Soccer is one of the great frontiers for sports betting. The sport is still growing in popularity inside the U.S., so not every sports fan and bettor is familiar with it. However, with online betting becoming easier and more prevalent, betting on soccer is an area worth exploring. Of course, before getting too involved or invested in soccer, most bettors want to know if soccer can be profitable. Let’s explore that very topic.
Endless Opportunities
One aspect of soccer betting that makes it potentially profitable is the wide array of betting opportunities. There are leagues located throughout the world, and so there is virtually no offseason. Even during the summer months, when the major European leagues have their offseason, MLS in the United States is in full swing. Summertime is also when there are major international tournaments like the World Cup or the Euros, giving bettors ample opportunity to place bets on some of the biggest sporting events in the world.
The best betting opportunities come from lesser-known leagues in Eastern Europe, Asia, or South America. If you can find a sportsbook that offers betting action on these leagues, you can tap into resources that other bettors are missing. It may take some time to learn the ins and outs of the teams in these overlooked leagues. But once you make that investment, the door is opened to significant profits.
Meanwhile, soccer has a high-volume of prop bets that don’t require expertise. Bettors can place wagers on the number of corner kicks a team gets, the number of yellow cards in a game; the number go goals in a game and the first goal’s timing. There are also player-related bets based on scoring goals or receiving bookings. These options allow bettors to become experts on specific players rather than teams as a way to make soccer betting profitable.
Three Possible Outcomes
One thing that might scare bettors away from soccer is that each game has three possible outcomes. Outside of the knockout stages of international tournaments, every game has two potential winners and the possibility of a tie. However, while that makes picking the outcome of any given game more difficult, it does increase the profitability of soccer because of more profitable money lines.
For example, for a football game between two comparable teams, the money line for each team would be around -110. However, with three outcomes in soccer, two groups of equal quality playing one another will likely have money lines of +110 or higher. Thus, the profit of a correct Moneyline selection for a soccer game will be a little higher than other sports for competitive matches. The money lines in soccer also lead to greater profits if you’re able to accurately predict a victory by a sizable underdog.
Safety Strategies
Soccer also offers a few safe-betting strategies to help make up for there being three possible outcomes. For example, bettors can make a draw-no bet wager on a game. This means you can pick a team to win, taking advantage of an appealing moneyline. But if the game ends in a tie, the bet is void, and your money is returned. This is a nice safety net that can help protect you from an unpredictable result that causes you to lose money. Keep in mind that not losing money does increase profitability at the end of the day.
Online betting with soccer games also comes with a double-chance wager option. This gives you the chance to earn a profit on two of the three possible outcomes. You can either bet on either team to win or bet on one team or the game to end in a draw. Granted, the payouts will be lower for such bets. But you also have a 66% chance of winning as opposed to 50% with other sports. While it might take you slower to profit, over an extended period, soccer becomes more profitable than other sports with options like double-chance wagers and draw-no bet.
Easy to Learn
Finally, soccer betting is profitable because the sport is surprisingly easy to learn. Since there is virtually no offseason, there are always games you can watch to familiarize yourself with the sport, the teams, and the players. Also, while the possibility of a draw adds a wrinkle, most forms of soccer betting don’t require bettors to bet against the spread. This helps to reduce the learning curve and simplifies the process of making wagers on soccer games. In a relatively short period of time and after a few low-risk bets, anyone can be ready to start placing serious bets on soccer games. More importantly, if they do their due diligence and make educated wagers, soccer betting can be profitable over the long haul.
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