Player props — shots, shots on target, tackles, passes, cards, assists — are the fastest-growing markets in football and the most expensive. They are also the most disputed, because unlike a goal, a shot on target is somebody’s opinion.
Who counts
Every operator names a statistics provider in its rules, and settles on that provider’s numbers regardless of what the broadcaster’s graphic said. Two providers can disagree on whether a blocked effort was on target, whether a tackle was a tackle or an interception, and whether a pass that deflected off a defender counted. If you bet these markets, read which provider your bookmaker uses and check that provider’s figures, not the television’s.
The rules that void or do not
- A player who is not in the starting eleven is voided at most operators. One who starts and is substituted after ten minutes stands.
- Stoppage time counts; extra time does not unless the market says so.
- Own goals do not count as goals for a player; deflected shots usually do count as shots for the shooter.
- Some operators settle on the official match statistics published after the game, which can change the live figures.
The margin is the pitfall
We measured player shots on target at 6.1% across the guide in August, against 3.8% for Asian handicaps. That is the widest gap between any two football markets we track. Nobody price-checks props, so nobody prices them tightly.
If you bet them anyway
Hold several accounts and compare the line and the price at each before you bet — the same prop can be 1.5 shots at 1.80 in one place and 2.5 at 1.75 in another, which are completely different bets. NovaBet prices player props above the market average in our testing; Bramble handles them fairly inside a builder. Everywhere else, assume you are paying the highest margin on the site and stake accordingly.
