While it’s always great to win, it’s even better when you bet on a team you support and they win anyway! This is commonly referred to as a ‘double result’ and in this article, we’re going to tell you all you need to know about betting on sports with a double result.
What is a Double Result?
When a bettor bets on a sports team to win, there are two possibilities for the bet to be settled in favor of the bettor. The first is when the sports team in question wins outright (aka ‘straight bet win’ or ‘win-by-x’ where x is the number of goals/points scored).
The second possibility is when the sports team in question wins, but the result is not entirely predictable (aka ‘predictable handicap win’ or ‘win-by-y’ where y is the percentage of points/goals scored by the sports team).
In a nutshell, a ‘double result’ happens when a sports team you support (or love to hate) scores the most points/goals in a game, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll win. The bet is a ‘predictable handicap’ or a ‘win-by-y’ where y is the percentage of points/goals scored by the sports team. For example, let’s say you’re supporting Liverpool and they score three goals in a game (win probability 50%), but you don’t think they’ll be able to keep up their dominating form and so you bet on Stoke to win (win probability 28%). In this case, you would earn a profit of 18% (assuming you put £100 on Klopp to win, and he does).
Similarly, let’s say you’re supporting Leicester to beat Liverpool. They score one goal in the first half (win probability 75%), but you think they’ll struggle to keep up their good form and so you bet on Everton to win (win probability 25%). In this case, you would earn a profit of 12.5% (assuming you put £100 on Leicester to win, and they do, but Everton don’t).
For the purposes of this article, we’ll be using the example of a match between Liverpool and Stoke, but this can be applied to any sports team versus opponent scenario.
Why Bet On Sports With A Double Result?
As the name would suggest, a ‘double result’ is a great opportunity to make money from betting. There are a number of reasons why you might want to, but here are the most popular ones.
1. Profit Seeking
Profit seeking is the main driver behind people wagering on sports with a double result. The most straightforward way to make money from betting is to simply bet on the sport with the highest win probability. So, if you think your favorite sports team is going to win an event with a 60% win probability, you might want to put your money on that team. However, this can be risky (especially in the long term) as you might end up supporting a losing team and so you’ll have wasted your investment. But if you want to make quick and easy money from betting, this is usually the best option. As we mentioned above, you can also use this strategy to make money from Liverpool and Stoke, but in that case, you would want to avoid betting on either team as either one could lose.
2. Education
Educational motives are behind many people wagering on sports with a double result. You might want to bet on a team you support because you think it’s going to be a good match and so you want to learn more about the sport or the players involved. It’s always nice to gain knowledge and in this case, you might be able to make money from betting as you’ll be applying your knowledge in the form of educated guesses or hunches. So, if you think it’s going to be a close match and you have no idea who’s going to win, you might want to put your money on the team you support, but you’ll also want to keep an eye on the other games as well (especially if you’re not familiar with the sport in question). This is also a popular tactic employed by people who want to learn more about a particular player or team. Sometimes, these ‘educational’ bets are even presented as part of a bigger-picture strategy, where you think one particular team is going to win and so you want to learn more about that team before placing your bet. Learning more about a team can also help you gain an understanding of the strategy and tactics they’ll use on the day of the event.
3. Psychology
People wagering on sports with a double result often do so because they want to put their psychology to work for them. When you bet on a team you support (or hate), there is often a domino effect of events that leads to a victory. So, while you might not necessarily believe that your team is going to win, you might want to bet on them anyway, because you feel it will be good for the team’s psyche, especially if they do win. This might be because you feel it will give them confidence or simply because you want to encourage them to keep winning. In any case, if you think it’s going to be a good game for the team’s confidence, you might want to put your money on them. Confidence is a fantastic tool for any team and so it might be worth wagering on sports with a double result simply to see how the team performs.
4. Social
Social motives are a common reason why people bet on sports with a double result. People enjoy sharing their knowledge and experience of a sport they love or hate, and so you might find many people who bet on sports with a double result, simply because they feel passionate about a team or player involved in the game. In some cases, people wager based on the outcome of previous matches between the teams involved (usually with a financial motive, but sometimes for fun as well).
If you’re looking for a way to enjoy your free time and you like the idea of supporting a team you believe in, then betting on sports with a double result can be a fun way to do so. Just make sure that you’re aware of all the risks before you start laying down your bets, as it can really be a losing strategy if you don’t know what you’re doing. Also, keep in mind that in a large number of cases, these ‘double result’ bets are based on emotions rather than on reason, so maybe choose your battles wisely and only bet on sports you’re really familiar with (or else, you might find yourself on the wrong end of a profitable wager).
In a nutshell, if you support a team you believe in and they win easily, there’s a good chance you’ll be asking yourself why you didn’t bet on them earlier. It’s usually a good idea to look at the line history when analyzing a sports betting proposition to get a sense of whether or not to bet on a team. This way, you’ll know if there’s been any recent events that might make the sports team involved more or less favorable than implied by their current line.
When selecting a team you support for betting, it might also be a good idea to look at the competition. After all, if you think your team is going to dominate the competition, it might not be the wisest strategy to bet against them. This is especially relevant if you’re looking at English football, where top-flight rivals draw huge amounts of revenue from betting shops. Naturally, this creates an opening for smaller clubs who might benefit from a bit of good fortune on the pitch.
How Do You Calculate The Win Probability Of A Game?
The easiest way to figure out the win probability of a game is to use one of the many online calculators available. The key is to identify the score of each team (usually the first and second half results), the type of game (home win, draw, or away win), and the number of minutes played. From there, it’s a simple matter of filling in the relevant boxes and hitting ‘submit.’
This might be a bit much work if you’re looking for a quick answer, so for convenience, you might want to use one of the many online tools available that will estimate the win probability for you. For example, if you enter the above information into bet365’s online calculator, you’ll see that the home win probability for this weekend’s matchup between Liverpool and Stoke is 40%.