Half time/Full time Betting: How-To Guide and Where to Wager
One of the great things I’ve found about online sportsbooks is the betting variety you get and one of the features that I don’t see mentioned much is HT/FT betting on different sports.
I think this is an underrated bet type as it often gives better odds compared to picking a team to win outright and it can help improve potential returns when a team is heavily favored to win. In the below guide, I dissect this betting option and look at the strategies you can employ when using it.
What is the half time/full time bet?
So, what does half time/full time mean in betting? It’s essentially a type of accumulator bet that involves more than one result. From experience, I’ve found this bet type is available for multiple global sports, but it’s most common for football.
Basic premise
Many sporting events are split into halves. For example, in football each match has two 45 minute halves, and in NBA basketball, each half has two 12 minute quarters. For HT/FT betting, you are making two picks on the same match:
- Which team will be winning at half time?
- Which team will win the game?
This adds an extra layer of excitement and potential to your bets, but it also generally results in higher odds, and thus if your bet is successful, you can potentially get a larger payout.
Bet combinations
For the half time/full time bet you don’t have to pick the same team to be winning at half time, and to win the match. There are a heap of different potential combinations, and depending on the sport, you can also select a draw as the option. I’ve outlined the different potential combinations below:
| Half Time Result | Full Time Result |
|---|---|
| Home Team | Home Team |
| Home Team | Away Team |
| Home Team | Draw |
| Away Team | Home Team |
| Away Team | Away Team |
| Away Team | Draw |
| Draw | Home Team |
| Draw | Away Team |
| Draw | Draw |
Example bet
Before you go on to find best betting sign up offers from the links on this page for HT/FT betting, let’s look at an example with the potential outcomes. We’ll use a theoretical game from the English Premier League: Tottenham Hotspur vs. Liverpool F.C.
We think that Liverpool are the favorites here, and that they generally start strong in the first half, so we pick Liverpool/Liverpool for the HT/FT bet. As the game unfolds, Spurs actually take a 1-0 lead after 10 minutes and manage to hold this until half time. In the second half, Liverpool then make a strong comeback and scored 2 goals, winning the game 2-1.
In this scenario, we would actually lose the bet. Although Liverpool won the game, they were losing at half time and thus only one half of our bet came in. You can see now how this adds an extra layer of complexity and potential to your bets.
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Pros and cons of the HT/FT betting system
While I think this is one of the more underrated bet types, as with any betting system, it’s certainly not perfect and there are drawbacks to consider which are represented in the below pros and cons:
- It can potentially boost the odds for a favored team
- Multiple different bet iterations available
- Relatively easy to understand
- Both results need to be correct to win
Tips for an effective HT/FT betting strategy
HT/FT betting isn’t easy and I think there are three key things you need to bear in mind before embarking on using this type of bet:
I use this bet type most often to boost the odds of favored teams. I think this bet has the most potential to improve your odds in a match that heavily favors one team as it effectively has two selections which increases your overall odds/potential payout. For example, in an NBA match between the Oklahoma City Thunder and Washington Wizards, an outright bet on the Thunder might only give you odds of 1.05 for example with a small payout. In contrast, a HT/FT bet with Oklahoma for both legs might have a better odds of 1.25 which makes the bet more attractive and can help your bankroll management.
In-depth analysis is needed to make effective picks. I don’t think this is a type of bet you can go into without any prior research. If you want to be effective at it then you have to be willing to do statistical analysis and look at the halftime performances of the teams. Look for patterns and see which teams generally perform better in the first half, or which teams usually finish stronger. Don’t just assume that because a team is good, that they will automatically win the first half – they may be slow starters and typically win in the second half.
This bet type is best-suited for certain sports. This type of bet is better suited for sports where the lead changes less frequently and the scores are lower as this can help you make better predictions about the halftime result. For example, with football, there are often only a couple of goals each match, and the scores often don’t change for an entire match.
Try something new and give HT/FT betting a try!
I hope you’ve found this half time/full time bet guide useful and can see the situations where this system can be useful. I think if you are willing to put in the extra research and look at trends in the team’s performance for half time results then you can make some decent picks. Remember that you don’t have to pick the same team to be winning at half time and the overall match – you can make different combinations. Also, if you want to get started with this strategy, check out the links and banners on this page to see online sportsbooks featuring these bets for your location.
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Half/time full time betting FAQs
🏆 How do you win a half time/full time bet?
You have to get both picks correct. For example, if you picked the Detroit Pistons for both the HT and FT result, you would not win if they were losing at half time, but won the overall game.
🤔 Do you have to pick the same team to win the half and game?
No. You can make any combination you like for the two teams. For example, you could pick Man United to be winning at half time, but Liverpool to win the match. You can also pick draws for the half time and full time result depending on the sport.
⚽ Which is the best sport to use half time/full time bets on?
Football is usually the most common sport for HT/FT betting, but other sports with low scores such as ice hockey and NFL are also decent options. Sports with high-scoring matches like basketball where the leads can swing wildly are not as good for HT/FT betting strategy.
