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Football Betting

There are a large number of different ways to place a bet on football – probably far too many to name in this article – so we will just choose some of the most popular ways to place a bet and cover them.

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Where can you place a bet on football?  

There are a number of different ways that you can place a bet on football in the UK. The traditional place would be the bookmakers on the high street. Here, you would walk in and choose the game that you want to bet on and then pick the market you are interested in. In-play betting generally isn’t available when you use a traditional high street bookmaker to place your bets, but most other markets are on offer if you ask for them.

A more modern and more extensive betting choice is available when bettors use online bookmakers. These are available through both webpages and specifically designed mobile apps. The online bookmakers tend to have a more extensive choice of markets available, in-play betting and bonuses for players that can enhance their betting experience.

How to bet on football

The most popular way to place a football bet is simply placing a bet on who you think will win a single game. For example, if Wolves are playing Man City in a game, you have the ability to choose if you think Wolves will win, Man City will win, or if it will be a draw. Each option will have different odds based on how likely it is to happen. If Man City are more likely to win, then their odds will be smaller than a bet on Wolves. This means that a bet on Wolves to win pays out more than a bet on Man City to win, but obviously it’s less likely that you will get the bigger payout.

The second way is an accumulator, more commonly known as an acca. This is when you choose a number of single games and choose the results for all of them. In order to win this wager, you would need to get all of the results you chose right. The odds for this work out higher than if you placed a bet on all of the single games, because it combines the individual odds from each game to give a higher overall payout. This is due to the fact that being able to pick each game correctly is more difficult than picking just a single game correctly. There are also more complicated versions of accas, such as a Yankee or Heinz, which give you lots of different combinations from the games you have chosen.

In-play betting is also a very popular method of placing a bet on football for players. This is when a particular market is chosen, and the bet is placed after the game has already started.

The other ways that people place wagers all tend to centre on the different markets that are available. These are usually the different metrics that impact the game – for example, number of goals scored, number of cards, number of corners and other stats that can all form markets for football. We’ll cover the different markets in more detail later on in this guide.

What types of bonuses will I find when betting on football?

There’s a good selection of football betting bonuses available to bettors when placing bets on football. These are rarely offered in traditional bookmakers and the best bonuses are mainly found at online bookmakers. The football betting bonuses that are mainly offered tend to be acca boosts. These increase the odds that are available when a certain number of games are chosen for an accumulator.

A lot of online bookmakers also offer cashback on losing bets when you back a certain team. For example, for Chelsea against Man United, the bookmaker might say that if you place a bet on Chelsea to win, they will return your stake as a free bet if your bet doesn’t win.

Some online bookmakers will also offer players a free bet on certain matches. These are rarer than other football betting bonuses, and unlike regular wagers, they will only return the winnings, not the stake.

The UK's BIGGEST Football Stadiums

Wembley

Team: England National 
Location:
London
Capacity: 90,000
Built: 2002-2007
Cost: £1 Billion

Aerial shot of Wembley stadium, which hosts tournaments ideal for football betting

Old Trafford

Team: Manchester United
Location: Manchester
Capacity: 75,635
Built: 1909-1910
Cost: £90,000

Aerial shot of Old Trafford stadium

Tottenham Hotspur Stadium

Team: Tottenham Hotspur
Location: London
Capacity: 62,203
Built: 2016-2019
Cost: £850,000,000

Aerial shot of Tottenham Hotspur Stadium

Celtic Park

Team: Celtic
Location: Glasgow
Capacity: 60,411
Built: 1982
Cost: £35,000

Aerial shot of Celtic Park stadium

Emirates

Team: Arsenal
Location: London
Capacity: 60,260
Built:  2004-2006
Cost: £134,000,000

Aerial shot of Emirates stadium

London Stadium

Team: West Ham
Location: London
Capacity: 60,000
Built: 2007-2011
Cost: £534,000,000

Aerial shot of London Stadium

Etihad

Team: Manchester City
Location: Manchester
Capacity: 55,097
Built: 1999-2002
Cost: £134,000,000

Aerial shot of Etihad stadium

Anfield

Team: Liverpool FC
Location: Liverpool
Capacity: 54,000
Built: 1884
Cost: Unknown

Aerial shot of Anfield stadium

St.James Park

Team: Newcastle United
Location: Newcastle
Capacity: 52,405
Built: 1892
Cost: Unknown

Aerial shot of St.James Park stadium

Hampden Park

Team: Scotland National
Location: Glasgow
Capacity: 52,000
Built: 1903
Cost: Unknown

Aerial shot of Hampden Park in Scotland

How to find a good Football betting site

If you’re a football fanatic, then our advice is to always find a site you feel comfortable with. There’s so many to choose from, this shouldn’t be a problem. However, below are some factors we consider here at SuperLenny when choosing the Sportsbooks and Casinos that we work with.

⚽ Security

You have to be sure you’re choosing a safe and secure site. You should never compromise your safety and security when placing bets. You should, therefore, ensure you’re using a site with maximum protection.  The payment processing speed should be a factor here. Take a look at our payment methods page if you’re unfamiliar with processing times. Betting on football is a matter of winning or losing. Losing on bets is a common occasion, but if you lose your money unfairly, then it means you’re dealing with an unreliable site. For instance, you might lose your money if the site shuts down unannounced. This might be a planned or deliberated act

Illicit operators have even been known to cheat their punters through rigged software or withhold players’ winnings without reason. Most people end up writing their money off or siting it as bad luck.  The worst scenario is having your personal details exposed – Any site that misuses or doesn’t protect clients’ information is a scam. Therefore, you must use a trustworthy and reputable gambling site.

Always make sure your chosen operator is regulated by some form of gambling authority. In the UK this is usually the UKGC. This information can usually be found in the footer of the operators website. At SuperLenny we only recommend betting sites that are licensed for UK players.

⚽ Reputation Matters

With many online gambling sites, choosing a reputable platform is quite a hurdle. There are rogue companies that cheat their players. That’s why you should always pick a highly reliable site. You can seek a recommendation from your friends who have used the site. More so, read our reviews which include invaluable information and what to expect from these bookmakers. Reputation can also be reflected in the operators customer service, fast & easy and secure payouts and bonuses. SuperLenny presents all this information in one place, allowing you to focus on entertainment.

⚽ Easy Depositing System 

There’s probably nothing more annoying than an operator’s site with complicated depositing system. It would mean that you would require extra time to make the deposit or even fail to deposit at all.

It would be more convenient when a site offers a variety of payment methods. This includes bitcoins, e-wallets, or debit/credit cards. To find out more about these payment methods, click here.  On top of that, a stress-free withdrawal system is something else that punters would love. No one would want to have their winnings delayed. And just like deposits, a site should offer easy and fast withdrawal options, these are easily identifiable and are a staple in our Sportsbook and Casino Reviews.

Always check the minimum allowed deposit as well as the maximum bet/withdrawal allowed, making sure it aligns with your betting style.

⚽ Bonuses

Any football betting site that offers generous bonuses will stand out to punters. There are a variety of bonuses. The common ones include registration, bonus bets, and reload (rewards for continuing to use the operator).

Registration or sign up bonuses is where you’re given an additional percentage of your initial deposit amount.

For example: If a bookie has a 100% bonus for signing up, and your initial deposit is £150, it means your deposit will be doubled to £300. However, some sites have a certain minimum deposit amount for you to earn the bonus.

⚽ Functionality 

A reliable betting site should allow you to place bets and check results while going about your every day business. You should not be limited to your desktop PC at home. A reliable bookie will always ensure the site is compatible with your smartphone and offer and attractive and easy to use platform.

What is the best betting strategy for football betting?

There are a lot of different betting strategies that can help you to win money betting on football. This means that when it comes to working out how to win betting on football, you will have to research a lot of different stats in order to make the most of your chances. However, there is one stat that we feel works best when used in conjunction with the right research.

The first step is to work out what market you want to work on. A popular market is the over/under market. This can be applied to many different areas, but the number of goals scored in each half is a very popular market to focus on.

As soon as you have chosen your market, you can use the in-play betting tools at an online bookmaker to enhance your potential winnings. Using the number of goals scored in a particular half as an example bet, if your research informs you that there is likely to be a goal scored in the first half of a game, you might want to put a bet on over 0.5 goals being scored in the first half. This bet might not have very good odds, but using in-play betting will allow you to get better odds.

As the half progresses without a goal being scored, the odds of there being a goal scored will increase. There is an element of risk to this strategy as a goal might be scored before you place your bet, but if you time it right, you can sometimes get odds of up to 6/1. Obviously, there are no guarantees that you will win, but using the right research and in-play betting to your advantage can give you excellent returns.

How football betting odds work

There are two different factors that drive the odds on football. If you are wondering how to understand betting on football, it’s important to know how these two factors work.

The first factor is the statistical likelihood that something will happen. For example, if the team at the top of the league is playing the bottom of the league, top of the league are at home and bottom of the league have lost all of their away games over the course of the season, then the odds of a home win will be very short. This means that the potential payout will be a small percentage of the stake you have laid.

Example: if the odds are 1/10 and you placed a £10 bet, you would win £1. This means that your total return would be £11. This is made up of your £10 stake being returned and your £1 winnings. If over the course of the match, the away team scores first, then the odds on a home win would increase and you could potentially get better odds on a home win.

The second factor that impacts the odds is how many people are betting on something. For example, if you were placing a bet on the new manager for a team and lots of people all placed the same bet that you did, then the odds for the new manager would become shorter. This means that you might put a bet on at 8/1, but because lots of people have all placed the same bet, the next person might only get odds of 6/1.

Where can I get the best odds for football?

Generally speaking, online bookmakers tend to offer better odds to players than high street bookmakers. This is mainly because the operating overheads for an online bookmaker are much lower and therefore better odds can be offered. On top of this, there’s a lot of competition, which means that some online bookmakers will offer players a better deal on certain games in order to gain their custom.

This is why it is often best to shop around to find the best deal or to look over different reviews of online bookmakers and get an idea of which offer players the best odds.

Popular betting markets for Football

⚽ Accumulator: An accumulator is a collection of bets on different selections. It will only return a winning bet if all of the selections win.

⚽ Full-time result: A bet on the winner of a game at full time.

⚽ First goalscorer: A bet on the first player to score in the game.

⚽ Over/under market: This can cover lots of different stats. Goals scored, corners, free kicks, throw-ins and cards are just some of the stats that can be bet on in the over/under market.

⚽ Correct score: This is both a bet on who will win the game and also what the final score will be.

⚽ Last goalscorer: This is a bet on the last player to score in the game.

FOOTBALL'S TOP COMPETITIONS TO BET ON

CompetitionFrequencyCountriesNo. of TeamsCurrent Winners Prize (£Approx)
FIFA World CupEvery 4 yearsInt. 32France£50m
European National ChampionshipsEvery 2 yearsEur .55Portugal£32m
FA CupEvery Year UK736Manchester City£30m
Confederations CupEvery 4 Years Int. 8Brazil£800k
Carabao CupEvery Year UK92Manchester City£100,000
UEFA Champions LeagueEvery year Eur.36Liverpool FC. £20m
Copa AmericaEvery 4 years S.America10Brazil£5m
Copa LibertadoresEvery 4 years S.America47Clube de Regatas do Flamengo£450k
UEFA Europa LeagueEvery Year Eur.105Chelsea FC£14m
Africa Cup of NationsEvery 2 YearsAfrica24Algeria£5m
Copa Del Rey Every Year Spain 126Valencia CF £300k
Coppa ItaliaEvery Year Italy 78SS Lazio £2m

Cash Out

Cashing out is a popular addition to betting that is only offered by online bookmakers. The option to cash out appears on the live bets section of a bookmaker’s website. Here, you will have the opportunity to cash out your bet before the game finishes.

If your bet is currently in a winning position, then the cash out value will be above your initial stake but below the potential value of your winnings if you let the bet run to the end of the match. If your bet is currently in a losing position, then it will be less than your stake but above zero.

In order to cash out, you will have to navigate to the live bet section of the online bookmaker’s website and then click on the cashing out button.

Live streaming & where to watch football

Live streaming is something that’s offered by a lot of online bookmakers’ websites. You’re not able to live stream UK-based games on bookmakers’ websites due to the licensing laws that are in place. However, some Premier League games are available on the Amazon Prime service over the course of the year.

This doesn’t mean that you can’t get access to any live streamed football at UK bookmakers though. A lot of foreign games are available to watch at any online bookmaker that offers streaming. This includes big European leagues such as Serie A, the Bundesliga and La Liga. The exception to this is if the games are available to watch on Sky Sports or other subscription services, then these games will then not be available to stream.

Streaming is a good help when you’re first trying to find out how to bet on football. This is because it offers the opportunity to view the games and start to understand how you can use in-play betting to your advantage.

Top 10 English Top Tier Football Winners to Bet On

TeamTimes Won
Manchester United20
Liverpool18
Arsenal13
Everton9
Aston Villa7
Sunderland AFC6
Chelsea FC6
Manchester City6
Newcastle United4
Sheffield Wednesday4
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Football Betting FAQs for UK players

Football betting is legal in the UK. It has been legal since 1960 when all betting was made legal within the UK.

Live betting is another term for in-play betting. This is when you place a bet on a football market for a game that’s already taking place.

It depends on the online bookmaker that you decide to use. However, generally, bank transfers, card payments and e-wallets can all be used to make a deposit.

Betting on football is safe as long as you choose to play at a legitimate online bookmaker. In the UK, this means being regulated by the UKGC. It should be noted that you’re not guaranteed to win when betting on football, so there is always a risk of losing your money.

As with any bet, that is dependent on how much you’re willing to wager. Of course, the more unlikely events (for example, James Milner scoring a diving header from outside the box) the better the odds will be. A more relatable example would be in a game between Aston Villa and Manchester United, betting on Aston Villa to win outright, or by a certain amount of goals, would be more favourable than the predictable Man U, rolling them over. As mentioned, the higher the risk, the higher the reward!

Team news. in the build up to the game. In-form players that might bang one in the top corner from 20 yards out. Also look at team form. If a team is playing away, and their away form has been shocking all season, chances are the charade is probably going to continue. Psychology plays a huge part in the modern game. What’s been happening at the club? This wil;l affect team morale, player performance and therefore the result of the game.

An accumulator bet is a bet that combines four or more results into one single wager. The more standings you bet on, the higher the odds. The advantage of playing with an accumulator is that the winnings are often massive. The only problem is, is that only one of your selections needs to lose for you to lose your entire bet,

There is no sure-fire way to guarantee consistent success while betting on football, however, there are a few ways to give yourself a significant advantage. Lenny’s advice is to familiarise yourself with current happenings by tuning into as many sport networks as you can. This will give you a good idea of an array of different factors that will affect the game, such as team form, player injuries, player news, internal affairs, weather and home/away game performance. Keep an eye on odds. A sudden shift before the game could indicate that a game deciding force is at play, such as a star player becoming injured.

Lenny has reviewed loads of Sportsbooks for you, so you can make an informed decision for yourself depending on what you’re looking for. Our Sportsbook reviews will give you all the knowledge you need before making a decision on which to use.