Soccer lines are sometimes the same as lines for other sports, but they can also differ, and you’ll usually see the different styles side by side in a sports book. For example, in an early game in the World Cup, the line was:
| Spain | -.5/-127 |
| Netherlands | +.5/+118 |
This means you can wager Spain giving .5 goals, betting $127 to win $100; or Netherlands getting .5 goals, betting $100 to win $118. If this game had been lined at Spain -1 (instead of -.5) and Spain wins 2-1, money on both sides would be refunded. This is similar to a standard line you might see in baseball or basketball.
You could also bet the "three-way" line:
| Spain | -127 |
| Netherlands | +484 |
| Draw | +246 |
This convention works in soccer because there are so many ties, so having the option to bet on a draw makes sense. In this case, the choices are bet $127 to win $100 if Spain wins the game outright, bet $100 to win $484 if the Netherlands wins, and bet $100 to win $246 if the game ends in a tie. On draws, bets on both sides lose.
The games will also have "totals" lines, bets on whether the combined score will be over or under the posted total:
| o2.5 | +115 |
| u2.5 | -135 |
In this example you can bet $100 to win $115 that the total goals scored will be 3 or more, or $135 to win $100 that total goals will be 2 or less.
Finally, you may encounter a "split line":
| Spain | -.5 and -1/+109 |
| Netherlands | +.5 and +1/-117 |
You see this a lot and it means a single wager becomes two bets. If you bet Spain, half the wager is at -.5 and half is at -1. If Spain wins 2-1, half the bet wins and half pushes, so a $100 wager returns $154.50. If Spain wins 2-0, a $100 wager returns $218. Split lines are also offered on totals, e.g., over 2 and 2.5/+109.
The results on all of these bets are based on the score at the end of full time (usually 90 minutes) plus "stoppage time," but do not include overtimes and penalty kicks, which are not included in the group-stage play in the World Cup, but can come into play in the "must advance" games. If you want to bet on an absolute result, look for wagers such as "Spain advances" or "Netherlands wins the cup."
Just as in other sports, there are also futures, props, and alternate lines, the variety of which depends on where you’re betting.
