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What Does BTTS Mean? Both Teams to Score Explained

BTTS stands for Both Teams to Score. We explain what the market means, how to calculate BTTS probability, and which leagues have the highest BTTS rates.

ยท3 min readยทBy Sportdico Editorial Team

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BTTS โ€” Both Teams to Score โ€” is one of the most popular football betting markets. It has one rule: both the home side and the away side must score at least once. The final result does not matter; a 1โ€“3 defeat counts the same as a 1โ€“1 draw for BTTS Yes purposes.

How BTTS works

There are two BTTS outcomes:

OutcomeCondition
BTTS YesHome โ‰ฅ 1 goal AND Away โ‰ฅ 1 goal
BTTS NoEither team fails to score (or both fail)

A final score of 0โ€“0, 1โ€“0, or 0โ€“2 means BTTS No. A final score of 1โ€“1, 2โ€“3, or 1โ€“2 means BTTS Yes.

How Sportdico calculates BTTS probability

We model each team's expected goals (xG) as a Poisson distribution. The probability that a team scores at least one goal is:

P(goals โ‰ฅ 1) = 1 โˆ’ P(goals = 0) = 1 โˆ’ e^(โˆ’ฮป)

where ฮป is the team's expected goals for that match.

BTTS probability is then:

P(BTTS Yes) = P(home โ‰ฅ 1) ร— P(away โ‰ฅ 1)

This assumes home and away scoring are independent, which is a reasonable approximation for most league matches.

Example

Arsenal (home, ฮป = 2.1) vs Brentford (away, ฮป = 1.3):

  • P(Arsenal scores) = 1 โˆ’ e^(โˆ’2.1) โ‰ˆ 87.8 %
  • P(Brentford scores) = 1 โˆ’ e^(โˆ’1.3) โ‰ˆ 72.8 %
  • P(BTTS Yes) = 0.878 ร— 0.728 โ‰ˆ 63.9 %

Which leagues have the highest BTTS rates?

Across the 2024โ€“25 season:

LeagueBTTS Yes rate
Bundesliga58 %
Premier League55 %
Ligue 153 %
La Liga50 %
Serie A47 %

Bundesliga matches tend to be open and high-scoring. Serie A and La Liga have more tactically conservative teams, leading to more clean sheets.

When is BTTS a good market?

BTTS Yes is worth considering when:

  • Both teams have scored in their last 5+ matches (strong attacking form)
  • Neither team has kept a clean sheet in recent away/home fixtures
  • The expected goals for both sides exceed 1.0

BTTS No is worth considering when:

  • One team is a strong defensive unit with multiple recent clean sheets
  • The away team has a low conversion rate and poor form
  • Weather conditions (heavy rain, strong wind) suppress goal-scoring

BTTS vs Over 2.5 goals

These markets are often confused. The key difference:

MarketWins onLoses on
BTTS Yes1โ€“1, 1โ€“2, 2โ€“3, 3โ€“10โ€“0, 1โ€“0, 0โ€“2
Over 2.51โ€“2, 3โ€“0, 2โ€“20โ€“0, 1โ€“0, 1โ€“1, 0โ€“1

A 1โ€“1 draw is BTTS Yes but Under 2.5. A 2โ€“0 home win is BTTS No but Over 2.5. Always choose the market that best matches your read of the match, not the one with the shorter odds.

Frequently asked questions

Does extra time count for BTTS?

In most bookmakers' standard BTTS market, only 90 minutes plus injury time count. Extra time and penalty shootouts are excluded. Always check the specific bookmaker's rules.

Can BTTS be voided?

If a match is abandoned before 90 minutes, BTTS bets are usually voided. If the match completes 90 minutes, the result stands regardless of when a goal was scored.

What is BTTS and Win?

A combined market: your team must win AND both teams must score. It typically pays odds of 3.00โ€“5.00 for top-six matches because combining two independent conditions dramatically reduces probability.

Is BTTS Yes or No more common?

Across Europe's top five leagues, BTTS Yes occurs in roughly 52 % of matches โ€” essentially a coin flip. The slight Yes majority reflects modern football's high pressing styles and open defensive shapes.


See today's BTTS predictions

Sportdico publishes BTTS Yes/No tips for every covered match, with Poisson-derived probabilities and a public win/loss track record.

See today's BTTS predictions โ†’

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