Over under betting is one of those bet types experienced punters talk mention all the time – but if you’re new to sports betting then you might not know how it works.
That’s understandable. Most bettors new to Paddy Power tend to stick with the simple bets like match winner or correct score. The idea of doing ‘over under bets’ is alien until you know about it.
Well, this is where Paddy’s here to help. We’ve created the ultimate over under bet guide so you know exactly how the market works across various sports.
What is over under betting?
Over under betting is a type of bet where you predict a score above or below a numerical line.
The best way to describe over unders is with an example. Say you’re betting on football and reckon there will be goals galore in a match between England and Germany. You decide to bet +3.5 goals being scored, at 11/4. So long as four or more goals are scored, you win your bet.
This is how over under total goals in football is displayed at Paddy Power
The over under line is split in half (that’s what the 0.5 is about in our above example) to reduce any confusion. Because you can’t have 3.5 goals in a game, the result is either above 3.5 or below 3.5.
Over unders can effectively be set on anything that is numerical. So, if could be total goals or points scored, total corners won, total yellow cards shown, total tackles made, or even total yards run.
Sports for over under betting
Football is the main focus for over under betting but the metric is used differently in other sports. Here’s a quick overview of which sports benefit from over unders more than others!
Football over unders
Let’s start with the obvious one. Football features a lot of over under markets because there are so many straightforward stats associated with the game. The most common ones are:
- Over under goals – Bet on how many goals are scored in a game
- Over under corners – Bet above or below a set number of corners
- Over under team goals – Bet on a specific team’s goal tally, rather than the whole game
- Over under card points – Bet on how many booking points will accumulate during a match
A common football bet is to go above or below 2.5 goals. That’s because the average goals scored in football games hovers around 2.5.
Learn about over/under 2.5 goals here!
Over under tennis betting is hugely popular
Tennis over unders
Tennis betting focuses less on backing players to win and more on the scores during a match. After all, if you have a heavy favourite in the first round of Wimbledon, there’s little value in betting on them to win at 1.10.
Stats betting in tennis is huge and over unders plays a big part in it. Common tennis over under bets include:
- Set over unders – How many sets will feature in a match
- Game over unders – Also known as Total Match Games, this is how many games will there be in a match (or a set)
- Ace over unders – How many aces will a player (or both players) deliver in a match
- Player total games – How many games will a player win in a match
If you’re stuck with how to begin tennis betting then why not check out or tennis tips today?
NFL over unders
NFL is one of the most stats-heavy sport on the planet when it comes to betting. Player selection comes down to statistics and the TV viewing experience relies heavily on facts and figures. No wonder, then, that bookmakers have come up with intricate NFL over under lines on which to bet.
Here are the most common NFL lines to bet on:
- Total match points – How many points are scored in a game
- Team total points – The number of points a team scores
- Player points – How many points a player will score in a game
- Rushing yards over unders – How many yards a team or player will carry the ball in a game
- Throwing yards – How many yards a QB will throw in a game
NFL is also home of the handicap bet, which applies an imaginary weight to the score of a game so the teams are “evened out” for betting purposes. Read more about handicaps in our NFL betting guide for beginners.
You can bet over unders on every NBA get at Paddy Power
Basketball over unders
Basketball is the perfect sport for over unders because of the sheer number of points scored in a game. You can look way beyond the total points over under market, and focus on minute detail. Here are the common basketball over unders to look out for:
- Total points over unders – The total number of points scored in a game
- Total team points – The total points a team will score in a game
- Winning margin – The points margin of the winning team
- Line/Total double – Bet on who will win plus over/under the number of points scored
- Player total points – The number of points an individual player scores
NBA teams score on average around 115 points per game. So, an NBA game can expect to yield around 225 points, which is why the +/- 224.5 line is such a popular market.
Check out the latest basketball odds today
Cricket over unders
Cricket betting also relies heavily on stats. You can go into minute detail with cricket statistics, even if it’s a short-form T20 match. Stats betting in cricket is particularly popular during Test series where you can back long-form bets that may take days to unfold.
Here are some popular cricket over unders to get you started:
- Match total runs – How many runs will be scored in total
- Innings total runs – How many runs will a team score in total, or in a single innings
- Over runs – Bet on how many runs are scored in a particular over
- Player wickets – Bet on players to take above or below a set number of wickets in a match
- Player total runs – Back a player to score above or below a set number of runs in an over, innings, match, or Test series
- Runs at first wicket – Bet on what the runs total will be when the first wicket falls
- Runs after X overs – Bet above or below a set number of runs at a certain over in the match
The list of over unders in cricket is almost endless, so be sure to keep an eye on the latest cricket odds ahead of the next match or series, and see what you could bet on.