Both Teams to Score (BTTS): How the Market Works and What Drives It

Some matches are all about who wins. For many fans watching the live score, the more interesting question is whether both sides will score. That’s the Both Teams to Score market, usually shortened to BTTS. It’s one of the simplest markets in football and one of the most popular.

How it settles

Own goals count for the team credited with the goal. If a defender puts it into his own net, that goal counts for the opposition.

Popular variations

• BTTS & result: for example “home win and both teams score”. You need a 2-1 or 3-1, not a 1-0.
• BTTS & over 2.5 goals: both score and at least three goals. A 1-1 loses, a 2-1 wins.
• BTTS in the first half / second half: both teams score within that half.
• BTTS in both halves: both teams score in the first half and again in the second. A big price, and rarely won.
• Team to score: yes/no: a single-team version, for example “away team to score”.

Estimating the chance yourself

The basic idea is that BTTS Yes needs two things to happen: the home side scores, and the away side scores. If you know how many goals each team is expected to score (their xG or a goals average), the Poisson model gives the chance that each one scores at least once:

Two things stand out. First, BTTS depends heavily on the weaker attack. One blunt side drags the whole probability down. Second, a lopsided fixture (third row) can be a strong “No” even though plenty of goals are expected overall. Try your own numbers in the Poisson score predictor.

What to look at before a match

• Each team’s scoring record: how often they’ve failed to score, home and away separately.
• Clean sheets: a team keeping lots of clean sheets pushes BTTS towards “No”.
• Missing players: the main striker out, or a key centre-back missing.
• Match situation: a team that only needs a draw may sit deep. Two sides chasing three points tend to leave more space.
• League tendencies: some leagues are consistently more open than others. League standings pages show goals for and against for every team.

Why “No” can be underrated

Goals are exciting, and many casual bettors like backing them, so “Yes” tends to be more popular. In matches with one strong favourite, or between two defensive sides, “No” sometimes ends up priced more generously than the goal data suggests. That’s not a rule, just one reason to price both sides yourself instead of assuming goals.

BTTS during the game

Following a match live changes everything:

• One team scores: “Yes” now depends only on the other side, so its price drops sharply.
• Still 0-0 at half-time: both teams now need a goal in 45 minutes, and “Yes” can drift a long way.
• Red card: the side with ten men usually scores less, and the side with eleven may score more.
• Late game: if a team is 1-0 down in the 80th minute, it often throws players forward. That raises its chance of scoring, but also leaves it more exposed at the back.

Goal alerts for the teams you follow, plus the match timeline on LiveScores24x7, make these moments easy to keep track of.

BTTS in accumulators

BTTS prices usually sit around 1.60–2.10, so they’re a common accumulator choice. Remember that the chances multiply: four legs at 55% each give only about a 9% chance that all four come in, and each leg carries the bookmaker’s margin. Check the numbers with our acca calculator and keep stakes small.

LiveScores24x7 Team