Betting
on football is a varied and exciting business. You can bet
on everything from simply the outcome of the match to the
number of corners or even the sum of the numbers on the
goalscorers' shirts!
Please
take a moment to read the disclaimer at the bottom of the
page before listening to Mister
Tips' general
football betting advice.
Tip
1 - Pick your bets before you go to your favourite bookmakers
- and stick to them. It is all to easy to be swayed into
changing your mind once you get to the betting shop or bookmakers'
website.
Tip
2 - Decide
what you think are the correct odds for the bet before you
look at the bookmakers odds. If you can't get the odds you
want - don't bet!
Tip
3 -
Shop around! Since the internet came along, it is very easy
to hold accounts at several different bookies and to bet
where the odds are best. It really pays to check out several
sites before placing your bet. For single bets this can
mean the difference between odds of 6-1 or 15-2, for multiples
the difference could be between getting 200-1 or 300-1.
It is hard enough to win - when you do you may as well maximise
your return! (Check out the many
links on this page if you want to find a place to bet!)
Tip
4 - Take
care when betting on your favourite team - sentiment can
cloud your judgement!
Tip
5
- Only bet what you can afford, and don't try to chase your
losses on bad bets! Wait for a good opportunity to come
along.
And
now to the bets!
Odds
- Knowing how to calculate the returns from a bet is vital.
Odds come in two different forms. Decimal odds are displayed
in the form 7.5 or 2.3. To calculate the return from a bet
simply multiply your stake by the odds. £4 at 7.5
returns £30.
The
other odds format is fractional. 7.5 in fractional is written
as 13/2 or 13-2. The number to the right is the stake, the
number to the left is the return. Here, £2 on returns
£13 - plus the £2 stake. £4 returns £26
plus the £4 stake for a total of £30.
Single
Bets - Simply
put the money on a single outcome - it could be a win, a
correct score, a goalscorer or any one of a number of other
bets. If the selection comes true in the match, you win
a return based on the odds of the selection.
Multiple
Bets -
Harder to get right, but with much greater return, multiple
bets rely on you picking several selections and getting
them all right for your bet to win. Winnings are based on
multiplying all the odds together. Two selections form a
double, three selections a treble, further bets an accumulator.
For example three selections at decimal odds 10 return a
massive 10 x 10 x 10 = 1000 times your stake!
First
Goalscorer
- A popular bet where you pick a player to score the first
goal. If your player doesn't play in the match, or isn't
on the pitch when the first goal is scored, your bet is
declared void.
Correct
Score
- Another popular bet where you select the eventual score
of a match.
Scorecast
- A special name for a double bet where you pick both first
goalscorer and correct score for a match for increase your
winnings. Pretty difficult to get right, I usually look
for odds of at least 45-1 on such a bet.
Yankee
-
Another special bet comprising of 11 individual bets on
4 selections. The bets are 1 fourfold accumulator, 4 trebles
and 6 doubles. A £1 yankee costs £11 (11 bets
at £1 each).
Patent
- A bet on 3 selections comprising 7 individual bets - 1
treble, 3 doubles and 3 singles.
Trixie
- A
bet on 3 selections comprising 4 individual bets - 1 treble
and 3 doubles.
Perm
- A term to describe a bet on several selections. Perming
doubles from 4 selections gives you 6 bets - all the possible
doubles from betting on 4 selections. Below is a handy reference
table to show the number of bets for different perms.
