This football betting guide explains the markets you'll find on almost every match, from the 1X2 and Asian handicaps to over/under goals and both teams to score. By the end, you'll know how each bet is settled and what it pays, whether you follow the Premier League, the Champions League, or LaLiga.
The odds in this guide are examples to show how each market works. They are not real lines for any match.
How does football betting work?
A football bet is a prediction on one part of a match, called a market, at odds set by a sportsbook. Unlike basketball, a football match can end in a draw, so many markets have three possible outcomes instead of two. That one difference shapes almost every football market.
Most sportsbooks in the Philippines show decimal odds, and the payout works the same way in every sport:
Stake × decimal odds = total return
The total return includes your stake, so your profit is the return minus the stake. If you're new to reading odds, our basketball betting guide covers decimal and American odds and implied probability in more detail.
Which part of the match counts?
Most football markets are settled on regular time only: 90 minutes plus stoppage time. Extra time and penalty shootouts usually don't count, even in knockout matches. Markets such as "to qualify" or "to lift the trophy" are the exception, because they include the whole tie. Check the market rules at your sportsbook to confirm.
1X2 betting: home, draw, or away
The 1X2 market, also called the match result or full-time result, is a bet on how a match ends after regular time. You pick one of three outcomes: 1 for a home win, X for a draw, or 2 for an away win. It's the most popular football market and the starting point for most bettors.
| Outcome | Odds (example) | ₱500 bet returns | Profit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1: Team A wins (home) | 2.10 | ₱1,050 | ₱550 |
| X: Draw | 3.40 | ₱1,700 | ₱1,200 |
| 2: Team B wins (away) | 3.50 | ₱1,750 | ₱1,250 |
Because there are three outcomes, odds on each are usually higher than in a two-way basketball moneyline. A bet on Team A loses if the match ends in a draw, which is why some bettors use the markets below that cover the draw.
Double chance
Double chance covers two of the three outcomes with one bet: 1X (home win or draw), X2 (draw or away win), or 12 (either team wins). It wins more often than a single 1X2 pick, so it pays less.
Draw no bet
Draw no bet removes the draw. You pick a team, and if the match ends level, your stake is returned. The odds are lower than the 1X2 price for the same team, because the draw no longer counts against you.
How does an Asian handicap work?
An Asian handicap gives one team a head start in goals so the draw disappears from the betting. The favorite starts with a minus handicap, such as −1, and the underdog with a plus handicap, such as +1. The handicap is added to the final score, and the bet is settled on the adjusted result.
Handicaps come in three types: half-goal lines, whole-goal lines, and quarter-goal lines.
Half-goal lines: −0.5, −1.5
Half-goal lines always have a winner and a loser. Team A −0.5 wins only if Team A wins the match, while Team B +0.5 wins on a draw or a Team B win. Team A −1.5 needs Team A to win by 2 goals or more.
Whole-goal lines: −1, −2
A whole-goal line can end in a push, which returns your stake. Here's how a bet on Team A −1 settles:
| Final score | Team A −1 result |
|---|---|
| Team A wins 2-0 | Wins (adjusted 1-0) |
| Team A wins 1-0 | Push: stake returned (adjusted 0-0) |
| Draw or Team B wins | Loses |
Quarter-goal lines: −0.25, −0.75
A quarter-goal line splits your stake in half across the two nearest lines. A ₱500 bet on Team A −0.75 at 2.00 is really ₱250 on −0.5 and ₱250 on −1:
| Final score | ₱250 on −0.5 | ₱250 on −1 | Total return |
|---|---|---|---|
| Team A wins by 2 or more | Wins: ₱500 | Wins: ₱500 | ₱1,000 |
| Team A wins by exactly 1 | Wins: ₱500 | Push: ₱250 | ₱750 |
| Draw or Team B wins | Loses | Loses | ₱0 |
Quarter lines soften the result when a match lands close to the handicap, so you win or lose half your stake instead of all of it.
Over/under goals
An over/under bet, or goals total, is a bet on the combined number of goals both teams score in regular time. The most common line is 2.5 goals: over 2.5 needs 3 or more goals, and under 2.5 needs 2 or fewer. Who wins doesn't matter.
| Final score | Total goals | Over 2.5 | Under 2.5 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Team A 2, Team B 1 | 3 | Wins | Loses |
| Team A 1, Team B 0 | 1 | Loses | Wins |
| Team A 0, Team B 0 | 0 | Loses | Wins |
Sportsbooks also offer other lines, such as 1.5 or 3.5 goals, and Asian goal lines that work like the handicaps above, with whole and quarter lines that can push or split.
What does both teams to score mean?
Both teams to score, often shortened to BTTS, is a yes-or-no bet on whether each team scores at least one goal. "Yes" wins if both teams score, whatever the result. "No" wins if at least one team fails to score, including a 0-0 draw.
| Final score | BTTS Yes | BTTS No |
|---|---|---|
| Team A 1, Team B 1 | Wins | Loses |
| Team A 3, Team B 2 | Wins | Loses |
| Team A 2, Team B 0 | Loses | Wins |
Some sportsbooks combine BTTS with the match result, such as "Team A to win and both teams to score," at higher odds because both parts must happen.
Other football betting markets
Beyond the main markets, sportsbooks offer bets on exact scores, players, halves, and whole competitions. Which markets appear depends on the sportsbook and the match, with bigger leagues usually getting the widest range.
- Correct score: the exact final score after regular time. A ₱500 bet on 2-1 at 8.50 would return ₱4,250, but only that exact score wins.
- Goalscorer markets: a player to score first, last, or at any time. Rules for players who don't start or come on late vary by sportsbook.
- Half-time markets: the result or goals total at half-time only, or the half-time/full-time double result.
- Corners and cards: over/under bets on the number of corners or bookings in a match.
- Outrights: bets on a competition winner, top scorer, or relegation, settled at the end of the season or tournament.
- Accumulators: several bets combined into one, where every selection must win and the odds multiply.
Live, or in-play, betting is also common in football. Odds change with every goal, card, and minute played, and the odds on your bet slip when you confirm are the ones that count.
Football betting terms to know
Football betting has its own shorthand, and some terms differ from other sports. These are the ones you're most likely to see:
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 1X2 | The three-way match result: home win, draw, or away win |
| AH | Asian handicap |
| BTTS | Both teams to score |
| Clean sheet | A team concedes no goals |
| Regular time | 90 minutes plus stoppage time, the period most markets are settled on |
| Push | A bet that ends level with the line, so the stake is returned |
| Accumulator | A combined bet where every selection must win, also called a parlay |
How to bet on football responsibly
Betting on football should stay a form of entertainment, never a way to make money or recover losses. Set a budget before you bet and stick to it, only bet money you can afford to lose, and never chase losses. No market, line, or approach guarantees a win.
Betting is for adults aged 21 and over. Only use PAGCOR-licensed sportsbooks, and check a site's license at pagcorguarantee.ph. Since February 2026, licensed sites must verify players with their name, contact details, a valid government ID, and a real-time selfie before the first deposit. Our sportsbook guides explain how licensed sites work.
Many licensed sportsbooks offer tools such as deposit limits, time limits, and self-exclusion. If betting stops being fun, the National Problem Gambling Helpline at (02) 8248 9568 and PAGCOR's self-exclusion portal at osea.pagcor.ph can help.
