The betting industry is big business and punters around the world place bets every day, hoping that they come in. In fact, the industry is so huge; the global gambling market yields an astonishing $450 billion. As the market continues to grow the number of different types of bets you can place increases. Nowadays, you can place a bet on almost anything.
With more and more people looking at the different types of bets to place, the ones that prove popular are the ones where you can have an advantage through statistics and research.
What is over and under betting?
One market, in particular, that is prevalent is the over and under market. This is a type of bet that allows punters to decide how a specific match will go based on an average statistic. Punters determine whether the game will end above or below (over or under) what the statistics for the average predict.
A popular over and under betting option is with the number of goals during a football game. The most common overs and unders bet is 2.5. Where the customer will place a bet that there will be more or fewer goals than 2.5 during the 90 minutes of the match played.
What is a push outcome?
Now, you may be wondering why the value is set at .5. This is because if the bet was for 2 or 3, you could end up with what is known as a “push outcome.” This is where the customer’s bet would match the actual result, leading to them being possibly due a refund. With betting on overs and unders the only outcomes, therefore, are to win or lose.
For example: If you placed a bet on Arsenal versus Chelsea having over 2.5 goals scored in the game and the final result is 2-1, you’d win, as three goals would have been scored. However, if the match finished as a 1-1 draw, you’d lose, due to only two goals being scored.
You don’t have to stick to betting on under or over 2.5 goals though. There are various other under and over bets available with most bookmakers. A punter can usually place a bet on overs and unders from 0.5 goals right through to 5.5 goals scored. The fact that there are a number of options to choose from only makes the market more attractive as, with a bit of research, people look to fine tune their over and under bets in an attempt to receive better odds.
How can you maximise your chance to win?
So, on the research side of things, how do punters take advantage? In the over and under market, it is pretty simple. They generally look at how many goals each team is scoring on average. If for example, both sides are scoring an average of one goal a game, that would indicate that there is a strong possibility of the result finishing as under 2.5 goals.
Team Statistics
There is a way of fine tuning this kind of research for more meticulous betting. There are numerous resources available online that will allow punters to check how often a side has scored over 2.5 goals for example. Then when comparing it to the opposing team, they should be able to accurately predict the outcome of the match that is due to take place.
Head To Head
A step further would be to research the most recent meetings between both sides, the head to head record as it is commonly known. When some teams meet, there may be a trend that they are always low scoring or high scoring games. Trends are what are important for punters if they are placing bets based on research.
Form
Other things to look out for is the current form of the sides involved in games. If a team is conceding a lot of goals every game, possibly due to a key defender missing, an over bet could be ideal. Also, bear in mind to check the goals scored and conceded of whether the team is playing at home or away. Some teams try to keep things tight at the back when playing away from home, therefore not conceding as many goals.
Players
In football, generally, a lot of goals come through the top scorer. Goals are prevented through a combination of the goalkeeper and defence. It’s probably a good idea to check the team news or lineups before placing a bet, in case some notable absences could potentially hinder your chances of winning an over or under bet.
Remember
There are no guarantees in betting, but there are usually pros and cons to particular betting types. With the over and under market, you can genuinely use research to your advantage. Studying the trends will get you close to the probable outcome.
Also, there are only two outcomes to this sort of betting. You win, or you lose. Whereas if you place a bet on a match result, there are three possible eventualities. If you choose an under and over bet, you have the whole 90 minutes to win, as you are just waiting for goals to come through (or not). You don’t even have to rely on solely one team to help your bet and win you money!