
Online betting is no longer one dimensional. In recent times, bookies have stacked their pages with a wide array of options that makes betting far from boring. In this guide, we will be looking at one of the rarest betting options, future/outrights. In recent years, bettors have struggled to fully grasp the ideologies and know-how behind this type of betting. After going through this article, you would be fully aware of the basics and how to go about future/outrights.
Future/Outrights Definition
Outrights are a type of sports bet wager that avails the bettor the opportunity to bet on an outcome that can only be determined after a competition or season is overdue. This type of sports bet wager is a refreshing option as it gives the bettor something different from what they have been used to: betting on options that are only determined after a single game.
The terms, Future or Outrights, mean the same thing and are frequently used interchangeably to represent the same thing. In this guide, we will be using more of Outrights. So don’t get confused when you see us using one term more than the other.
How does future bets work?
It’s very simple. Before or at the start of any season or competition, Sportsbooks open the market for outrights. Once the bet has been placed, the odds and the winnings remain consistent for the bet placed throughout the season or competition. In the course of the season, some bettors can decide to join in the outrights, most likely after seeing the form of the teams and knowing which teams are at their best forms to wager on. However, the odds for those that join in after the league or competition have commenced tend to be relatively lower compared to before the season and it is a no-brainer why that’s so.
How to read Outright bets and Odds?
Outright bets, normally, are outlined in a list form. Different sportsbooks set the list differently. For some, it is an ascending order while for others, it’s descending. For those who set in ascending order, they basically place the most favorite on top and it goes sequentially until it reaches the least favorite which is placed at the bottom. For those who set in descending order, the least favorite/underdog comes first while the most favorite comes last on the list. However, one constant thing about the two styles of aligning outright odds is that, the least favourite tends to have the highest odds while the most favourite to win tends to have the highest odds.
Popular Outright Bets in Soccer
Outrights Winner
This is probably the most straightforward and commonest form of outright bet you will find amongst sportsbooks that offer outright bets. In this case, the outcome the bettor is on the lookout for is that the selected team wins the competition or comes top in the season. By standard, the sportsbooks usually open their outright betting market a few weeks before the competition starts, to allow their bettors maximize high odds. Interestingly, the market stays open until the season or competition ends, though the odds would have dropped drastically. For instance, you could bet on Enyimba to win the NPFL just before the season starts. The odds are usually lesser for clubs more likely to win.

Top Goal-scorer
This outright bet type is another that’s quite a staple amongst a series of sportsbooks. In this case, the bettor bets on the possibility of a player scoring the most goals in a competition. This type of bet is usually from an informed perspective about the player’s form and ability to meet up to expectations. However some bettors try to risk playing on players they know have little chance of winning the top scorer, because of the high odds assigned to that player. By some stroke of luck, you could end up smiling widely to the bank if it goes in your favour.
Group Stage Winner
With this outright market, you don’t have to wait to so long to determine your fate. Within a few weeks after the competition, the results will be determined and you can know whether your bet won or lost. The good thing about this type of bet is that it is relatively easier to predict. If you know the teams in a group and you know their forms, it is relatively easier to tell who comes top in that group than who comes top generally in the competition.
Tournament Qualification
With this outright market, you can seize the opportunity to win from the qualifiers even before the main event starts. You can bet on which team would proceed to the competition from the qualifiers. The odds may not be as high as that of the outright winner, but it is definitely worth the try.
Team to be relegated
This is one rare outright bet. Though in recent times, more sportsbooks are beginning to adopt it in their menu. If you pay close attention to a league, you could tell the regular top 4’s and the ones that frequently come last on the table. Once you have good knowledge of this, you could stake on that team you feel are most likely to be relegated. Or you could stretch your luck by selecting even a team with slimmer chances to be relegated. In that case, the odds will be way higher than when the team selected to be relegated is a known underdog.
Outright markets are not as wide as other bet types. This is because it is a relatively new bet type that hasn’t entirely been harnessed by sportsbooks. The ones discussed above are practically the outright bet types you will find on most sportsbooks that offer outright.
Combining Multiple Outright Bets
The same way you can wager multiple bets on other bet types, it works the same for outright bet types too. The essence of wagering multiples is to win big and this is something every punter yearns for. The exciting thing about combining multiple outright bets in a betslip is that you end up not needing to have so much in your ticket to rack up high odds, considering how high each outright could be.
Tips and Strategy Advice
Successfully having a streak of winnings is not by chance or luck, it is a product of the kind of information you have and how you chose to wield them. Because like it or not, chance or luck cannot be something to bank on for consistent winnings. As a bettor, the goal should be aiming for consistency. To get that, you need to devise a strategy.
Here we will be looking at helpful strategies you should take note of as you wager on outright bets.
- Take note of the trends
To predict the future, one needs to understand history. With history, there are regular consistencies in events that help to predict what may happen next. The same applies to football too. There are leagues that are known to have regular winners and table toppers. For the English Premier League, in the course of the last 10 years, you will discover that Manchester City, Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester United have been consistent contenders for the English Premier League.
A smart bettor who has been following this league for a long time would know that the best teams to wager as Outright winners are those four teams. However, you could study that an underdog has been on the top 6 for a while and there is a possibility of them winning and still try to risk it. Similar to the same way Leicester City won the Premier League in 2016.
- Take note of injuries
The number of injured players in a team could make a previous league winner struggle to maintain the top 6 position on the table. Now for a bettor that wants to bet on Outrights, it is important to do background checks on the fitness of the players before putting your money on it. Because it could be wasteful wagering your money on an Outright bet only to discover that a large number of the players are injured. Imagine placing a bet on a player to be a top goal-scorer and the player ended up having an injury at the start of the season. That would be very sad.
On the flip side, if you must wager on an outright despite injured players on the team, make sure the players are not really key players in the team. And if they are key players, ensure the injury period is not that extensive, say one or two weeks.
- Safer to bet after the league starts
There are so many uncertainties. There are circumstances you can’t predict. However, you can cushion the effects those circumstances would have on you. Injuries come at any time, unplanned. Changes happen that could alter the course of events.
When you bet after the season has started, firstly, you would know for certain which teams are at top forms and not just basing their form based on the previous season. You will also get to see the likely injuries play out, to save from wagering on a lost cause.
This doesn’t in any way imply that you can’t before the season starts, when the odds are juicer. It’s just much safer to bet after.
- Understand the option before betting
It is a rookie mistake to bet on an option you don’t understand the terms. However, it does happen. Before you wager on any outright bet, especially if you are someone wagering on an outright bet for the first, it is advisable to read up on what that market implies and the conditions surrounding it.
You don’t want to bet on something only to wait for a long period of time and discover that what you thought you had bet on was wrong and your bet lost as a result. That will be too large a pill to swallow. So, by all means, read up whatever option you are about placing your money on and get a clear understanding before actually going ahead with the bet.
Pros and Cons of Outright Betting
Pros
- It assures a different betting from what you are used to.
- You will find bigger odds with outright bets. Outright bet is the one of the few markets that could offer as much as 100 odds for a single game.
- It gives bettors the feeling like they are investing for the future.
Cons
- Outright bets are not available on every sportsbook.
- For sportsbooks that offer outright, they don’t offer it for all sport types.
- It takes a long while to get results and see the returns of investment. Not so many people are that patient to wait for a long time before seeing the returns on their investment.
- Predicting the outcome of a competition or season is more challenging than when predicting the outcome of a day’s match. There are a lot of upsets that could sway your bet in the wrong direction.
FAQ
With betting on outright, there is no perfect time for betting. It all depends on individual differences and resolves. If your endgame of betting on an outright bet is to cash in on the mouthwatering odds, whilst damning the other consequences, then you stand a better chance betting before the season starts or just as the season is starting. On the other hand, if you are a bettor that doesn’t care too much about the odds and you want to guarantee a level of assurance, then you are better off betting when the league is past halfway. At this point, you will bet from a clear perspective and there are little surprises waiting to happen to ruin your bet.
As we highlighted in the cons, even for sportsbooks that offer outright betting markets, they only do so for specific sports. It is only expected that the sports where outright betting markets are offered are the top sports. If you are on the lookout for the sports to find outright betting markets, you are more likely to find them in Soccer, American Football and Tennis.
This is a dicey question to answer. However, by following specific tips and strategies like we have discussed in this guide, you can minimize the risks a bit.