcome odds based on the full time score, which is the score before the penalty kicks. Before placing a bet make sure that you understand what is being offered.
7. Other match markets.
Some of the other markets that punters can look at are the exact full time score and the total number of goals scored. The latter market is easier to figure out.
8. Outright tournament winners.
Most football tournaments run over months. Betting on the outright winner early on will give the longer odds, but there is a risk of the team getting eliminated midway. If bettors wait till too late to enter this market they will be left with short odds. The time you should enter this market depends on how much risk you are willing to take. But as a thumb rule, about half way through the tournament is a good time.
9. Bet at reputed sites.
Before placing a wager, you should check the credentials of the site. Reputation, transparency and licensing are more important than bonuses and promotions offered.
10. Shop around before betting.
Check out the odds at three or four betting sites and place the wager at the one that gives the most favourable odds.
