The sports betting industry in Nigeria is growing fast. It’s not even a surprise anymore given that it’s the fastest-growing economy in all of Africa. According to some statistics, more than 60 million Nigerians are actively involved with betting!
If you’re one of the bettors, we know what you’re looking for. You read the title of this guide and clicked on it because you want to learn about over under betting in Nigeria, right? It’s utterly understandable because over under betting is one of the simplest bets out there with a good prospect of making profits. It’s probably the most utilized bet in the world, right after money lines, of course.
In our guide today, we’re going to learn exactly what over under betting is with real examples and odds. Without any further ado, let’s get going.
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What is Over Under Betting?
First of all, let’s do some distinctions. An over under market may not always be listed as one. In plenty of online bookmakers, it’s listed as totals. So, if you’re at your favourite bookmaker and come across a totals market while scrolling, know that this guide will apply to that as well.
Over under betting is exactly what it sounds like. But if you don’t know “what” it sounds like, the first sentence won’t make any sense. To understand these bets, we first need the reference to which over and under will work. In any given sport, there is a scoring system. For football, it’s goals. For cricket, it’s runs and wickets. For boxing, it’s the number of rounds. The entire idea of the over under bets is based on this score.
The bookmaker, whichever you choose in Nigeria, will predict a score for the game before the match starts. And then, it’ll offer odds for both over and under that score. In most cases, you’ll find the columns directly labelled as “Over” and “Unver”. If not, you’ll at least see an “O” and “U”. The score the bookmaker predicts is going to be an impossible predicament. For example, it might predict that in a football, the total number of goals will be 3.5. You know very well that a score of 3.5 goals is not possible in football.
The purpose of this fractional value is to stop over under betting from getting invalidated. If the match has 4 or more goals, the “over” bet wins. And if it’s 3 or fewer goals, the “under” goals win. There’s no possibility of the score tying with the bookmaker’s prediction. In many cases, a bookmaker may not predict the total score of the game. Rather, it will target both teams differently. For example, Team A will score 2.5 goals and Team B will score 1.5 goals. The basic idea of the over under market remains the same in this case as well.
Why Punters Should do Over Under Betting?
From what you’ve read, you should already understand what the bet is and how does it work. Even in practice, that’s all there to it, concept-wise. As you can see, it’s a very easy concept to comprehend and even newcomers in the betting industry can use over under betting to test their luck.
It’s primarily the simplicity for punters to do over under betting. If you’re a bettor looking for good clean fun with sports betting, you can simply go for over under. It also takes away the bias between the favourite team and the underdog as you’re not exclusively rooting for either.
At the same time, over under betting expands your options for betting across hundreds of sports. It’s one of the universal bets that are present across all bookmakers and applies to all available sports.
Moreover, these bets are considered short-term bets. It means they are settled very quickly. As the primary driving force is the score of a match, you get your payments right after the match is over. Some bookmakers may stretch it for a long-term market too. The total number of goals in the FIFA World Cup is a great example of long-term over under betting.
Considering all aspects, over under betting is simple and easy to place a bet that works for bettors of all levels. From absolute rookie punters to industry veterans, everyone can utilize the odds to make some hefty profit.
Maximize Your Advantages with Over Under Betting
If you’ve understood over under betting from our initial discussion already, you’re almost ready. But just like everything else in life, the more you know the higher your chances of winning go. So, in this section, we’re going to share some pointers to help you maximize your advantages with betting.
Focus on the Defense of Both Teams
Although we’re saying teams, the same applies to individual sports like tennis or boxing. As the entire market is based on the score of the game, the defenders and defense skills play very important roles.
So, if you want to get the maximum advantage from over under betting, learn about the defense before anything else.
For example, if both teams have weak defenses and the bookmaker offers a relatively low margin for the final score, chances are the over bet will win. The opposite is true if both teams have strong defenses.
If one team has strong defense but the other one doesn’t, you can still rely on the over bet to win. Because the team with the weak defense is more likely to get fail in stopping the opponents.
On paper, this might not look like a feasible approach to over under betting. But once you try your hand at the betting markets, you’ll understand exactly what we’re talking about.
Target Long-Term Markets for Longer Odds
In a previous section, we’ve stated that over under betting is more suitable for the short-term markets. This very reason gives these types of bets an edge. In tournaments that span over a long period, the best bookmakers in Nigeria will offer long-term odds for over under bets.
As they take a long time to settle and there’s no way to accurately predict the scores so early in the stage, the odds often shoot through the roof. Needless to say, these bets are riskier than short-term ones but you can really maximize your advantage by betting on the long-term over under markets.
The example we shared previously holds up on these accounts. The number of total goals in the FIFA World Cup that is. Or, the total slam dunks in NBA. Or, the total goals in NHL. All long-term tournaments will work for this strategy.
Bet on Mulitple Lines at Once
The drawback of this strategy is that it’s not universally offered by Nigerian bookmakers. Only a few cherry-picked bookmakers will offer these markets. Multiple lines simply mean multiple offerings for the same bet. So, instead of offering over under bets for 2.5 goals only, the bookmaker will also offer for 1.5 and 3.5 goals.
The idea here is to expand the betting lines for the punters. If there was a single line and the prediction doesn’t turn out to be very good, the score difference could be huge. For example, on a 1.5 over under market, if the final score is 7, that’s a wide range going unused.
On the contrary, when you put bets on multiple lines, you can stack the odds for each line and get paid a hefty sum if your predictions are correct. If not, you’ll still win as long as one of the lines comes true.
Over Under Betting Example
Everything becomes better with a nice example, doesn’t it? So, in this section, we’re going to look at an example of over under betting to help the Nigerian punters understand it better.
As football is the most prominent as well as the most popular sport in the country, it only makes sense to use a football match as an example. Let’s consider a match between the Nigerian national team and the Uruguay National team. Between the 2, Nigeria will be the favourite at Nigerian bookmakers. Also, the football team is slightly stronger than the Uruguay team.
But it really doesn’t matter because we’re focusing on the final score of the match. If the bookmaker says there will be 3.5 goals in the match, then you need to bet over 3.5 or under 3.5. On the bookmaker’s website, you’ll find odds for both over and under. Let’s consider it to be 1.50 and 2.00 for over and under respectively. We’re going with decimal odds because it’s the most commonly used template in the country.
From the odds, we can instantly say that it’s more likely the score will be under 3.5. Because the odds are longer. So, if you place ₦1,000 on under and win, you’ll receive ₦2,000 in winnings. ₦1,000 is your profit. And if you placed your money on the over market and win, you’d get paid according to the odds. For ₦1,000 wager, you’ll get ₦1,500 in winnings.
Using this concept, you can carry over under betting to any sport you want. For a boxing match, you’ll bet over or under the number of predetermined rounds. For tennis, you can bet games, sets, and match wins.
Pros and Cons of Over Under Betting
So far, over under betting looks amazing, doesn’t it? But nothing in the world is pitch-perfect. So, there are some drawbacks to this kind of betting as well. In this section of our guide, we’re going to break down the pros and cons of this betting type.
Pros
- Simple – The biggest selling point for over under betting. It may not be as simple as money lines but it’s simple enough for new bettors to understand. If you’re just starting out, over under could be a very good starting point for you.
- Widely Offered – It’s true not just for Nigeria but all over the world. Pretty much every bookmaker you come across will offer over/under bets. As we said earlier, it might sometimes be listed totals because you’re ultimately targeting the total score of the match or a particular team.
- Applies to All Sports – Every single sport on planet earth that uses a scoring system can benefit from over under betting. Although it’s mostly used in common sports like football, cricket, hockey, etc., it’s good to know that you can expand your horizon if you want to.
- Long Odds – If you can find the right markets, you can expect to find long odds with over under bets. And we all know what happens when you get long decimal odds. You win a larger amount for the same bet!
Cons
- Time-Consuming – To accurately anticipate what’s going to happen in a match, you need some serious research skills. Surface research will only take you so far in the world of over under betting. At the end of the day, all the time you put in stacks up and it might not justify the profit you make from the bet.
- No Early Cashouts – The long odds aspect is a pro for this kind of betting. At the same time, it can turn out to be a con. Because if your prediction is wrong, you lose the entire stake. As over under betting doesn’t qualify for live betting, you can’t cash out before the match is over.
Odds
The odds are the fundamentals of sports betting and it goes all the way for over under betting too. Just like all other bets, your bets on over or under the predicted outcome are going to be based on the offered odds.
In Nigeria, decimal is the most commonly used odds. If you can’t find decimal odds on a particular website and look into the settings. There should be an option to change the odds format to fractional or American. Now, you’re looking for an odds range for over under betting, we’re afraid we can’t help. Because how long or short the odds are going to be completely dependent on what type of match it is, how the analyst the bookmaker approached the match, what the team lineup is like, and so on.
Just know that you should always compare odds at multiple bookmakers before you place a bet. Simply go through the betting sites we’ve shared in our guide and compare them. The idea is to find the longest odds for the same market.
Over Under Betting Offers and Promotions
Promotions and bonuses are one of the major attractions of the online gambling industry. The sportsbook bonuses may not be as flashy as online casino bonuses but they’re still there.
Now, when it comes to over under betting, there are no exclusive bonuses. You can expect the regular welcome bonuses, free bets, boosted odds, etc. promotions from the bookmakers. Make sure to look into the T&C section of the bonuses to ensure that over under betting is not excluded.
What are the Alternatives to Over Under Betting?
Sure, over under betting is fantastic. It’s a great way to start your betting journey in Nigeria. However, you might be interested in exploring other markets too. For your satisfaction, we have gathered a few alternatives.
Money Line Betting
Also known as outright betting, these are the simplest kind of bets in the sports betting industry. In any sport, there is a winner and a loser. It applies to both team sports and individual sports. Money line betting is simply wagering on which team or individual will win among the 2. It can be both short-term betting (single matches) and long-term betting (tournament winners).
Arbitrage Betting
Arbitrage is a very popular betting type in Nigeria. Also known as sure bets, arbitrage betting is placing opposing bets at different bookmakers to utilize the odds difference. You won’t find an “arbitrage” market on any of the bookmakers. It’s a strategy you need to use on your own.
The best way to approach this is betting at exchanges. A betting exchange allows you to combine multiple wagers at multiple bookmakers in the same place.
Live Betting
Although live betting is a major part of sports betting, it can work as an alternative to over under betting because over under bets cannot be live. The nature of the betting just doesn’t support it to be placed on live bets.
In live betting, you can update your bet slip with new selections while the match is live. You can even cash out early if you see that your selection is going wrong. The profits are somewhat limited in live betting but it’s extremely enjoyable.
System Betting
System betting primarily refers to the use of mathematical formulas for bankroll management. There are both positive progression and negative progression strategies. Martingale. D’Alembert, Fibonacci, etc. are some common examples of system betting strategies.
FAQ: Over Under Betting
As of now, we’re nearing the end of over under betting guide. If you’ve read the guide from top to bottom, there’s a chance that your mind has accumulated a few questions. Let’s try to answer them.
To place an over/under bet, you first need to pick a bookmaker in Nigeria. It doesn’t matter which one because all of them offer over under betting. It comes down to how competitive the odds are in your selection process.
It is possible to make multi bets with over under betting. You can either go for multiple lines with the same selection or include multiple selections in the same bet. In the case of the latter, you’ll need to win on all fronts. If even one of the selections is wrong, it’s considered a lost bet.
No. Cashing out still be settled bets is a feature for live bets only. As you already know, over under betting doesn’t qualify.
Of course. Most modern online sportsbooks have spectacular mobile support. Whether you’re accessing the platform via a website or a downloadable app, you can bet on over/under from your mobile.
No, you cannot. The only reason sports betting is considered a form of gambling is that there are no guarantees for a win. But if you do your research right, you should win most of them.
Responsible Gambling
Over the last decade, responsible gambling has become a strong practice in the iGaming industry. All online gambling sites now include a section for responsible gambling where you can find helpful information as well as limiting tools to control your betting habits.
Wrapping Up Over Under Betting
If you’re passionate about sports betting in Nigeria and want to get started right away, over under betting could be a great starting point for you. The bets are simple, the odds are decent, and there is nothing more to understand than how the scoring system works.
Pick a bookmaker from our recommended list and start betting today.
