Betting on sports has been popular as long as sports have been going on. People all over the world bet on all sorts of games in hopes of winning some money based on the team they picked. Soccer is arguably the most popular sport in the world today and soccer betting is the most popular type of sports betting around. But when it comes down to it, betting on soccer is not as easy as one would imagine. There needs to be a basic knowledge on the art of betting before a wager goes in and ends up losing all their money.

The types of betting that are most popular in soccer are what’s called an over/under bet and a bet using a money line. Soccer betting, though, is much different than betting on a game of NBA basketball or NHL hockey because there usually exists the possibility that the match will end in a draw. In addition to being able to select one team to beat the other, bettors may also wager on the possibility of a tie. This adds a whole new dimension to betting.

Online Soccer Betting

Betting online is the most common route people take to bet on soccer nowadays. There is an extensive number of sites that offer soccer betting and on some, almost any game in the world is able to be bet on. It is a constantly growing industry with millions of people participating. In some areas of the world online soccer betting is illegal, this means it is important to check the legality of betting online in your area before you actually start placing bets. The way each betting site is set up is a bit different, but once you understand one or two sites most of the rest will be set up relatively the same.

Moneyline Soccer Betting

Betting using the money line is one of the ways you can use to place bets on a soccer match. In this system of betting there are underdogs and favorites that are determined. With a money line an upset has the possibility of paying out very nicely if you wagered successfully on an underdog. As previously mentioned there is the possibility of a draw in most matches, so betting on the money line can yield a situation in which both participating teams are underdogs and a draw is considered to be the favorite.

This is how money line betting is set up:

Manchester City -220
Cardiff City +300
Draw +150

In this fictional example we see that Manchester City is the favorite and Cardiff City is a fairly heavy underdog. If a bettor picks Manchester City, they will be wagering $22 to win $10. But if the wager feels like the underdog would be a better bet, they will be wagering $10 to win $30. The possibility of winning 3 times the amount of money on your bet is why Cardiff is considered to be a heavy underdog. A draw seems to be more likely than Cardiff winning, but it is still fairly unlikely. In this case a bettor will be waging $10 in the hopes of winning $15.

Another situation that could be presented was the previously mentioned one where a draw could be the favored outcome of a game. That situation would look something like this:

Crystal Palace +130
Nottingham Forest +150
Draw -200

By looking at this fictional example it is clear to see that both Crystal Palace and Nottingham Forest are underdogs. If a bettor were to place their bet on Crystal palace they would be risking $10 in order to win $13. Whereas if a person chooses to place their bet on Nottingham Forest, they would be waging $10 in hopes of winning $15. The favorite, a draw, would mean that a bettor would be risking $20 in order to win $10.

Proposition Soccer Betting

Another type of bet is called a proposition bet. These are not so cookie cutter as far as how it works in that a proposition bet can be about anything. Some of the more common types of proposition bets in soccer are making wagers on things like which player will score the first goal, the minute the first goal is scored, and pretty much anything in between. Proposition bets may vary from site to site, but they make soccer betting very exciting and interesting.

For example, in a match between Manchester United and Chelsea a possible proposition bet I could place would be that Manchester United will score in the 59th minute. Of course I have no real way of knowing that they will score, but it’s a risk and that is what soccer betting is all about.

Over/Under Soccer Betting

Another common type of soccer betting is an over/under type of bet. In this system a bettor is placing wagers on the total number of goals scored in a game. The betting site will produce an over/under to bet on, and participants will risk their money on whether they think there will be more or less goals scored in the match.

For instance, in a fictional match between Espanyol and Villareal the over/under could be 1.5. If I were to place on the over, I would be betting that at least 2 goals will be scored in the game. Taking the under would mean that the outcome of the game would have to yield 1 or zero goals. Keep in mind that you are betting on the total number of goals going to be scored by both teams, not one or the other.