Both Teams To Score

Both teams to score betting, or BTTS as it is often known, is a relatively new form of wager that has become one of the most popular types of football bets there is in a short space of time. Here we take a look at what exactly BTTS is, the history of both teams to score and its predecessor Goals Galore and, perhaps most importantly of all, we will bring you some BTTS tips and strategies to help you land your own both teams to score winners.

What is BTTS?

BTTS, which stands for “both teams to score”, is a type of bet placed almost exclusively on football, although it, or equivalent wagers, can also be placed on other sports, where there is a reasonable chance of one or more sides not scoring. For example, BTTS would not be offered on rugby or basketball, where wins to nil are extremely uncommon.

Many online bookies now make BTTS bets a simple “Yes” or “No” bet, although initially it was far more common for only the yes side of the wager to be offered. If you think that both teams will score in a given game you back yes, whilst if you think either side will fail to find the back of the net during the game then you should opt for no.

Both teams to score betting really is as simple as it sounds and any score from 1-1 upwards, be it 1-1, 2-1, 7-1 or 5-5, is a winning bet for those that have backed BTTS. Conversely, any score at all where either side has “nil” is a winning bet for both teams not to score, which is also known as “both teams to score: no” or occasionally BTNTS. So 0-0, 1-0, 12-0 or, as said, any score at all where either side fails to register a goal, is classed as a winning bet for BTNTS and a losing bet for BTTS backers.

Do Own Goals Count in BTTS?

Whilst both teams to score is one of the simplest football markets around, there can still be the odd doubt or grey area, at least in the minds of those unfamiliar with this exciting and hugely popular football wager.

Perhaps one of the most frequently asked questions when it comes to BTTS concerns own goals but this is a question with a very simple answer. Own goals count towards BTTS bets just as readily as 25-yard screamers or bundled efforts that go in off the striker’s shin. A goal awarded to one player and later accredited as an own goal has just as much worth as a Lionel Messi-esque dribble, where the player beats half the team, rounds the keeper, drops to his knees and nods the ball over the line. Any goal’s a goal when it comes to both teams to score and the simplest way to look at it is that unless either side ends the match with a zero by their name, then BTTS is a winner.

Does Extra Time Count in BTTS?

The one exception to this, that also neatly covers the second most often raised issue about BTTS, is that a game that finishes 1-1 is actually a losing both teams to score bet if that scoreline is after extra time. As with the vast majority of football bets, injury time counts for BTTS but extra time and penalties do not. In other words, if a game ends 0-0 at full time but finishes 1-1 – or 10-10 for that matter – after extra time, this will still be settled as a BTNTS bet.

To again keep things nice and simple, when it comes to betting on both teams to score, only normal time – 90 minutes plus any injury time – counts. Goals scored in extra time, and beyond that penalties, do not; unless you have specifically bet on an extra time market, such as both teams to score in extra time, or an in-play market that has opened once extra time has already begun of course.

The History of BTTS and Betfred’s Goals Galore

As strange as it may seem, BTTS hasn’t actually existed for that long as a defined wager. For younger punters who have always been aware of it and who have, in a sense, grown up with the notion of betting on both teams to score, that may sound hard to understand.

However, bookies are always looking for new markets to keep betting on football and other sports fresh, exciting and interesting. If we look way back to when betting shops were legalised in the UK in the 1960s, the options open to those betting on football were highly limited. Betting in those days was usually either just on a horse or a football team to win, with doubles and other accumulators the main way of spicing things up.

More and more football bets have been added over the years. There are a number of reasons for this and freshness, as said, is one of the main ones. However, many new markets have become possible simply because the bookies and betting sites now have much better technology with which to manage and run them.

Related to this, more people than ever before love to bet on football and this gives the bookies more incentive and more resources to create new markets. Many modern markets, for example combined match result and BTTS bets, anytime goalscorer bets and even half time/full time betting, are actually relatively new.

BTTS offers a great deal to the punter and perhaps the biggest attraction is that when you are watching a game live you can actually cheer for both teams! Whenever either side is on the attack, you can get excited and hope for a goal, and this can help even the most boring of games become an enthralling and riveting spectacle.

Moreover, even a game that is 0-0 until very late on still gives you hope and a chance of winning. You are never really out of it with both teams to score until the very end and so it maintains your interest, giving you some value for money (in terms of excitement) from your bet even if you don’t ultimately win.

Even a game that goes into stoppage time at 0-0 could suddenly spark into life and no matter what happens in the game, you are only ever two goals away from winning your bet. One team can be on the end of a 6-0 thrashing but if the other team gets complacent just one moment of madness or magic can land your bet and when it comes to BTTS, as 6-1 is as good as any other score for the purposes of this bet.

All of this helps explain why betting on both teams to score has become so popular and commonplace. But how and when did it all start?

Goals Galore

Having digressed, the key point is that the concept of betting on both teams to score has actually only been around for a relatively short period of time. There is no exact date known as to when it started but it only really truly became popular and widespread when Betfred – renowned as the inventor of the Lucky 15 bet – created Goals Galore.

The Goals Galore – tagline “When both teams score, it’s Goals Galore” - has been around for about 10 years or so and is effectively a coupon for betting on BTTS. By that we mean you are betting “both teams to score: yes” – there is no option (on the Goals Galore coupon itself) to include BTNTS wagers too.

Goals Galore offers fixed odds for correctly predicting a given number of games where both teams will score. They offer a standard “Long List” and a “Bonus List”, the latter offering longer odds but including few BTTS “bankers” and lots of games where backing both teams to score might not be the most obvious call.

The odds vary, with, for example three BTTS games paying out at 3/1 on the standard list or 9/2 on the Bonus. Those odds go up to 16/1 and 28/1 respectively for 6 BTTS games and a massive 1,350/1 and 5,000/1 for those brave enough to try and pick out 15 games where both sides will score at least once.

Betfred claims that Goals Galore offers enhanced odds when compared to standard BTTS betting, however, our research suggests that better odds can generally be found at other bookies, with BetVictor often boasting excellent BTTS odds.

Because Goals Galore odds are fixed, much will depend on which games you choose. If you opt for one or two outsiders then there is certainly a very high chance you may be able to get better odds away from Goals Galore, although favourite backers may find Betfred’s coupon does indeed offer some extra value.

Goals Galore paved the way for the growth of BTTS betting and as other betting sites witnessed how popular this new market was, they expanded their own offerings too. Just about all the best football betting sites now offer some form of dedicated BTTS betting, in the form of a coupon, app or highlighted area of the site.

In addition to that, virtually all bookmakers offer a both teams to score bet on just about every game, with the market now one of the most commonplace additions to the standard 90 minute match odds.

If you opt for the normal both teams to score market (as opposed to Goals Galore or the equivalent) at any bookie, including Betfred, you also get the chance to bet against both teams scoring, or BTNTS. We’ll look at this in a little more detail in our strategy and tips section but this, as well as the newer “BTTS and match result” market is just an example of how both teams to score betting has expanded and developed over the years from the initial and more simple Goals Galore coupon.

BTTS Strategy: How to Pick Both Teams to Score Matches

When it comes to betting on BTTS, as with any bet, it pays to do your research and there are lots of things to look out for when it comes to both teams to score betting tips and strategy. Firstly it is important to understand how betting odds work and what a value bet is.

We discuss both of those concepts in greater depth elsewhere on the site but essentially, if BTTS is priced at evens this means you’ll make a £10 profit from a £10 bet. It also means that if you think this outcome has a greater than 50% probability of happening, you have found a value bet.

When looking for a good BTTS wager, this is what you are looking for: a value bet where the odds are higher than they should be given your perception of the likelihood of both teams actually scoring.

The same concept applies if you decide to bet against both teams scoring. A BTNTS bet is not a bet on BOTH teams not scoring – that is to say 0-0 – but simply a bet that at least one of the sides will fail to score. We considered earlier what makes BTTS such a fun and popular bet but that’s certainly not true of a bet on Both Teams to Score: No.

When you back a game to end with at least one team failing to register a goal, any attack by either side is a threat to your bet and this can make for nervous and, frankly, unenjoyable viewing. That said, here we are looking at how to win your bets, not how to have fun and much of what we will go on to consider also applies, though sometimes in reverse, to finding a good BTNTS bet.

BTTS Stats

Another great thing about betting on both teams to score – or not to score – is that it is a market with a huge history of stats that can be easily checked. It’s very easy to look back at a team’s recent performances, both generally, filtering home and away results and also their recent head to head record against the side in question.

Looking at the defensive and attacking records of both teams involved – as well as whether both teams have scored in lots of their recent games – is the obvious starting point when it comes to picking your BTTS matches and bets. However, this is also the obvious starting point for the oddsmakers, the bookies, and so more often than not you’ll find that a game you have earmarked for BTTS will have suitably low odds on both teams scoring. Similarly a game you like the look of for BTNTS, for example between two sides with strong defences and weak attacks, will probably have long odds on both teams to score but short odds on BTNTS.

That is not to say you shouldn’t look closely at such stats as the bookies are only human and often make mistakes, especially lower down the football ladder where they have less manpower and expertise. However, more often than not, in order to really beat the bookies at BTTS you’ll need to look at more than just the hard stats of recent performances.

Injuries and Suspensions

Injuries and suspensions can have a huge impact on BTTS betting and these can either be missed by the bookies or, more likely, the odds will only be changed in response to money being placed. In other words, if you move quickly when injuries or suspensions are confirmed (or maybe even just rumoured if you trust the source), you may be able to catch the bookies off guard and cash in on an out of line price.

Any injuries will impact the likely outcome of a game but obviously key scorers and creative players and defenders and keepers are the ones that will have the biggest impact.

Weather

The weather can also be a big factor in both teams to score betting. High winds and heavy rain can sometimes lead to mistakes and goals but in general they tend to produce lower scoring games and so monitoring the forecast can pay dividends for the savvy punter. Start making friends with meteorologists now!

Match Importance

Two sides might look evenly matched in theory but for various reasons they have very different motivations and may be viewing the game differently. If the game is a cup clash for a side facing relegation, or a meaningless league game for a side with a big cup semi final up ahead, this will have a big impact not only on team selection but also levels of motivation.

Similarly, if one side is battling relegation or fighting to stay in the play-off spots or top four positions, whilst the other has recently assured their place in the division and now has nothing to play for, this will also have a big impact.

The problem for those betting on BTTS is assessing how all this will pan out. For example, a side with nothing to play for may just roll over and lose 3-0 but alternatively they might play without fear and pressure and attack with freedom resulting in a 3-3 thriller. Likewise, a rotated squad may lack class but it could gain in hunger and desire, so, as with much in betting, things are not exactly straightforward.

Confidence, Form and Changing Trends

Both scoring and keeping clean sheets are very much affected by confidence and form. This means that past stats may hold more significance in these areas than they do in certain others because confidence breeds confidence, making streaks more likely. In most respects these factors – recent scoring and conceding trends – will be accounted for by checking the sorts of stats that we have already discussed. As we have explained, generally speaking these stats are ones that bookies are fully aware of and have used to calculate their odds.

However, it is often the case that those setting the odds will focus more on the longer term and less on the most recent results, and yet it is these that are crucial when it comes to confidence. For example, if a side has generally been leaking a lot of goals and scoring freely they may well be given short both teams to score odds.

If, however, their manager has recently made changes to the shape of the team to try and become more solid at the back, they may have strung together a couple of 0-0s and perhaps the odd 1-0 win. All of a sudden the defenders and goalkeeper are confident and yet the forwards, not getting as many chances or goals as they are used to, are not.

If you can spot changing trends before they are widely acknowledged then there is every chance you can grab some real BTTS value. For example, in Leicester’s remarkable 2015-16 campaign they began the season scoring and conceding a lot of goals. Spurred on by Claudio Ranieri’s promise of pizza for a clean sheet they became a lot more solid around the middle and end of the season. They managed seven clean sheets in nine games at one stage and had you spotted that change early and started backing BTNTS in Leicester games, you would have made a very tidy profit indeed.

Head to Head

We have already mentioned head to head records but it’s well worth considering as it tends to be overlooked by the bookies. We wouldn’t advocate looking too far back, as there is no major reason why results from a long time ago would impact current/future ones but recent results over the past five seasons or so, especially those where many of the same players and/or managers have been involved are worth factoring in.

Sometimes sides just get into the “habit” of playing very open games – or the opposite – against each other. If the past five games have all been real goalfests the media, fans and even the players pick up on this. It may even be subconscious but there is no doubt that if players and fans go into a game with the memory and expectation of goals, this can impact the outcome and this may not be factored into the odds.

Both Teams to Score Singles and Accumulators

When it comes to betting on both teams to score, it’s worth noting that this is a market that, as with Betfred’s Goals Galore, lends itself very well to accumulators. Most BTTS – or BTNTS – bets have odds that range from around 4/6 to perhaps 6/5 and so even picked at random these bets have a reasonable chance of winning (compared to, for example, a bet on a correct score).

On the downside, a single alone won’t yield much return, with a significant stake required for an odds-on shot to produce a sizeable profit. This makes BTTS brilliant for accas, with doubles and trebles probably producing the right balance of risk and reward.

The bolder punter, though, can opt for a BTTS/BTNTS acca with several legs to produce a large payout from a small stake. Such a wager may also be made better by the various acca insurance deals that many of the best both teams to score bookies offer, either on an ongoing basis or from time to time.

Such promotions give you money back – usually as a free bet – where just one leg of a BTTS acca lets you down. Getting your stake back is a great bonus and so these acca insurance deals are well worth looking out for if you like betting on both teams to score accumulators – just another way to make this fun bet even more fun – and profitable!