Both Teams To Score (BTTS) Explained
Both Teams To Score is one of the most popular football betting markets — simple to understand, easy to research, and flexible enough to combine with match result predictions. This guide explains exactly how BTTS works, what settles it, how to calculate returns, how BTTS & Win markets operate, and how to build a systematic approach to finding value.
What Is Both Teams To Score?
Both Teams To Score (BTTS) is a bet on whether both teams will score at least one goal each during a match. The result — who wins, draws or loses — is completely irrelevant. Only whether each side gets on the scoresheet matters.
A BTTS Yes bet wins if the match ends with at least one goal for each team — a 1–1 draw, a 2–1 win for either side, a 3–2 thriller. Any scoreline where both teams have scored satisfies it. A BTTS No bet wins if at least one team fails to score — a 1–0, a 2–0, a 0–0. Any clean sheet for either team satisfies it.
BTTS markets typically offer two options — Yes and No — at odds that together imply slightly more than 100% probability (the bookmaker's margin). In Premier League football, BTTS Yes lands in roughly 50–55% of matches, making it close to an even-money proposition on most fixtures — which is reflected in typical odds of around 1.70–1.90 for BTTS Yes and 1.90–2.10 for BTTS No.
Both Teams Score
Wins on any final score where both teams have at least one goal: 1–1, 2–1, 1–2, 2–2, 3–1, 3–2 etc. A match can end any way — win, draw or loss — as long as neither side has a clean sheet.
At Least One Team Fails to Score
Wins on any final score where at least one team has zero goals: 0–0, 1–0, 2–0, 0–1, 0–2, 3–0 etc. Either a home or away clean sheet — or a goalless draw — satisfies BTTS No.
How BTTS Bets Settle
BTTS settlement is straightforward — but there are a few important details around timing and edge cases worth understanding before placing.
BTTS bets settle on the 90-minute result plus injury time. Goals scored in extra time or a penalty shootout do not count for BTTS settlement in the vast majority of bookmaker rules. Always check your bookmaker's specific terms for cup or knockout matches.
Every Possible Outcome — How BTTS Settles
1–1 Draw
Both teams scored.
BTTS Yes: Wins ✅
BTTS No: Loses ❌
2–1 (Either Way)
Both teams scored.
BTTS Yes: Wins ✅
BTTS No: Loses ❌
3–2 or Higher Both Sides
Both teams scored.
BTTS Yes: Wins ✅
BTTS No: Loses ❌
0–0 Draw
Neither team scored.
BTTS Yes: Loses ❌
BTTS No: Wins ✅
1–0 (Either Way)
One team failed to score.
BTTS Yes: Loses ❌
BTTS No: Wins ✅
2–0, 3–0 or Any Clean Sheet
One team failed to score.
BTTS Yes: Loses ❌
BTTS No: Wins ✅
An own goal counts as a goal for the team credited with it — meaning an own goal can satisfy the BTTS Yes condition for the team that scores it. If Team A scores an own goal giving Team B a goal, Team B has scored for BTTS purposes. This is consistent across all major bookmakers.
BTTS & Win Markets
BTTS & Win combines the both teams to score condition with a match result prediction into a single bet. Both conditions must be met for the bet to win. It's a popular way to get longer odds on a match where you have a strong opinion on both the scoring pattern and the result.
You are making two simultaneous predictions:
1. Both teams will score (BTTS Yes)
2. A specific team will win the match
Both must be true at full time. BTTS Yes + correct winner =
bet wins. Either condition failing = bet loses.
The Six BTTS & Win Outcomes
BTTS & Home Win
Home team wins AND both teams score.
Wins on: 2–1, 3–1, 3–2, 4–1, 4–2 etc.
Loses on: 1–0 (no BTTS), 1–1 (draw), 0–1 (wrong winner)
BTTS & Away Win
Away team wins AND both teams score.
Wins on: 1–2, 1–3, 2–3, 1–4 etc.
Loses on: 0–1 (no BTTS), 1–1 (draw), 2–1 (wrong winner)
BTTS & Draw
Match ends in a draw AND both teams score.
Wins on: 1–1, 2–2, 3–3 etc.
Loses on: 0–0 (no BTTS), 1–0 (no BTTS and wrong result)
BTTS & Win — Worked Example
Liverpool vs Everton. You back BTTS Yes & Liverpool Win at 2.60 for £20.
Both teams scored ✅ + Liverpool won ✅
Both conditions met. Bet wins.
Return: £20 × 2.60 = £52.00 | Profit: £32.00
Liverpool won ✅ but Everton didn't score ❌
BTTS condition fails. Bet loses despite correct result call.
Stake lost: −£20.00
Both teams scored ✅ but no winner ❌
Result condition fails. Bet loses despite BTTS landing.
Stake lost: −£20.00
The BTTS & Win bet produces longer odds than either BTTS Yes or the match result alone — because both conditions must be satisfied. The tradeoff is that two independent things can go wrong instead of one. It's a higher-reward, higher-risk combination that works well when you have genuine conviction on both elements.
BTTS Accumulators
BTTS accumulators — combining multiple BTTS Yes (or No) selections into a single bet — are one of the most popular accumulator types in football betting. Their appeal is clear: BTTS Yes odds of around 1.75–1.85 per match compound quickly into substantial combined odds across five or six legs.
BTTS Acca — How Returns Compound
BTTS Yes Double
2 selections at 1.80 each
Combined odds: 1.80 × 1.80 = 3.24
£10 return: £32.40
BTTS Yes 4-Fold
4 selections at 1.80 each
Combined odds: 1.80⁴ = 10.50
£10 return: £105.00
BTTS Yes 6-Fold
6 selections at 1.80 each
Combined odds: 1.80⁶ = 34.01
£10 return: £340.10
Win Probability (6-Fold)
If each leg has a true 55% chance:
0.55⁶ = 2.8% chance of all 6 landing.
Less than 1 in 35 — high variance.
Each BTTS leg carries the bookmaker's margin. With a typical overround of 5–8% per match, a 6-fold BTTS acca could carry a combined margin of 30–50%. The entertaining potential return is real — but the expected value erodes sharply with each additional leg. BTTS accas are best approached as entertainment bets rather than value-seeking vehicles. For serious value hunting, individual BTTS selections on carefully researched matches are preferable to large accumulators.
Using Statistics to Find Value
BTTS is one of the most data-friendly markets in football betting. Because it depends entirely on scoring and conceding patterns, it responds well to statistical analysis. The key inputs are straightforward to find and interpret.
Most football statistics sites publish the percentage of matches this season where each team was involved in a BTTS Yes result — both in home and away games separately. A team involved in BTTS Yes in 70%+ of their home games is a strong BTTS indicator. Combine both teams' rates to form a joint probability estimate.
📊 BTTS rate is the primary inputBTTS Yes requires both teams to score — which means both teams must also concede. Look at each team's clean sheet percentage alongside their scoring rate. A team that scores in 80% of games but keeps clean sheets in 40% of games is a BTTS Yes contributor. A team that keeps clean sheets in 60% of games is a strong BTTS No indicator for their opponents.
Expected goals (xG) gives a more stable measure of attacking and defensive quality than raw goals alone. A team with a high xG against (concedes quality chances) but a low actual goals against (benefiting from good goalkeeping form) is likely to concede more going forward — pushing BTTS Yes probability up for their upcoming matches.
✅ xG corrects for short-term luckThe absence of a key striker significantly reduces a team's likelihood of scoring — shifting the BTTS probability toward No. A missing centre-back or goalkeeper crisis shifts it toward Yes. Team news on match day is often the most valuable late input, particularly when injuries are announced after the market has already been priced.
BTTS Yes rates vary significantly across leagues. The Bundesliga and Serie A consistently produce BTTS Yes in 55–65% of matches. The Championship and League One in England tend to be lower-scoring. Calibrate your expectations to the league — a 1.75 BTTS Yes price is better value in the Bundesliga than the same price on a Championship match.
📊 League baseline mattersKey Factors That Influence BTTS
Beyond raw statistics, these are the contextual factors that most reliably shift the probability of both teams scoring in a specific match.
Match Importance
High-stakes matches — title deciders, relegation battles, knockout ties — often produce more cautious, defensive football as teams prioritise avoiding defeat over attacking. This tends to lean BTTS No more than standard league matches.
Key Absences
A team without their top scorer has a significantly lower scoring probability. A team with a depleted defensive line has a significantly higher conceding probability. Injuries and suspensions are among the highest-impact late inputs for BTTS markets.
Head-to-Head History
Some fixtures reliably produce or suppress scoring due to tactical familiarity between managers or entrenched rivalries. Seven of the last ten meetings going BTTS Yes is meaningful context — particularly for lower-profile fixtures where the bookmaker's price may not fully reflect fixture history.
Match Congestion
Teams playing multiple matches per week often rotate and suffer fatigue — affecting defensive organisation more than attacking output. Congested fixture periods can push BTTS Yes probability up as tired defenders make more errors.
Home vs Away Form
Some teams score freely at home but shut up shop away from home, or vice versa. Always separate home and away statistics — a team's overall BTTS rate can be misleading if it blends very different home and away profiles.
Quality Imbalance
When there is a very large quality gap between two sides, the weaker team often fails to score — leaning BTTS No. Top-six sides against bottom-three sides in the Premier League produce BTTS Yes in only around 35–40% of matches.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Backing BTTS Yes on Every Match
BTTS Yes lands in around 50–55% of Premier League matches — slightly below evens. A blanket strategy of backing BTTS Yes every week at typical odds of 1.80 produces a long-term loss. Selection is essential — only bet BTTS Yes when the evidence genuinely supports a higher-than-average probability.
Ignoring Clean Sheet Records
Some teams are statistically excellent at keeping clean sheets regardless of how many goals they score. Backing BTTS Yes against a side with a 50%+ clean sheet rate at home is fighting against a strong defensive baseline — check conceding rates, not just scoring rates.
Assuming BTTS Yes and Over 2.5 Are the Same
They're related but not identical. BTTS Yes requires both teams to score at least once — a 1–1 or 2–1 satisfies it. Over 2.5 requires 3+ total goals total — a 2–0 does not satisfy it but a 1–0 doesn't satisfy BTTS. There is significant overlap but also meaningful divergence. A 2–0 win is over 2.5 No and BTTS No. A 1–1 is over 2.5 No but BTTS Yes.
Forgetting Extra Time Rules
Goals scored in extra time typically do not count for BTTS settlement. A match that ends 0–0 after 90 minutes where goals are scored in extra time settles as BTTS No — even though both teams eventually scored. Always check which period applies to the market you are betting on.
Using BTTS & Win Without Both Conditions Having Value
BTTS & Win is only good value when you genuinely believe both conditions are likely — not just the result. If you only have a strong view on who wins, back the match result directly. Forcing a BTTS & Win to get longer odds on a match you're only backing one-way adds unnecessary risk.
Building Large BTTS Accas Without Selectivity
A 10-fold BTTS acca is an entertainment bet, not a value play. Each additional leg multiplies the bookmaker's margin. If you're building BTTS accas for serious returns, keep legs to 3–4 maximum and only include matches where you have genuine statistical conviction — not just attractive combined odds.
Common Questions
No — only that both teams get at least one goal each. It doesn't matter which player scores, at what minute, or whether goals come from open play, set pieces or penalties. An own goal counts as a goal for the team that benefits from it. The only requirement is that both teams register at least one goal on the scoresheet by the end of 90 minutes plus injury time.
Yes — a penalty scored during normal time (including injury time) counts as a goal for BTTS purposes. If Team B scores their only goal via a 93rd-minute penalty, BTTS Yes is satisfied. However, penalties scored in a penalty shootout after a drawn match do not count — those are not part of the 90-minute result and are not included in standard BTTS settlement.
They overlap but are not the same. BTTS Yes requires both teams to score at least once — the total can be as low as 2 goals (e.g. 1–1). Over 2.5 requires 3 or more total goals regardless of distribution. A 2–0 result is over 2.5 Yes but BTTS No. A 1–1 result is over 2.5 No but BTTS Yes. A 2–1 result satisfies both. The two markets are most similar on higher-scoring matches but diverge significantly on one-sided or close low-scoring results. See our Over/Under Betting guide for a full comparison.
If a match is abandoned before completion, BTTS bets are typically voided and stakes returned — regardless of the scoreline at the time of abandonment. Individual bookmakers may have minimum minutes-played rules that affect settlement, particularly for in-play bets placed after a match has started. Always check your bookmaker's abandonment policy, especially for markets that were placed in-play.
BTTS Yes rates vary significantly across European football. The Bundesliga consistently has one of the highest rates — regularly above 60% of matches — due to the attacking style favoured by most German clubs and the relatively open nature of the league. La Liga and Serie A also tend to be higher than the Premier League and Ligue 1. The Championship and lower English leagues tend to be lower. When betting BTTS across leagues, always recalibrate your expectations to the specific league's baseline rather than applying a single universal threshold.
Finding the best odds on BTTS markets across bookmakers can make a meaningful difference to your returns over time. Compare BTTS Yes and No prices across all major bookmakers in real time before you place.
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