For decades now, punters have been able to wager on how many goals they think will be scored in a football match.
Both teams to score (yes or no), over/under goal lines and team goals are just some of the options that punters can plunder if they believe they have a read on how a game can pan out.
Those options have a finality to them; either both teams will score or they won’t; either the 2.5 goal line will be exceeded or not. It’s all or nothing.
An interesting alternative goal market which is becoming more readily available is multi goals, which asks bettors to predict the range of goals that will be scored.
If that sounds confusing, all will be revealed below.
How Does Multi Goals Work?
The easiest way to explain multi goals betting is to first look at an example:
As you can see, the total number of goals available in a game are separated into different bands. For the most ‘unlikely’ of outcomes, such as 5-6 goals or 7 or more, the odds are juicy. For the more likely goal counts, such as 1-5 and 1-6, the prices are representative of just how probable the outcome is.
The number of goals scored in a game cannot exceed your selection. So, if you wager on 2-5 multi goals, the match needs to contain at least two goals but no more than five – any tally between those two markers will secure a win for your bet.
As you can see from the screenshot, you can increase or decrease your win probability by taking larger/smaller bands of goals. Clearly, the 1-6 goal range will win for the vast majority of games – that’s not opinion, it’s actual fact. Of course, the shortness of the odds is reflective of that.
Conversely, you can push your luck by taking a two-goal range such as 4-5 or 5-6. The odds offered are more appealing in these instances, although your win probability is smaller as a result of narrowing your focus.
You can bet on multi goals picks as singles, doubles or accumulators, depending on your preferred strategy.
Multi Goals vs Over/Under
You might be wondering why you’d want to bet on the multi goals option when you could simply back the more common over/under goal lines.
Let’s refer back to the screenshot above. It’s worth noting that Over 2.5 Goals was available at 4/5 for this particular game, which is a market and price you might be happy with.
But can we secure better odds for that train of thought? Let’s dig a bit deeper and try and specify an exact number for how many goals might be scored – let’s say three. Now let’s look back at those multi goal odds and the options that suit:
- 2-4 – 8/15
- 3-4 – 11/8
- 3-5 – Evens
It’s interesting that we can effectively back three goals to be scored with a margin of error on either side and still get a better price for 3-4 or 3-5 goals being scored. These latter two options offer a greater return than the Over 2.5 Goals market, and yet your added risk is that the game turns into a goal-fest of five, six or more. Statistically, that would be an anomaly.
So, if you believe that three goals will be scored in a game, you can hedge your bets with the 2-4 multi goal range or access a better price with 3-4 or even 3-5 goals – this can be a more fruitful way to bet than a generic Over 2.5 Goals punt.
How Do You Predict Multi Goals?
As a guide, we know that – at the time of writing – the average number of goals scored in a Premier League game is 3.03. The number of goals netted per match in the EPL has increased in recent times, with the lengthy periods of injury time played nowadays also contributing to the phenomenon.
The screenshot above was taken from the William Hill website for a game between Tottenham and Crystal Palace. At the time, Spurs were flying under new boss Ange Postecoglou, with Son Heung-min and James Maddison in great form. They were expected to win by the bookies, with the Over 2.5 Goals line odds-on at 8/11 and Over 3.5 Goals odds-against at 7/4.
So, again, the sharp betting lines are suggesting that three goals is the most likely outcome in this game – so we can build our multi goal picks around that logic.
Using the bookmakers’ over/under odds can be a useful strategy in building your multi goals bets, although as we know modelling these goal markets accurately is not an easy task – there is much more variance in predicting goals outcomes than there is in forecasting which team will win the game.
Interestingly, one of the most popular multi goal ranges is 1-3; in this scenario, you’re effectively laying the 0-0 and Over 3.5 Goals markets. Historically, that has been a sensible thing to do… although, as we’ve learned, the average goal lines in some leagues is creeping up to the point that 4+ goals in a game is becoming more commonplace.
As is the case when betting on any football market, knowing the players and the teams involved is vital. Two attacking, open teams will likely (but not always) produce more goals. Two conservative sides pitted against one another, particularly those towards the bottom of the league table, will often (but not always) produce low-scoring fare.
It can always be wise to delay putting your bets on until the team news has been revealed – especially when the fixture list has been heavy or after an international break. You don’t know which star names will be injured/rested… their absence will likely have an impact on how many goals will be scored during the game.
Where Can You Bet on Multi Goals?
Many of the most popular UK facing bookmakers offer multi goal betting, it’s just that they might call it something different.
At William Hill, you’ll find this market by clicking on the ‘goals’ tab for games in the most bet-upon leagues – scroll down and you’ll see the ‘multi goals’ category for applicable matches.
Betway offers multi goals for both the match as a whole and each individual team, as do BoyleSports – you’ll find them listed as ‘Goal Bands’ where available.
Bet365 call it ‘Number of Goals in Match’, although the ranges tend to be thinner on the ground: under two goals, two or three and four and over the most common spreads here. Coral and Ladbrokes offer something similar.