Everything you need to know about footie accumulators

Footie accumulator is a type of bet offers seriously enhanced potential payouts, a more convenient way to bet, and a way more exciting ride too.

What is an accumulator bet?

Placing an accumulator bet basically means betting on the results of a minimum of four games. You choose your four fixtures, and you decide whether the result’s going to be a home win, an away win or a draw for each game. The wager you place on the first bet can be quite low, say as little as £1. However, if you win that first bet, then your winnings are automatically wagered on the second game, and so on.

This means that your wagers ‘accumulate’ – hence the name accumulator or acca bet. It also means that the potential payouts can be massive for accas, as the wagers grow each time, depending on the individual odds for each game.

Why use an accumulator?

The main reason punters are keen on accumulators these days is the promise of big potential payouts. Odds are regularly enhanced for football accumulator bets, and there are often special offers on accas too, especially at big sites like Bet365 and Paddy Power.

On top of that, it’s now easier than ever to place accumulator bets online, via mobile, smartphone and tablet. It means it’s a convenient way to bet on more than one game, and you could get better odds a result. So rather than going down to the bookies to bet on one game, going back to collect your winnings, then placing these on another game, you can automatically wager on a selection of games at the click of a button.

How to place an accumulator bet online?

Placing an accumulator bet online is very straightforward. Here’s a quick guide that’ll show you how, step-by-step.

Choose a site – have a look at all the football bookies online, and if you don’t already have a favourite, do some comparing to choose the right one for you. You might want to compare the odds they’re offering for any games you’re interested in wagering in, and check whether they offer you any free bets or bonuses for signing up.

Choose your games – once you’ve picked a bookie, take a look at their listings of fixtures. Each game on display will give you the odds for each to be a home win, away win, or draw. Select the box next to the result you think is most likely and it will be added to your virtual betting slip.

Timing your bets – you can bet on any four games you like, as long as the bookie you’ve chosen is offering odds on it. That means that you can do as most punters do and bet on games that start on the same day, or even share a kick-off time – this keeps things nice and exciting. But if you don’t mind having your wager tied up for a while, you’re free to bet on games that take place weeks or even months apart.

Let the site do the work – when you’ve added four or more games to your betting slip, the slip automatically detects this and offers you the chance to turn your four separate bets into one single accumulator bet.

Place your stake – next it’s time to decide how much you want to wager. You do this by simply entering the amount in the box that appears next to the ‘accumulator’ part of the virtual betting slip. Don’t enter a stake before this, as entering stakes for individual games means that the slip will automatically think you want to bet on these games separately.

Accumulator betting tips

Don’t ignore lower leagues – most punters are attracted to the big Europe games and the Premier League, which is understandable. But when it comes to accumulator betting you can get even better value by wagering on lower league games. You still have to know your stuff, however, so there’s no point in betting on the lower divisions if you know absolutely nothing about them. The main point to remember here is that you’re not restricted to the Premiership – you’re free to place accumulator bets on any fixture that your bookie is offering odds on.

Do your research – even if you’re betting on teams and fixtures you feel you know well, it still pays to do as much research as possible before you make your match predictions. Are there any players out injured? Any trends that have emerged in their stats lately? Are they playing home or away – there really is a home advantage you know. The more info you have about the teams the better you’ll be able to predict the result more accurately.

Keep your wagers small – especially when you’re starting out at the online bookies, you should keep your wagers low. Stick to bets of no more than £10. Remember, odds are better for accumulators only because it’s all the more harder to correctly predict the outcome of four games than it is just one. And the wager you place on that first game will soon grow anyway.

And what to avoid…

Use stats, not your heart – punters often make the mistake of betting on their team regardless. While it’s one thing to be a top supporter, it’s a whole other kettle of fish to be a top punter. Keep your head and heart separate, and only bet objectively, using all the stats and info at your disposal. Only bet on your own team to win if you genuinely believe this to be the case, backed up by cold , hard stats – not hope.

Don’t add a team just to get bigger odds or add another fixture just to get the biggest odds – when you’re starting out it’s best to stick to the minimum number of acca fixtures – four.

Don’t forget about draws – lots of punters overlook this wagering option. The truth is it can be just as valuable to you as a win when it comes to accumulator bets. It’s also a good option for top teams playing away from home, as the stats bear out that top teams away form is never as good as you think.