Soccer betting: 90-minute markets, Asian handicaps and A-League

Key facts

Most soccer markets, including the result, total goals, correct score, double chance and both teams to score, settle at the end of normal time: 90 minutes plus stoppage time.
Progression markets such as To Qualify and To Lift Trophy include extra time and penalty shootouts, according to the TAB's soccer FAQs.
A three-way price of $2.10, $3.40 and $3.50 adds up to 105.60%; the bookmaker keeps about 5.31% of a balanced book in our calculation.
If the first goal is an own goal and no own goal price was offered, the TAB's rules settle first goal scorer bets on the next goal.
The 2026-27 A-League Men season starts on Friday 16 October 2026 and the Grand Final is on the weekend of 3 to 6 June 2027.

Soccer betting starts with the clock

Soccer betting is fixed odds betting on a football match, tournament or player with a licensed Australian bookmaker. The single most important rule is when the bet ends. The TAB's soccer FAQs define normal time as the first 90 minutes plus stoppage time, and say every soccer market except winner of tie, to qualify and method of progression is settled at the end of normal time unless the match page says otherwise. Its Victorian betting rules say the same. Extra time and a penalty shootout can decide who goes through, and still not change your result bet. Other bookmakers publish their own rules, so this guide uses the TAB's as the worked reference.

Soccer markets and when they settle

Market	What you pick	Settled at
Result (three-way)	Home, draw or away	End of normal time
Double chance	Two of the three results	End of normal time
Total goals over or under	The number of goals	End of normal time
Correct score	The exact score	End of normal time
Both teams to score	Yes or no	End of normal time
Asian handicap	A team after a goal start	End of normal time
To qualify, winner of tie	Who goes through	After extra time and penalties if needed
To lift trophy	The tournament winner	When the trophy is decided
First, anytime goal scorer	A player to score	See the goal scorer rules below

The three-way result and the margin

A soccer match can be drawn, so the main market has three prices. Here is an example:

Selection	Price	Implied chance	Fair price
Home	$2.10	47.62%	$2.22
Draw	$3.40	29.41%	$3.59
Away	$3.50	28.57%	$3.70
Total		105.60%

In our calculation a balanced book keeps 5.31%. A two-way head to head bet on a sport with no draw spreads the margin over two outcomes; here it is spread over three.

Remember what the draw means for a team bet. If you back the home side at $2.10 and it is 1-1 at the final whistle, the bet loses, even if the home side scores in extra time to go through.

Double chance

Double chance covers two results in one bet: home or draw, away or draw, or home or away. Using the fair chances from the table above, home or draw is about 72.94%, a fair price of $1.37. If a bookmaker offers $1.30, that price implies 76.92%, so check it against the three-way prices before you assume it is good value.

Asian handicap betting

An Asian handicap gives one team a goal start, and the quarter lines split your stake across two handicaps. It is the soccer cousin of line betting.

$20 at $1.95	Home -0.25 (half on 0, half on -0.5)	Home +0.25 (half on 0, half on +0.5)
Home wins	Both halves win: returns $39.00	Both halves win: returns $39.00
Draw	Half refunded, half loses: returns $10.00	Half refunded, half wins: returns $29.50
Away wins	Both halves lose: returns $0	Both halves lose: returns $0

On a whole-goal line such as -1, a margin that lands exactly on the number is normally a refund. Half-goal lines such as -0.5 or -1.5 cannot tie.

Goal scorer, cards and corners

Goal scorer markets have a few rules that catch people. According to the TAB's soccer FAQs and rules:

If the first or next goal is an own goal and no own goal price was offered, bets are settled on the goal after it. Our first goal scorer betting guide works through the maths.
A player who has not taken part in the match before the relevant goal is refunded on a first or next scorer bet.
On anytime scorer markets, a player who takes part, including as a substitute, keeps the bet live; a player who takes no part is refunded.
Some player markets need the player to start, and are refunded if he or she does not.
Only cards shown to players actively on the field count in cards markets, and only corners actually taken count in corner markets.

Abandoned matches

If a match is called off before full time, the TAB's Victorian rules settle it in two ways:

Situation	Result bets	Goal-count bets, including lines
No official result declared	Undecided bets refunded	Undecided bets refunded
Official result declared	Settled on the official result	Undecided bets refunded

Bets already decided stand either way. A first goal scorer bet settled in the 20th minute is not refunded because the match was abandoned in the 70th.

A-League betting: the 2026-27 season

The 2026-27 A-League Men season kicks off on Friday 16 October 2026 with Sydney FC against Western Sydney Wanderers at Allianz Stadium. It runs over 28 matchweeks, with 26 games for each club, and the Grand Final is on the weekend of 3 to 6 June 2027.

A-League betting uses the same markets as any other league. Finals matches are where the 90-minute rule bites: a team can lose your three-way bet with a draw at full time and still go through.

Football betting in Australia: the legal side

Licensed Australian bookmakers can take bets on soccer, at home or overseas, before the match starts. ACMA lists in-play betting on sporting events as illegal to offer online, and says betting services not licensed in Australia are illegal too, with offshore sites at risk of being blocked. Since 11 June 2024 licensed wagering providers cannot accept credit cards, credit-related products or digital currencies.

Pundit tip: in a knockout game, write down which bet you actually want: "wins in 90 minutes" or "goes through". They are different markets with different prices, and mixing them up is an easy way to lose a bet you thought you had won.

Before you bet on soccer

Check whether your market settles at 90 minutes or includes extra time.
Add up all three prices of the result market to see the margin.
For handicaps, check whether the line is a half, whole or quarter goal.
Read the void rules for player markets.
Place the bet before kick-off.

Rugby union also offers three-way and two-way results with different settlement rules; see rugby union betting. Use the implied probability calculator for any market, how to read odds for the basics, and our bet types guide for everything else.

Frequently asked questions

Does extra time count in soccer betting?

For most markets, no. The TAB says all soccer markets except winner of tie, to qualify and method of progression are settled at the end of normal time, which is 90 minutes plus stoppage time. Extra time and penalties count only in progression markets.

What is a three-way bet in soccer?

A bet on the result after normal time, with three options: home win, draw or away win. If you back a team and the match is drawn at 90 minutes, your bet loses, even if that team wins in extra time.

What is double chance betting?

A bet that covers two of the three results, such as home or draw. It wins more often than a straight result bet, so it pays a lower price.

What happens to a first goal scorer bet if there is an own goal?

Under the TAB's rules, unless the market offered a price for an own goal, the own goal is ignored and bets are settled on the next goal. A player who has not taken part before the goal is refunded.

Can you bet on the A-League in Australia?

Yes, with a bookmaker licensed in Australia, and online only before kick-off. Online in-play sports betting is banned, and licensed bookmakers cannot take credit cards or crypto.