Editor-In-Chief with 20 years experience covering the betting angles to breaking news stories. Daily slots player, Portsmouth fan and League Snooker Player
Betting Solely On the 1st Half or the 2nd Half
Whilst we know a football match lasts 90 minutes in total, when we bet, we can choose to bet on either half or indeed just on the first or second halves of a match.
You should always assess the form of a team you are going to back but in many cases betting on 45 minutes can be easier than betting on 90 minutes.
Ultimate Guide on How to Use Football Form
This is a betting area that is becoming more and more popular, so thought I would look through historical football tables, and see if there was anything to be found that could help us look for a 45-minute edge.
The idea is that we make single bets on the 1st half or single bets on the second half, and also look at the home and away performances.
It may be slightly more profitable if you watched the 1st half and got a feel for how the game is going, taking into account any injuries, bookings, any goals scored.
How To Stack Correct Score Odds In Your Favour
Below you see HT score percentages in the EPL and La Liga which covers the majority of HT scores.
| EPL 2023/24 Score | Half Time | Full Time |
|---|---|---|
| 0-0 | 25% | 3% |
| 1-0 | 19% | 6% |
| 0-1 | 14% | 5% |
| 1-1 | 13% | 10% |
| 2-0 | 8% | 6% |
| 0-2 | 5% | 5% |
| 2-1 | 4% | 8% |
| 1-2 | 4% | 6% |
| 2-2 | 2% | 7% |
| 3-0 | 2% | 5% |
| 3-1 | 0% | 7% |
| La Liga 2023/24 Score | Half Time | Full Time |
|---|---|---|
| 0-0 | 31% | 9% |
| 1-0 | 19% | 8% |
| 0-1 | 17% | 17% |
| 1-1 | 11% | 13% |
| 2-0 | 7% | 7% |
| 0-2 | 4% | 6% |
| 2-1 | 2% | 6% |
| 3-0 | 2% | 4% |
| 1-2 | 2% | 6% |
| 2-2 | 1% | 5% |
You can see that the draw at HT occurred around 40 % of the time in the EPL and 43 of the time in La Liga.
You can also see that over 2.5 goals in the 1st half were rare.
Half Time Position In Table In Comparison To End Of Season Table
Let us say you had noticed a team doing well or badly in the 1st half, you could profit greatly by being aware of this.
After say half a dozen games look to the slow and fast starters, you will already be able to see which teams come out of the blocks quickly and which look like they are still on the coach.
Best Cash Out Betting Sites for Football and More
You can this see by the tables back in 2019/20 after 45 minutes Wolverhampton Wanderers would have been relegated !!,
Everton would have made it into the Europa League.
After 45 minutes the manager at the time Nuno Espirito Santo would be thinking about the Chairman's reaction and whether he should look for his passport.
On the reverse, Everton boss Carlo Ancelotti would have been thinking about the Manager of The Month award.
| EPL 2019/20 Team | 1st Half Finishing Position | End Of Season Finishing Position |
|---|---|---|
| Wolverhampton Wanderers | 19th | 7th |
| Burnley | 14th | 10th |
| Aston Villa | 11th | 17th |
| West Ham | 9th | 16th |
| Leicester | 8th | 5th |
| Everton | 6th | 12th |
Wolverhampton Wanderers, backing Wolves at HT not to lose would have been a profitable route to take.
| EPL 2019/20 Team | 1st Half At Home | 2nd Half At Home | 1st Half Away | 2nd Half Away | End Of Season Finishing Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wolverhampton Wanderers | 13th | 3rd | 19th | 3rd | 7th |
Look at Southampton's home and away form in the 2019/20 season, terrible at home, better results than Tottenham and Arsenal when the Saints were away from St Mary's.
| EPL 2019/20 Team | 1st Half At Home | 2nd Half At Home | 1st Half Away | 2nd Half Away | End Of Season Finishing Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southampton | 19th | 17th | 5th | 5th | 11th |
On the reverse, we go back to Everton, who couldn't hang on to anything in the second half of games.
| EPL 2019/20 Team | 1st Half At Home | 2nd Half At Home | 1st Half Away | 2nd Half Away | End Of Season Finishing Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Everton | 6th | 18th | 9th | 19th | 12th |
When you can notice these huge shifts in home versus away form and their different performances in the first and second halves you can find plenty of betting and tipping opportunities.
Discovering the Best Bet Builder Sites: A Comprehensive Comparison of 64 Online Bookmakers
There should be plenty of value betting prices for the coming seasons - I cannot wait!
Responsible Gambling
However, you bet, and you should always gamble responsibly on whichever sport you favour. The following articles were written explicitly with this in mind.
How to be Sensible and Gamble Responsibly (Examples)
