What Does BTTS Mean in Betting?
BTTS is one of the most popular bets offered by football betting sites. After all, what could be simpler for a bettor than simply predicting whether both teams will score?
Every football fan enjoys a high-scoring shootout, and the Both Teams to Score (BTTS) betting market can make these matches profitable for bettors.
The following guide covers strategy tips to attack this market confidently.
Note: In this article, “football” refers to the global game known as “soccer” in the United States and Canada. Odds may appear in fractional, decimal, or American formats depending on your region, but the principles behind the bet remain the same.
BTTS Meaning Explained
BTTS stands for “Both Teams to Score,” and many sites use it when listing odds for this market.
When making a wager in the BTTS betting market, you can answer yes or no. “Yes” to BTTS means that you are backing both teams to score, and “no” means that you are backing against both teams scoring.
In most cases, BTTS bets apply to overtime (extra time). However, check your site's specific terms and conditions, as slight variations exist.
Many betting customers also like to choose the BTTS market when they’re not sure which team will win a football match, but do know whether it will be a high-scoring affair.
How to Bet on BTTS
To bet on the BTTS market, click through to the football section of a betting website and choose the match you want to place a wager on.
Scroll through the most popular markets until you find “BTTS” or “Both Teams To Score.” In the case of a match between Manchester United and Arsenal, for example, you might see something like this:
Manchester United vs. Arsenal
- Yes: 6/10
- No: 6/5
If you bet on Yes at 6/10 for this game, Manchester United and Arsenal must score at least one goal each. The game's outcome doesn’t matter, and you would win your bet if the match ended 5-1, 3-3, 1-1, and so forth.
If you bet on No at 6/5 for this game, you’re wagering on at least one of the teams not to score. A goalless draw would be ideal, although a victory to nil for either side would also land you a profit with this type of BTTS bet.
How to Place a BTTS Bet across Multiple Matches
The Both Teams to Score market became popular after Betfred launched their “Goals Galore” bet type. It gave football fans a fun twist on the usual Full-Time Result bets and quickly caught on, especially when combining a few matches into one bet.
Depending on where you're from, betting on multiple games might be called an accumulator (UK), a parlay (U.S.), or a multi (Australia and New Zealand). To place your BTTS bet, choose “Yes” or “No” for each match you want to bet on.
Once you’ve added everything to your bet slip, check out the total odds, pick your stake, and confirm your bet. If all your picks hit, you win!
Types of BTTS Bets
In addition to Both Teams To Score and BTTS & Win bets, here are some of the other BTTS markets:
- Total Goals/Both Teams to Score: This type of bet combines the over/under goals market with BTTS. For example, you can bet on both teams to score and for over 2.5 goals in a game to get higher odds. If you backed under 2.5 goals and both teams to score, you'd need a 1-1 draw for your bet to win.
- Both Teams to Score in the First Half: With this bet, you back both teams to score within the first half, or you bet against both teams scoring in the first half. The odds are usually stacked against both teams scoring in the first 45 minutes, but that means you’ll get long odds.
- Both Teams to Score in the Second Half: The odds aren't quite as stacked against both teams scoring in this market. While scoring in the second half is more common than scoring in the first, “no” will still be odds-on here.
- Both Teams to Score in Both Halves: If you select "yes" here, you are backing both teams to notch at least one goal each in the first half AND both teams to score again in the second half. This is highly unlikely, meaning you'll get long odds if you back it and short odds if you bet against it.
- Both Teams to Score No Draw: When you return both teams to Score No Draw, both teams must find the net, and one team must win for the bet to be successful. If you back this outcome, a 2-1 win for either team sees you landing your bet, as does 3-1, 4-1, 3-2, and so forth. You lose if both teams score, but the game ends in a draw.
Tips for Betting on BTTS Markets
Now that we've established how this type of betting works, it's time to examine some strategies for the BTTS market.
Use the Latest Football Stats to Place Your BTTS Bets
Here comes the million-dollar question: how do you know which option to choose in BTTS betting? To answer this question, let’s put it into context.
It is challenging at the beginning of the season, as there is no data available regarding any of the teams, and you only have historic stats from previous campaigns to help with your choice of BTTS bet. However, as the campaign progresses, we have more current stats available, and we can do our homework on the BTTS market.
Sometimes it’s a simple case of reviewing a team’s recent matches and seeing if any patterns can be detected when looking at the previous scores. BTTS bets may not involve heavy research and can be a simple case of checking prior results for clues about what might happen in the next fixture.
Check the Latest Team News Before Betting on BTTS
Many important factors must be considered when betting on this football market, and team news is high on the list.
Team news, like injuries, roster changes, and transfers, is worth checking for any match with special focus needed on defensive and attacking players.
You should also consider a team's relative ambitions in a particular game when betting on BTTS. If a side is determined to keep a clean sheet at all costs, it might struggle to carry the ball into the opposition half, making the “No” option on the BTTS betting market more attractive.
Place In-Play BTTS Bets
Shrewd betting customers often wait for a game to kick off before placing their BTTS bets using in-play (live) betting markets.
It makes sense considering that a manager is unlikely to divulge too many tactics before the game starts. Look at the early stats: the formation and style of play become obvious just a few minutes into a match. Are both teams adopting an attacking approach and carving out chances immediately? Shots on target and XG (expected goals) statistics can indicate whether both teams will score. Is one side set up defensively to frustrate the opposition?
Ask yourself these questions when you watch the opening exchanges and make a wager based on what you see. Adopt a patient approach here, and it could well pay off.
Betting Against Both Teams to Score
If you're a gambler who plays the numbers, the best way to approach the “Both Teams to Score” market is as a contrarian. Betting against both teams scoring usually has longer odds.
Consider Different Football Leagues for BTTS Bets
Look beyond the big-name leagues when placing bets on this market.
You may know the English Premier League inside and out, but so do the oddsmakers. With popular leagues like the EPL and La Liga, you might struggle to gain an edge with BTTS betting.
However, the good news is that hundreds of football leagues are played worldwide, and some have a higher average goal count than others.
Therefore, if you’re looking to place bets on the “Yes” option with the BTTS betting market, then it pays to consider some of the lower or less popular leagues, where you might be able to detect a pattern missed by the bookmakers.
It’s effectively spreading your net wider in search of a profit, and many bettors can catch an early price and profit this way.
Combine BTTS with the Full-Time Result Market
Sometimes you might fancy a team to win, only to discover that their 1X2 odds are too short for you to back. At this point, exploring the BTTS and win market is worth exploring to boost the odds.
With BTTS and Win markets, you're backing both teams to score and one of the teams to win, usually at pretty decent odds. You want one team to emerge victorious, but you also want their opponent to register a goal.
