Soccer

Soccer may have the biggest global following of any sport. With countless leagues and international competitions, soccer fans not only always have a match to watch, but they also have a ton of opportunities to bet on the sport.

Key upcoming dates for soccer bettors & fans

• August 22, 2025: Start of the 2025-26 German Bundesliga season

  • Notable Matchday 1 games: Bayern Munich vs RB Leipzig and Eintracht Frankfurt vs Werder Bremen

• August 22-24: English Premier League Matchweek Two

  • Notable matches: Man City vs. Tottenham, Fulham vs. Man United, and Newcastle vs. Liverpool

• August 23, 2025: Start of the 2025-26 Serie A season

  • Notable Matchday 1 games: Roma vs Bologna, Como vs Lazio, and Inter vs Torino

• August 26 & 27: UEFA Champions League Play-off round second legs

• August 28, 2025: UEFA Champions League league phase draw

• September 4-6, 2025: European Qualifiers Matchday 5

• September 7-9, 2025: European Qualifiers Matchday 6

• September 16-18, 2025: UEFA Champions League Matchday 1

• September 24-25, 2025: UEFA Europa League Matchday 1

• October 18, 2025: MLS regular season ends

• July 19, 2026: 2026 FIFA World Cup Finals

Comparing online sportsbooks and their soccer betting markets

Betting on “The Beautiful Game” can be done on all of the top sportsbooks in the U.S. and around the world. While betting odds for top events and matches can be easily found across a wide range of shops, that does not mean those odds are the best available. Like all sports, we highly recommend having multiple sportsbook accounts and line shopping to ensure the best price.

Each sportsbook offers something unique that stands out, as well as some features that would be considered cons on a pros and cons list. For starters, an app like BetMGM is a solid option for player props or live betting, while FanDuel is a great choice for betting on international competitions, such as the FIFA World Cup or the Euros.

Depending on how serious or experienced a bettor is, the number of apps they may use may vary. For new bettors, finding apps that provide strong welcome bonuses or odds boosts for soccer games is a good place to start, and we’ve found that DraftKings is great for these areas. As far as experienced bettors go when searching for the best odds possible, an app like Circa Sportsbook should be at the top of the list since they are oddsmakers and not followers of other shops.

Soccer and daily fantasy sports

Making money off your favorite soccer players does not just have to be limited to betting. Outside of betting, soccer has a growing DFS following, as more daily fantasy products are expanding the markets and contests they offer for the sport. The two primary contests for soccer include drafting a lineup for a specific game or window of games and Pick’em contests.

Apps like DraftKings and FanDuel DFS are good places to start drafting a lineup. For example, for the 2024 COPA America, fans could enter a contest for the semi-final games. They get a $50,000 salary cap and can select one captain and five other players.

For Pick’em contests, Underdog and PrizePicks rule the market, but there are a few other options that do offer soccer contests as well. For these markets, customers can select the over/under on a given player's statistics, such as goals, shots, assists, saves, and more. The more selections a fan makes on an entry, the higher their payout will be.

What kind of soccer bets can you place?

If one thing is for sure, soccer bettors will always have an ever-growing list of markets available that they can bet on. Of course, it all starts with the three most common wagers, which include moneyline, total, and point spread. Moneyline bets in soccer do work a bit differently than other sports, as there are a few options to choose from.

For starters, bettors can choose if they want their bet to just be for “regular time,” and after, they can either bet the three-way moneyline, which includes a draw option, or they can bet on “Draw No Bet,” which just leaves them to bet on either team in the match. Those three markets are just the tip of the iceberg, though, as there are plenty of game props, team props, player props, and more to choose from for each match.

As far as game props go, these markets include both teams to score, correct score, double chance, winning margin, first/last goal, method of first goal, goal scored in interval, time interval winner, exact goals scored, and more. Fans can also bet on the number of corner kicks for the game, for a given team, or during the first/second half.

Team prop markets include team totals, whether they can win, whether they can win from behind, or whether they make or miss a penalty. Now, I know we’ve covered a lot, but we haven’t even gotten to player props, which are a massive aspect of soccer betting.

Player props are typically broken into three categories: goal-scorer props, goaltender props, and shots/assists props. The most common out of the three is goalscorer props, as they allow fans to wager on the first goalscorer, last goalscorer, and anytime goalscorer, along with a few other markets.

Futures & international competitions

If there is one thing that nations know how to rally around, it is their national soccer team. Some of the most significant events in the sport revolve around international competitions, whether that be the FIFA World Cup, the Olympics, the Copa America, the European Championships, or the CONCACAF World Cup.

The ability to bet on each individual game is certainly an option for bettors, but they also have the ability to place futures for each of the aforementioned events or any other international competitions. Soccer fanatics can place wagers on which team will win the event, and depending on the competition layout, they can also bet on which teams will win their individual groups.

Other futures bets for international events include “Highest Scoring Team”, “Name the Finalists”, “Straight Forecast,” and “Winner-Double Chance.” For those unfamiliar, the “Winner - Double Chance” market it allows bettors to place two event winner bets in the same bet. For example, for the 2024 Euros, a bettor could place a future on England to win it at (+250), or they could bet the double chance market and take England or Spain to win at (-155).

FIFA World Cup & Women's World Cup

Every four years, all eyes shift to the pitch for the FIFA World Cup. Countries all over the world rally around their national teams in the hopes that they lift the historic FIFA World Cup Trophy. For the past seven events, 32 teams have fought to form their legacies, but in 2026, more countries will join the mix as the event will expand to 48 teams. This includes 45 qualifying countries and the three host countries.

The next Women’s World Cup will be played in Brazil in 2027. The women’s iteration of the World Cup also recently expanded the number of nations playing in the event from 24 teams to 32 in 2023.

2026 World Cup Odds

Copa América

One of the largest international competitions outside the World Cup is the Copa América, a quadrennial tournament organized by CONMEBOL, the governing body of soccer in South America. In 2024, 16 teams participated in the international event, with ten from CONMEBOL and the other six from the CONCACAF Nations League.

All ten CONMEBOL teams are automatically qualified for the event, while CONCACAF teams went through qualification stages. In the event's history, Argentina and Uruguay have typically found the most success, as they’ve won the title 15 times apiece.

UEFA European Championship

The UEFA European Championship, or the Euros, has existed since 1958 and is organized by the Union of European Football Associations. The tournament is played every four years, and over the years, the number of teams that participate in it has increased. Most recently, in 2016, the event expanded from 16 teams to 24.

Outside of the host nations, every team must qualify to compete in the Euros. This qualifying phase is played in a league format, so teams play each other both home and away, with the top two teams from each group qualifying for the event. For the actual event, there are six groups of four. In the 66 years the event has been running, Germany and Spain have claimed the most titles with three apiece.

CONCACAF Gold Cup

Starting in 1991, the men’s national teams that are governed by CONCACAF started playing in the CONCACAF Gold Cup every two years. This competition is set to crown the continental champions of North America, and since 2019, there are 16 teams that participate in the event out of 41 eligible teams.

There has been discussion about holding the tournament every four years, but this has yet to come to fruition. For the time being, the 16 teams are divided into four teams of four, and the group winners and runner-ups each advance to an 8-team knockout stage. In the 33 years the CONCACAF Gold Cup has been played, only three teams have won the title. Mexico has won it nine times, the United States has won it seven, and Canada has won it once.

Soccer leagues & club competitions

When they aren’t representing their country in international competitions, the best soccer players in the world play for some of the most historic soccer clubs around the world. The leagues these clubs play in typically have a following that expands past the country or countries they operate in.

With the sheer size of their followings, these leagues ensure that sportsbooks consistently offer a wide range of betting markets for each of them, allowing soccer fans worldwide to wager on their favorite players and teams. Each of these leagues, such as the English Premier League or La Liga, typically offers odds for each individual game across a vast range of betting markets. Sportsbooks also provide futures for each league, including the league winner or "final four finishers."

While the Champions League does not feature national teams, it is an international event that draws millions of views from soccer fans. Since the league has qualifiers and competitions that feature the teams that did not make the main event, it is also one of the most bet-on events in soccer. With that, plenty of sportsbooks are constantly adding more markets for both pregame and live wagers to ensure bettors can wager on every aspect of the games.

UEFA Champions League & Europa League

The biggest professional league in the world is the UEFA Champions League, comprising top-division European teams, including Real Madrid, Manchester City, Chelsea, Bayern Munich, AC Milan, and others. The event is so large that it is divided into three competitions: the Champions League is the top league, the Europa League is the second tier, and the Conference League is the third tier.

In the Champions League, 36 teams play eight opponents. Four of those games are played at home, and the other four are played on the road. After that, the top 24 teams advance to the knockout stage. Over the past decade or so, Real Madrid has dominated the competition, winning six titles since the 2012-13 season.

Read more: UEFA Champions League Winner Odds

English Premier League - EPL

The English Premier League has a massive following, whether in England or America. Considered one of the best and most recognizable leagues in sports, the EPL features 20 teams, including Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea, Arsenal, Tottenham, and other world-renowned clubs.

While the clubs fight to win a title, they also fight to avoid relegation. Each season, the bottom three clubs are relegated to the EFL Championship. Meanwhile, the top two teams from the EFL Championship are promoted to the Premier League. With new teams joining the league each season, the talent gap in the league can be sizeable, especially recently, since Manchester City has won the championship in six straight seasons.

READ MORE: English Premier League Title Odds

LA LIGA, Bundesliga, Serie A & Ligue 1

In addition to the EPL, the other premier and highly recognizable professional soccer leagues include LA Liga (Spain), Bundesliga (Germany), Serie A (Italy), and Ligue 1 (France). The teams in these leagues typically house the highest-paid players in the world and are all very active in the transfer market.

Each league varies in size, but overall, they all have big-name teams in the Champions League. These teams include Real Madrid (La Liga), Borussia Dortmund (Bundesliga), Juventus F.C. (Serie A), and Paris Saint-Germain (Ligue 1). With the sheer popularity of these leagues, the betting markets offered are usually much more vast than some of the other professional leagues around the world.

MLS, U.S. Open Cup & Leagues Cup

Soccer fans are rapidly growing in the U.S., but the popularity of the pro leagues is growing much more slowly. While the MLS has started to feature some bigger-name players like Lionel Messi, the league's following from a viewership and betting perspective is still a work in progress. The MLS began in 1996 and has since expanded to become a 30-team league by the end of 2025.

The league is constantly trying to grow its fan base, but from a betting perspective, sportsbooks ensure that fans can wager on every aspect of the game, as well as place futures on the league. Outside of the MLS, the U.S. also hosts two other well-known soccer events: the U.S. Open Cup and the Leagues Cup.

The U.S. Open Cup, founded in 1914, is the oldest. On average, 100 teams play in the event. These teams include MLS teams, as well as other U.S.-based clubs in lower leagues that are not owned by an MLS club, and even amateur clubs. The Leagues Cup is an annual competition that features clubs from the MLS and Liga MX. This event, which has only been around since 2019, features 47 teams and serves as a regional cup for CONCACAF.

READ MORE: MLS Cup Winner Odds

Other player futures & awards

Soccer players are some of the most popular athletes in the world, and fans can not only bet on them through player props or on their team, but they can also place futures on them. These futures could include the top goalscorer for a specific league like the MLS or Liga MX, but they also include awards like the Ballon d’Or.

The availability of these markets may vary by sportsbook, as some shops strictly offer league-based futures, while others do offer leading goalscorer or award markets. Shops like Bet365 are typically a good place to start when looking for these markets, as they offer player futures that include player goal milestones, player total goals, top goalscorer, and top team goalscorer.

For betting on awards like the Ballon d’Or, fans may be hard-pressed to find odds for this award for most of the year on licensed U.S.-based sportsbooks, but licensed international sportsbooks typically focus on these events a bit more.

Ballon d'Or

Since 1956, the French magazine France Football has given away the most recognizable award in professional soccer: the Ballon d'Or, awarded to the best player from the previous season. Up until 1995, this award was strictly awarded to European players, but since then, any player from around the world has been eligible.

Unsurprisingly, the two players who have dominated the award are Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. Messi holds the record for Ballon d’Or trophies won with eight, while Ronaldo holds the record for nominations with 18, to go along with his five wins.

PFA Player Of The Year

The PFA Player of the Year Award is also given to elite-level players, but instead of players from around the world being eligible, only players from English football are eligible. This does not mean a player has to be of English descent to win; instead, they just have to be playing in the country. Essentially, this award could be considered the MVP Award for the EPL.

Over the past few seasons, Manchester City has dominated the award, much like they have the EPL, as Erling Haaland won the award for the 2022-23 season.

Betting on soccer transfers

When soccer is out of season, players can hit the transfer market, which can either be good news or bad news, depending on which team a fan roots for. Regardless of that, fans can place wagers on which team a player will suit up for in the next season. While bettors may not be able to place wagers on all players in the market, they can at least place wagers on big-name players like Neymar or Mo Salah.

Now, finding these betting markets may be difficult for U.S. fans, as many licensed betting apps do not always offer these futures markets. In reality, international sportsbooks are the ones that provide these markets since many of those shops are located in countries in which soccer is the biggest sport.

Whether fans can find them in the U.S. or on other sportsbooks, we still recommend price shopping, as the odds for players and their next teams could vary drastically by shop.

Next manager betting markets

Just like any other sport, when a team underperforms or a better job opens up, a coaching carousel arises. As far as soccer managers go, those overseeing top teams are typically on a short leash, whether it be for a well-known club or an international team. Well, fans have the chance to bet on markets like this on multiple sportsbooks, as they can place futures on where a manager will go next.

Much like the transfer market, the next manager destination markets can be hard to come by in the U.S., but not in international shops. Bet365 is one U.S. sportsbook that offers these markets, but shops like Paddy Power or Parimatch tend to focus more on them.

A good example of this is on Parimatch, where bettors can find odds on who will be the next manager of England’s national team, Wales' national team, Burnley, and Manchester United. When more openings come about, then bettors will be able to find odds on those as well.

Other useful apps & websites for soccer bettors

Between the sheer number of leagues and all the transfer news, keeping up with the pro soccer world can be challenging for diehard fans and bettors. To make their lives easier, we'll highlight some of the best resources and websites for soccer fans.

• One Football: This site claims to be the "Ultimate destination for football news, live matches, scores, highlights, and more," which he can't disagree with. Fans can find news, scores, and stats from all the top competitions, as well as individual team and player pages for the biggest and smallest clubs in the sport. Whether you're looking for the Serie A table or to see how many goals Kevin De Bruyne has, this is the place to go.

• TEAMtalk: The English Premier League has fans all over the world, and on TEAMtalk, those fans can stay informed about everything going on for all the teams in the league. Fans can find stats, news articles, fixtures, and more for each team, all on a well-organized site. While the primary focus of the site is the EPL, fans can also find helpful information on premier clubs such as Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, and Juventus.

• 90MIN: Early knowledge of injuries can help make the difference between winning and losing bets. On 90MIN, fans can read up about the happenings of the premier clubs and leagues around the world. Whether it's injury news, transfer news, fixtures, or tables, 90MIN has all that information for eight of the top leagues worldwide.