Both Teams To Score (BTTS): How To Bet
BTTS is one of the most-bet soccer prop markets in the world. Here's how it settles, what fair odds look like, and which leagues hit the highest BTTS rates.
Updated May 2026 · 8 min read
1. What BTTS Means
BTTS = Both Teams To Score. A simple yes/no bet on whether both teams score at least one goal during regulation play (90 minutes + stoppage time).
BTTS Yes settles if the final score has at least one goal for each side: 1-1, 2-1, 3-2, 4-1, 1-3, etc. BTTS No settles on any shutout: 0-0, 1-0, 2-0, 0-1, 0-3, 5-0, etc. Own goals count toward whichever team they're credited to in the official match record.
What BTTS doesn't care about
BTTS is completely independent of who wins the match. A 3-0 home win settles BTTS No (away team failed to score) while a 2-3 away win settles BTTS Yes. Pairing BTTS with a moneyline pick on the same match is therefore mathematically interesting — the legs aren't perfectly correlated.
2. BTTS Rates Across Major Leagues (2021-2026)
Empirical BTTS Yes rates from our historical data covering five seasons:
| League | BTTS Yes Rate | Avg Total Goals/Match |
|---|---|---|
| Bundesliga | ~57% | 3.10 |
| Serie A | ~54% | 2.85 |
| EPL | ~53% | 2.80 |
| Ligue 1 | ~50% | 2.65 |
| La Liga | ~48% | 2.55 |
Bundesliga leads BTTS rates because it has the highest goals per game — the league's style favors attacking play and weaker defenses on average. La Liga consistently produces the most shutouts of any top-5 league due to defensive organization at most clubs.
3. Fair Odds Math for BTTS
Calculating fair BTTS Yes probability requires modeling each team's individual goal probability and combining them. The simplest approximation:
Independent Poisson approach
Let λ_home = home team expected goals, λ_away = away team expected goals. Then:
- P(home scores 0) = e^(-λ_home)
- P(away scores 0) = e^(-λ_away)
- P(BTTS No) = P(home=0) + P(away=0) - P(both=0)
- P(BTTS Yes) = 1 - P(BTTS No)
For a typical EPL match with both teams expected to score 1.4 goals, P(BTTS No) ≈ 0.247 + 0.247 - 0.061 = 0.433, and P(BTTS Yes) ≈ 0.567. That matches the empirical ~53% rate well — the simple Poisson model is reasonably accurate for BTTS predictions.
Why our Dixon-Coles model is more accurate
Pure Poisson independence underestimates low-scoring outcomes (0-0, 1-0, 0-1) by approximately 5-10%. Our Dixon-Coles model corrects for this via the tau parameter. The result is more accurate BTTS predictions, particularly for low-total matches (Atlético Madrid vs Real Sociedad type fixtures where shutouts are common).
4. BTTS Strategy & Common Tilts
Tilt 1: Strong attack vs strong attack typically hits BTTS Yes
Matches where both teams average 1.5+ expected goals per match settle BTTS Yes around 65-70% of the time. When you see a high-scoring fixture (Manchester City vs Liverpool, Borussia Dortmund vs Bayern Munich), the market typically prices BTTS Yes at 1.45-1.55 — fair given the empirical rate. Edge is rare on this side.
Tilt 2: Strong defense vs weak attack tilts BTTS No
When one team consistently shuts opponents out (think peak Atlético Madrid or 2021-era Manchester City), BTTS No becomes the higher-probability bet despite the strong attacker on the other side. Books often under-price BTTS No on these matches because the public defaults to BTTS Yes on "big" matchups.
Tilt 3: Goalkeeper quality matters more than the market prices
An elite keeper (Alisson, Courtois, Donnarumma) reduces opponent goal probability by approximately 0.15-0.25 expected goals per match vs an average keeper. That moves BTTS Yes probability by 5-8 percentage points. Books partially price this in but typically under-weight it on fixtures where the elite keeper's team is the underdog.
5. BTTS Combos (Combined Markets and Parlays)
BTTS pairs well with several other soccer markets to create combined bets. US sportsbooks typically offer these as single-line markets rather than 2-leg parlays:
- BTTS Yes + Over 2.5 goals — typical odds around +120 to +160. Empirically hits in ~42-45% of EPL matches. Reasonable single-bet alternative to a 2-leg parlay.
- BTTS No + Under 2.5 goals — typical odds around +135 to +175. Empirically hits in ~32-36% of EPL matches. Good for backing low-scoring matchups where you expect a 1-0 or 0-0 result.
- BTTS Yes + Draw — typical odds +300 to +450. Hits in only ~10-12% of matches. Big payouts but high variance.
- BTTS Yes + Home Win — typical odds +180 to +250. Hits in roughly 25-30% of matches with strong home favorites and competent away attacks.
6. Common BTTS Mistakes
Mistake 1: Ignoring own goals
Own goals count toward BTTS Yes if credited to either team in the official match record. A 1-0 home win where the only goal is an own goal by the away defender still settles BTTS No (away team didn't score — they conceded their own goal which counts for the home team).
Mistake 2: Overweighting recent BTTS streaks
A team that has hit BTTS Yes in 8 of their last 10 matches has been on a hot streak. Books and naive bettors over-anchor on these streaks. Mean reversion is real — over the next 10 matches, that team will likely settle closer to their season-long BTTS rate (typically 45-55% range). Bet the long-run rate modulo strong contextual reasons to deviate.
Mistake 3: Confusing BTTS with Over 1.5 goals
Over 1.5 goals means at least 2 total goals between both teams. BTTS Yes means at least 1 goal for EACH team. 2-0 is Over 1.5 but BTTS No. 1-1 is Over 1.5 and BTTS Yes. The markets correlate but aren't identical — don't parlay them as if they're independent.
7. Frequently Asked Questions
Is BTTS available on US sportsbooks?
Yes, every major US sportsbook (DraftKings, FanDuel, BetMGM, HardRock, Caesars) offers BTTS markets on soccer matches in legal states. Some books label it as "Both Teams to Score" explicitly; others use "Yes/No" under the goals section. Combined BTTS+Total markets are also widely available.
Can I bet BTTS in-play (during the match)?
Yes. Live BTTS odds adjust dynamically based on time remaining, current score, and shots-on-target trends. Once one team scores, BTTS Yes odds shorten dramatically (you need the OTHER team to score). After 75 minutes with a 1-0 scoreline, BTTS Yes odds typically blow out to +400 to +600 because the trailing team has limited time. Live BTTS is one of the more popular in-play markets for soccer.
What is BTTS in both halves?
Some books offer "BTTS in Both Halves" — a single bet that requires both teams to score in the first half AND both teams to score in the second half. This is a very tough hit — typically only 3-6% of matches. Odds are usually +1500 to +2500. Almost never +EV unless you have a strong specific edge.
See today's soccer picks across moneyline, spread, and BTTS markets.
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