Football Betting Tips for Beginners
by Leon Hughes on Tuesday 4th December, 2018
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There’s no denying that when betting on a football match you need a slice a luck. After all, the game’s sheer unpredictability is one of its greatest attractions. However, you can’t solely rely on a dodgy decision going your way or for a last-minute winner every week, if you want to make winning a regular occurrence when betting you also need to adopt a large amount of skill and reason.
Whilst there is no fool-proof formula to building a winning bet, here at Betting Sites we offer some great tips for the novice bettors amongst you. Follow these great tips and although you won’t be guaranteed a win, your odds will certainly improve.
What’s the goal?
Probably the most import advice for anybody new to the world of football betting is to understand what type of bettor you are. There are bettors amongst us that will bet big and hope to win often; these tend to bet on low-risk options. In contrast, others will bet small on rather outlandish bets, waiting for that one big win. Both options are fine and can be fun but it important to understand what type of bettor you want to be.
Follow the form
Now this one may seem an obvious tip but before you bet on any football match you need to check the form. You have to go beyond a basic league table check. For example, you may have a team near the top of the table who are useless away from home. Their league position means they will more than likely be a short price but their rotten form on the road means they’re one to steer well clear of.
A prime example of this is Arsenal’s 2017/18 Premier League campaign. The Gunners finished sixth in the table and a whopping nine points clear of Burnley in seventh. Given their status as one of the Premier League’s ‘Big Six’, Arsenal would’ve gone into most games, home or away as the bookies’ favourite against any of the other 14 clubs in the league. However, Arsenal won a measly four from 19 league games on the road that season, backing them would’ve almost certainly left you pulling your hair out.
Understanding a club’s priorities
If you’re placing a football bet on any team across Europe’s major leagues you have to consider that these teams will be competing in several different competitions. You need to learn of a club’s priorities to have the best chance of picking a winner. For Premier League clubs, the league and Champions League remain a priority. Therefore, you will see some of the bigger clubs rotate their squad for FA Cup, League Cup or Europa League games.
If a club is seen in the build-up to games to be showing anything other than 100% respect and commitment to the match ahead you have to consider the possibility of an upset. So often a big club will have one eye on an upcoming Champions League clash that show disregard for the league or cup game ahead of them. This could also provide an opportunity to back the underdog at a big price.
Learn your history
Whether you’re a believer or not, it is difficult to argue that hoodoos exist in football. Every club has a bogey team and no matter the form or odds you have to respect this. For example, Crystal Palace have never won a Premier League game against Manchester United. So, whether home or away, you should consider backing the Red Devils whenever the take on the Eagles.
Okay, that may be an obvious one given United’s record over most clubs in the Premier League era but a more surprising example of how history can play a big part in deciding the outcome of a football match includes their cross-city rivals Manchester City.
City have been a major player in the Premier League over the past decade but incredibly they lost four successive games away to Sunderland between 2010 and 2013. Despite claiming home advantage, Sunderland went into each game as massive underdogs. If you were fortune enough to back Sunderland on any of those occasions you would’ve been laughing all the way to the bank!
Don't cash out too early
The ‘Cash Out’ feature introduced online by most major bookmakers is a fantastic tool if the team you’ve backed is up against it. But you must learn to hold your nerve and not cash out too early. Not a week goes by where we don’t hear on Twitter that someone has cashed out a winning bet far too early.
Some great examples of this came during Leicester City’s famous Premier League-winning campaign. One unfortunate punter had staked 50p on Leicester City to win the league at odds of 5000/1 but missed out on a £2,500 windfall after inexplicably cashing out before a ball was kicked for 45p!
Another Leicester City fan will be kicking himself for not holding his nerve as the season drew to a close. Ladbrokes confirmed that one of their customers had stood to win £250,000 from a £50 bet but cashed out in March for a not-too-shabby £72,335.
Don’t cash out too late
Okay, so we’ve given some great examples of why you shouldn’t cash out, now here’s one simple reason why you should – a football match is not over until that final whistle goes. In the 2013/14 season, Liverpool were all set to seal a maiden Premier League title, five points clear with just three to play. The Reds fans were in dreamland, but a slip up (excuse the pun) at home to Chelsea left the door open for Manchester City in the title race.
Liverpool then travelled to Crystal Palace knowing they needed not just to win but to win big as goal difference may be all the separated them and City at the end of the season. Liverpool raced into a 3-0 half-time lead, a lead they retained until 11 minutes from the end. For anybody backing Liverpool that evening, 3-0 up with 79 minutes played would be a sensible time to cash out. Liverpool capitulated with Palace coming back to claim an infamous 3-3 draw.
With countless free bet offers available via Betting Sites there has never been a better time to get involved. Sign up to any of our betting partners today and put these useful tips into action.
