Football Betting: Canadian Football and Soccer, Two Different Markets

In Canada "football" can mean the CFL or soccer, and the two are priced in completely different ways. Mixing them up is a common source of confusion on a bet slip. This guide takes each in turn, without recommending any bet or any sportsbook.

Canadian football: a two-way sport

A CFL game almost always produces a winner, so its markets resemble basketball's: a moneyline, a point spread and a total. A spread of -3.5 asks the favourite to win by four or more. Because field goals are worth three points and touchdowns six or seven with the convert, final margins cluster around certain numbers, and a half-point either side of three or seven matters far more than elsewhere. Weather also plays a bigger role late in the season, when wind and cold can push totals down.

Soccer: the three-way market

Soccer's main market is 1X2: home win, draw, away win. The draw is a real outcome, often around a quarter of matches in many leagues, which is why soccer prices look longer than those of two-way sports. A team at 2.10 is not a near coin flip as it would be in a two-way market; the draw takes a share of the probability.

Soccer markets that remove the draw

"Draw no bet" refunds the stake if the match is drawn, at a shorter price than the straight win. Asian handicaps go further, giving one side a goal or half-goal start so that only two outcomes remain; a quarter-goal line splits the stake across two handicaps. These markets often carry lower margins than 1X2, which is why careful bettors use them.

Goals markets

Over/under 2.5 goals and "both teams to score" are popular because they do not depend on picking a winner. They still depend on things that are hard to judge from a highlights package: how a team sets up away from home, whether it needs only a draw, and how often it concedes late.

Local teams, local bias

Canada has teams in the CFL and in Major League Soccer, and supporters naturally follow them closely. Following a team gives you opinions, not an edge; the price already reflects public information. If you bet on your own club, keep the stake small and decide it before you look at the odds.

In-play football

Soccer prices move sharply on a goal or a red card and drift slowly in between, as time runs down. CFL prices move with every possession. In both, a bet placed in the excitement of a big play is the one most likely to be regretted.

More reading

Combining several football selections in a parlay multiplies the margins, as the bet types guide shows. The betting basics page covers odds formats and the provincial rules that decide which sites are regulated where you live.

Frequently asked questions