In this article we are going to look at the various soccer betting terms everyone should know when placing bets online. This includes popular phrases such as over/under, double chance, betting on corners, and more. We also include information on where to find the best UK online sites for all your sports betting needs.
Finding the Best Soccer Bets and Free Bet Offers
If you want to win real money for your football bets online, you need to find the best sports betting site for your needs. There are plenty of UK casinos that have a sportsbook section, many of which you’ll find on this page – showcasing only the top sites. It also lists lucrative free bet and no deposit bonuses that you can use to test them out risk-free. The no deposit bonus is the most sought after of all offers because you are not required to fund your account and you can test out the casino or sportsbook 100% free. Once you find free bet offers, the next thing you’ll need to know is what football bets to place and our soccer betting terms listed below will help you do that.
Top 23 Soccer Betting Terms
- Accumulator: This can also be called a parlay and it is where you bet on a number of games and the winnings from one bet are placed on the next and everything accumulates to give you an even bigger return. You have to win all your bets to get a payout depending on which you choose (you can sometimes choose to have some losers in the ‘acca’ but this will lower the odds.
- Asian Handicap: This soccer bet gives the favourite team a handicap to even out the odds. The favourite team might get a 2 goal handicap which means they will have to win by over 2 goals in order for your bet to payout. This is a great bet if you want to put your money on the underdog or one of the poorer performing Premier League Teams.
- Both Teams to Score: In this bet both teams will have to score at least one goal in order for you to win.
- Correct Score: This is where you bet on the exact score for the football match. The odds can be really good, but it is hard to predict the exact score.
- Decimal Odds: Odds for UK bookies are expressed as fractional odds but in other countries and at many online bookmakers you will be given the option of displaying decimal odds instead. The stake is included in the overall price so decimal odds of 3 is the same as fractional odds of 2/1.
- Double Chance: This is a football bet that is offered on a 3 way market where you place your money on 2 outcomes – i.e. you can bet on a home win or draw. Odds can be low as you are more likely to win with this type of bet.
- Draw no Bet: If the game ends in a draw you get your stake back.
- Each Way: This is popular in horse racing, but it can be used in some football bets such as first goal scorer. You can still win if your choices come in 2nd, 3rd, or 4th. Your bet is split in 2 with half placed on a win and the other half on the next four places.
- Evens: This is a bet placed at odds of 1/1 or 2.00 where you get your stake back plus the amount of the original bet.
- Fixed Odds Betting: This type of bet lets you know how much you are going to win or lose at the time of placing your bet. The odds are fixed.
- Half Time/Full Time: This is where you bet on what the score will be at the half time and full time whistles.
- Handicap Betting: This is also known as spread betting and it involves giving one team a deficit they have to overcome. The odds are very attractive for handicap bets and they often come with great payouts if you choose correctly.
- In-Play Betting: This is where you get to bet on a match as it unfolds and there are a huge range of markets to choose from. The odds change as the match is played and in-play betting is a great way to make bets on every aspect of the game. In-Play betting is even available on mobile, so you never have to miss out either.
- Lay: This is more common on betting exchanges and is where you bet against a certain outcome happening.
- Match Betting: This is where you bet on the outcome of the soccer match and is the most common bet for football fans.
- Outright Betting: This is where you bet on a team to win the overall championship or league. If you are betting on the Premiership or the UEFA Cup, you’ll get the best odds at the start of the season. Outright betting is also available on a number of markets including manager betting on top English football divisions.
- Over/Under: This bet can be grouped in with the goal line and total goals bet. It is all about the total number of goals scored in a football match. Over/Under is usually 2 goals for under and 3 goals for overs. The goal line is the same, but you can have a draw.
- Scorecast: This football bet lets you predict the first or last goal scorer and the correct score for the game. The odds can be excellent, but it is very hard to get this bet right.
- Single: This is a bet that consists of just one selection.
- Specials: Online sportsbooks will often offer special markets with enhanced odds on particular games and it is well worth looking out for these.
- Spread Betting: This is a popular choice with many online bettors. The returns aren’t fixed, and you bet on the difference between what the sportsbook sets as the spread and what you predict will happen in the match. For example, the sportsbook might predict the first goal to come between 26-29 minutes and you can either go over or under this. If you bet under and a goal is scored in the 10th minute, like Bernard’s goal for Everton against Watson leading to Everton’s first win of the season, you win.
- 1×2: Often called three-way betting, this is where you bet on a home win/draw/or away win. On betting slips punters usually put 1 in the box for a home win, X for a draw, and 2 for an away win.
- Treble: This is a bet that consists of three different selections. In order to win your bet, all three selections must win.