Half Time Bets

What is meant by a half time bet?

Half time bets are sport bets, which focus on the match parts of a sport event. In football this would be two halves of 45 minutes each. You can also find this betting form in many other sports and it then refers to the respective match parts. In ice hockey it would be thirds, in American football and Basketball quarters, in baseball it's nine innings and in tennis, volleyball and others sets are being played. This bet isn't different from the usual betting tip when it comes to the character of the bet.

What kinds of half time bet strategies are there?

The respective match parts are the starting point of the bets and they provide a broad and diverse betting offer, which we want to show you in the following. Our focus is on football.

The "classic" half time bet: Betting on the half time result

The earliest form of this betting form is the tip on the result after the first 45 minutes, therefore after the first half. So it's a conventional sport bet, where you bet on the winner. One could casually say: Make two matches out of one! When placing the bet you have the choice: Either you place a bet according to the known 1X2 principle (1=home win, X=draw, 2=visitor win) or you tip the exact half time result. It's clear that the betting odds for the exact result are way higher compared to the 1X2 bet, since the probability of a win is much lower. Generally you should consider: The betting odds for a lead of a team after the first 45 minutes are higher than for after regular playing time. The main reason for that is that the half time result is much more often 0:0 or 1:1 than the final result! The betting odds for a draw therefore are traditionally lower than usual with this betting form. A bet on the half time lead of the favourite is more lucrative on the other hand. We want to show you the differences with the example of Hannover 96 versus Borussia Dortmund:

Who will win the 2nd half?

Another popular version of half time bets - unlike tipping on the half time result - is the bet on the result of the second half. Theoretically the match starts 0:0 again after the break with this chosen option. Since the favourite wins the second half most of the time, the odds for that are usually a bit lower compared to the result after the first half. Generally the odds are still higher than the odds for the winner after 90 minutes though. We want to take the match Hannover 96 versus Borussia Dortmund again as a rough guide:

But why are the betting odds for the underdog tip in this case also lower? This has to do with a simple consideration: Often the favourite already makes things clear in the first half. Let's assume that the favourite leads 3:0 at half time. The match might continue in this manner after the break too. It's also quite possible, that the team in the lead puts in a lower gear in the second half and therefore the second half ends in a draw or that the favourite even loses the second half 0:1 - which of course still wouldn't change the win in the end.

Half time bets on goals, cards and corners

Such half time bets, which regard the number of goals, cards or corners in a match are particularly popular in sports betting. Goal bets are at the top of the list, however. Most of these bets are based on the over/under betting principle, which we explain in further detail in our over/under bets section. We want to mention the idea in short here though: The bookmaker suggests a certain value. The sports bettor then has to decide, whether this number will be surpassed or undercut. Therefore it's a 2-way bet. Of course many betting providers also let you bet on the exact number. Popular half time bets from this category concern the total number of goals in either halves or the number of goals of the individual teams in the respective halves for example. One knows from experience that in football more goals are being scored in the second half. In other sports this can't be said that clearly. There aren't such clear trends in American football or basketball like in football, when it comes to scoring points - therefore the betting odds are more balanced. But back to football: Some, but not all bookies also let you bet on the number of cards or corners. Additional 3-way bets could be for example: Will there be more corners in the first or the second half? Or: Which team will receive more cards in the 1st or 2nd half? You can already see, what we are aiming at. Half time bets offer a big number of options: With this betting form you can also place double chance bets, handicap bets or goal scorer bets!

Special half time bets

Apart from the three presented pillars of the group of half time bets - winner 1st half, winner 2nd half and bets on the number of goals etc. - you also have the possibility depending on the betting provider, to place more specific half time bets. In the following list we want to show you some interesting versions. But keep in mind: Not all bookmakers provide those.

Half time live bets

Half time bets are preferably placed as live bets. Here you have the opportunity, just like the bookmaker, to react to the course of the match, possible injuries or other incidents. Most of the time you are spoilt for choice with this format. Bets on the winner of the 2nd half are popular for example. The betting odds naturally depend on the half time result, although it's interesting that bookmakers react quite differently to high leads. As we already discussed the leading team often puts in a lower gear and doesn't attack that much anymore - but it's also possible that they extend their lead in the second half. So you need to be aware! You shouldn't believe that clear results are uninteresting in football, because they often make for the best live betting odds! Of course you shouldn't blindly chase high odds. It only makes sense, when your urge and intuition overlaps with attractive bettings odds. Such bets are always linked to a certain risk of course. Therefore we recommend to generally place smaller stakes at live bets, in order to avoid frustration.