Football Betting Strategy: Low-Risk Multiples with Heavy Favourites

Gambling.com Editor

March 12th, 2013

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A frequent trap in football betting is that long odds can seem very attractive. 'First goalscorer' and 'scorecast' bets are some of the most popular football betting markets, and although these can have appealing odds, they may not provide punters with good returns in the long run. Similarly, backing big name strikers or betting on big matches can lure punters in, but the English Premier League, for example, is renowned for its entertainment value and frequent upsets - meaning worse value for gamblers.

One tried and tested football betting strategy involves using accumulators which back heavy favourites in-play and in lesser-known leagues to get a decent return with minimal risk.

Real Madrid Castilla VS AC Bellinzona

Here’s a theoretical example of a football treble using lesser-known markets, heavy favourites and in-play leaders:

• Real Madrid Castilla to score a goal @ 1/6
• Heavy favourites with some good firepower - look for teams that are quite likely to score a goal in 90 minutes, even if they might not end up winning
• AC Bellinzona to win @ 2/9

Judging by these pre-game odds, this team should win comfortably. This is in one of the lesser-known leagues (Swiss 2nd Division), where the prices can often be more generous than in more established competitions.

• Cliftonville Olympic Reserves to win @ 1/16 in-play
• This team are 1-0 up with less than 15 minutes to go - backing heavy pre-match favourites when they're up in-play can often be profitable
• Treble Odds: between 1/2 and 8/15 (1.51)

Valuable 'Low-Risk Multiples' Markets

The odds on this accumulator might not look the most attractive, but with a reasonable stake the returns could be well worth it. Here is a list of reliable markets to include in your low-risk football multiples:

• 'Favourites to Score': This market often comes good – while a last-minute equaliser or defensive mistake can cost you if you back the favourites to win, as long as they find the back of the net, you’re in luck with this market.
• 'In-Play Leaders to Win': If a team has a one-goal lead with 20 minutes to play, backing them to win could be profitable. While a last-minute equaliser can cause problems, the leading team could also score again as the team chasing the game takes more risks and pushes for a goal.
• 'Over 1.5 Goals': This market is often overlooked and can have some fairly attractive prices for accumulators. Many games finish with at least two goals, and games between unbalanced sides can produce large score-lines. If your favourite is under-priced, this can be a good market to look at instead.
• 'Over/Under Goals In-Play': If a game has lots of goals before half-time or early in the second half, there’s a good chance there’ll be more. For example, if a game is 2-2 at half-time, the defences obviously aren’t having the best day. Betting on at least one more goal could see decent returns.

Using this system of modest returns from heavy favourites, you can start to build a series of bets to bring in larger profits. Using your returns from each bet, you can make the most of a combination of heavy pre-match favourites, in-plays and lesser-known markets to make similar trebles again and again.

Bet365 Sports offers a wide choice of in-play markets and lesser-known leagues, so head over today to put together your low-risk multiples.