USAWinning Margin Meaning in Sports Betting
Winning margin meaning in sports betting is a wager placed on the exact difference in goals or points between the winning and losing team.
You can either bet on the win margin for each team or the winning margin without specifying the team. Betting markets where you predict the winner and the margin of victory are most common.
For example, the winning margin is six points if an NBA game ends 112-106. If you bet the winning margin is six points, your wager will be won.
There are also so-called “Margin Bands” where you don’t have to wager on the exact margin but rather on a range of points, such as 1-5 Points Win Margin, 6-10 Points Win Margin, and 11+ Points Win Margin. Margin Bands are also referred to as “Buckets.”
There are different winning margin markets, such as 2-way Win Margin, 3-way Win Margin, 4-way Win Margin, all the way up to 10-way, and Quarter Margins like 1st or 4th Quarter Margin. On this page, I’ll go through everything you need to know so you can get started with this alternative way of wagering on US sports betting sites.
Examples of Winning Margin Bets
| NBA Match | Winning Margin Wager | Outcome and Margin of Victory | Betslip Outcome |
| New York Knicks @ Chicago Bulls | Knicks Win by 6 Points | 112-118, the Knicks won by 6 points. | Bet Win |
| Los Angeles Lakers @ Golden State Warriors | Warriors Win by 9 Points | 119-110, the Warriors won by 9 points. | Bet Win |
| Washington Capitals @ Denver Nuggets | Nuggets Win by 12 Points | 114-98, the Nuggets won by 16 points. | Bet Lose |
Examples of Winning Margin Bands Bets
| MLB Match | Runline Margin Wager | Outcome and Margin of Victory | Betslip Outcome |
| Baltimore Orioles @ New York Mets | Orioles Win by 1-2 Runs | Orioles win by 3 runs. | Bet Lose |
| Boston Red Sox @ Houston Astros | Red Sox Win by 3-4 Runs | Red Sox win by 3 runs. | Bet Win |
| Pittsburg Pirates @ Texas Rangers | Pirates Win by 1-2 Runs | Pirates win by 1 run. | Bet Win |
Examples of Quarter Margin Exact Bets
| MLB Match | Quarter Margin Wager | Outcome and Margin of Victory | Betslip Outcome |
| Boston Celtics @ Cleveland Cavaliers | Celtics to Win 1st Quarter by 5 Points | 27-22, the Celtics won the 1st quarter by 5 points. | Bet Win |
| Miami Heat @ Philadelphia 76ers | 76ers to Win 3rd Quarter by 4 Points | 23-19, the 76ers won the 3rd quarter by 4 points. | Bet Win |
| San Antonio Spurs @ Houston Rockets | Rockets to win 4th Quarter by 2 Points | 24-27, Spurs won the 4th quarter by 3 points. | Bet Lose |
Examples of End of Quarter Margin Exact Bets
| MLB Match | End of Quarter Margin Wager | Outcome and Margin of Victory | Betslip Outcome |
| Boston Celtics @ Cleveland Cavaliers | Celtics to Win End of 2nd Quarter by 8 Points. | 54-44, the Celtics is leading by 10 points at the end of 2nd quarter. | Bet Lose |
| Miami Heat @ Philadelphia 76ers | 76ers to Win End of 3nd Quarter by 5 Points. | 69-64, the 76ers is leading by 5 points at the end of 3rd quarter. | Bet Win |
| San Antonio Spurs @ Houston Rockets | Rockets to Win End of 3rd Quarter by 3 Points. | 75-72, the Rockets is leading by 3 points at the end of 3rd quarter. | Bet Win |
Variations of Winning Margin Bets in Sportsbooks
Many variations of Winning Margin markets are available at US sports betting sites. Most games featuring these markets will have a version of Winning Margins Bands and Winning Margins Exact. Typically, you’ll also find one or several x-way options, ranging from 2-Way Winning Margin to 10-Way Winning Margin:
- Exact Winning Margin
- Winning Margin Bands
- 2-Way Winning Margin
- 3-Way Winning Margin
- 4-Way Winning Margin
- 5-Way Winning Margin
- 6-Way Winning Margin
- 7-Way Winning Margin
- 8-Way Winning Margin
- 9-Way Winning Margin
- 10-Way Winning Margin
- 1st-4th Quarter Winning Margin
- 1st Half and 2nd Half Winning Margin
What’s The Point of Making Winning Margin Wagers in Sports Betting
Winning Margin bets are an alternative to betting on the outright Moneyline Winner, the Spread, Totals or the Correct Score. It’s an alternative market that gives you additional winning possibilities.
When betting on the point or goal difference between two teams, you don’t have to pick a winning team; you’re just predicting the margin of victory. If you are betting on a soccer game in the MLS, a +1 Winning Margin indicates that the final score will be 1-0, 0-1, 2-1, 1-2, and so on.
Besides Moneyline and Correct Score, Winning Margin bets are also an excellent alternative to Spreads and Totals since the Winning Margin market concerns both the total tally of points or goals and the margin of victory.
What Are Winning Margin Bands?
As I touched upon in the intro, betting on the Winning Margin is not limited to predicting the exact point difference between the winning and losing team. Most sports betting sites offer Margin Bands or “Buckets,” where you can wager on a range of winning margins in one bet, for example:
- 1-10 Points or 10+ Points Win Margin
- 1-6 Points, 7-12 Points or 13+ Points Win Margin
- 1-2 Goal, 3-4 Goals or 5+ Goals Win Margin
- 1-2 Runs, 3-4 Runs or 5+ Runs Win Margin
Sports Where You Can Make Winning Margin Wagers
Winning Margin is a versatile market you can find in various sports. However, you’ll have better chances of finding many variations in the major American leagues:
- NFL
- NBA
- MBL
- NHL
- MLS
- WNBA
Besides the major US leagues, you can come across Winning Margin markets for other domestic and international leagues in the following sports:
- American Football
- Baseball
- Basketball
- Cricket
- Handball
- Ice Hockey
- Rugby
- Soccer
- Volleyball
Best US Sportsbook For Winning Margin Betting
By checking the market offering for the leading US sportsbooks in the major American leagues, we found that FanDuel is by far the best option if you’re interested in Winning Margin markets. While most sportsbooks feature one winning margin-type market, FanDuel will regularly have multiple options for every game.
FAQ Winning Margin Betting
In sports betting, the winning margin is a wager placed on the exact difference in goals or points between the winning and losing teams. The scoreline doesn’t matter, only the margin of victory.
1-10 refers to a “Winning Margin Band” where you bet on the team winning by a margin of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 or 10 points. In other words, you require the team to win by between 1 and 10 points.
With Bands, you don’t have to bet on the exact margin; instead, you can wager on a range of outcomes, such as a 1-10 Point Winning Margin or an 11+ Point Winning Margin.
Many sportsbooks will give the option of betting Winning Margin on quarters, innings, or halves. In the case of the 4th Quarter Margin, it refers to basketball or American football. You could also wager on 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Quarter Margin. Some bookmakers offer two types of Quarter Margin: one that only applies to the Quarter outcome (Quarter Margin Exact) and one that considers the overall score at the end of the Quarter (End of Quarter Margin Exact).