Corner betting is usually overlooked in the betting markets. For most football bettors, the number of corners is too unstable to predict, so they classify the market as a “just for fun bet” level. This is because they believe the number of the corners is extremely random, that their analysis and data has nothing to do with the results and therefore not worthy for serious betting.

The truth is, this betting strategy is one of the most exciting markets in football betting, especially if you’re looking for long-term profits. This is because of two reasons:

  • The odds of corner betting mainly consist of numbers like totals and averages. This means that bettors don’t need to focus on the outcome of the result or which team gains the most corners.
  • Only a tiny part of the total money is usually placed on corner bets. This makes bettors pay less attention to the ‘right’ odds as they don’t feel like they will lose everything they have. Even the biggest money for this strategy won’t be detected by “bet radars” easily.

In the corner bet strategy, there is also a strategy that is called Over 9.5 Corners. But what exactly does that mean?

What Does Over 9.5 Corners Mean in Betting?

When betting on corners, particularly on the over/under market, you must choose whether the total number of corners in a particular match will go over or under the total a bookmaker has set, whether it's 7.5, 8.5, 9.5, and so on.

So to put it simply, Over 9.5 corners means that a match must have 10 or more corners between both teams to win the bet. Similarly, Over 7.5 corners means that a match must finish with 8 or more corners for the bet to win, and a bet of Over 8.5 corners needs 9 or more corners to win.

How Do You Bet on Corners Successfully?

To successfully win a bet on the total over/under corners market, the match must finish with over or under the number of corners you bet on.

Let's say in a Premier League match between Liverpool and Arsenal, you make a bet on Over 9.5 Corners. For you to win the bet, the match must end with 10 or more corners combined. So if Liverpool has 7 corners and Arsenal has 3 for a total of 10, then you have won the bet of Over 9.5 Corners. But if the total number of corners drops to 9 or lower, then your bet loses.

However, you can also bet for the total to go under if you want. So if you instead bet on Under 9.5 corners, then you win your bet when the match has 9 corners or fewer.

Now that we have those out of the way, let’s get into some of the effective strategies you should go for in corner betting.

The Strengths and Weaknesses between the Playing Teams

First, check if one of the teams is from the top or bottom of the football league. If it’s a cup game, then see if one of the teams is from the Premier League and the other is in the Championship. Suppose the biggest Premier League teams like Manchester United or Chelsea are playing with a lower division team in an FA Cup game. In that case, the chance of having more corners in a match could be higher than if two lower-ranked teams or two bigger teams are up against each other.

This is because the weaker team will most likely aim to draw instead of winning, while the top team will always strive to win. This is especially true in Cup games. The bigger teams need to go through a lot of matches in Europe and are usually always in other cup competitions as well. They always try to avoid draws so they won’t need to have more replays.

The stronger team usually attacks much more often and takes more shots than the weaker team. This will make weaker teams give away more free kicks, more throw-ins, and more corners.

The weaker team’s goalkeeper will also be making more saves as the stronger team will often put on more strikers to score more goals. The strong team will always try to avoid corners and instead will try to kick the ball out for a throw-in or just keep the ball in the game by passing it to each other. These lower-ranked teams will likely kick the ball away to defend their goal, which means more corners will be likely.

When the Lower-Ranked Team is Playing Home

When the lower ranked team is playing at home, then there are more chances that they will get more corners, as they usually get excited, especially during the first ten minutes. They see the first ten minutes as the time to pressure the stronger team as they have too much energy at the start. Then they might make the first corner within the first 15 minutes and make fewer and fewer corners as the match continues.

The stronger team usually absorbs all their early energy and attacks when the weaker team is worn out, so you can also expect more corners as the stronger team attacks more later on in the game.

When the Stronger Team is Playing Home

The higher ranked teams usually have a larger crowd who want to see many goals, so you can expect them to start striking from the start of the match. Because of the constant attacks, you can expect a higher number of goals and more chances of corners to happen.

See If One or Both Teams Are Playing in “Defense” or “Attack”

If two football teams play in attack mode against each other, they will make more corners than two defensive teams against each other. But if a defensive team plays against an attacking team, then you could expect much more corners. This is because defensive teams usually “give” corners as they are better at defending their opponent’s attacks. They also prefer attacking the break from a corner which eventually turns into another corner. This is why a match with a defensive and an attacking team will quickly result in more corners.

The Weather Conditions

Heavy rain or wind can result in more corners compared to matches on a hot and sunny day. A wet field can make the ball move quicker than usual and go out of play faster as players will have less control in the rain. Goalkeepers will also have a more challenging time saving the balls, which ends up slipping over their hands, and defenders will have to kick the ball out into the corner.

What’s Next for the Teams

The high-ranked teams have more matches to play than the lower-ranked teams. They also like to mix their new and younger players, especially in cup competitions, while saving their best players for the top competitions. However, the weaker teams usually have the same players in every game. They are also more motivated during the cup games as it may be their only chance to earn a trophy. The newer players from these top teams are usually not as good as their normal team, so there’s a higher chance of corners from them than usual.

Other Things to Consider when Betting on Corners

Corner betting is a popular market amongst experienced bettors who love to look for reactions and patterns within a match. For the basics, look for the favourite team and see if they’re unexpectedly losing by a goal. This usually leads them to act desperately to gain control of the game and score. This is one factor that may result in corner kicks.

Professional bettors usually go for pre-match bets due to the bigger odds for corner betting. The timing to take corner bets is also important, as odds can go as high as 6.00 when a team is likely to win corners within a 5-10 minute time frame. Corner cards are also a great way to boost the odds as bookies offer up to 5.00 on over/under corners and over/under cards. Another thing to consider when betting on corners is the high pressure due to championship titles or qualifier points. The losing team will likely risk it all to score a goal within a limited time, which ultimately leads to more corners.

Teams with the Most Corners

There are many reasons why a team may have more corners than others. One of these factors is that a team plays full-on attacking mode and minimal defence, which often causes the ball to go out of play. Here is a list of the teams with the most corners in football.

Perez Zeledon, the team from Costa Rica, comes in fifth place for most corners in a match, with 12.32 corners in a game on average. Union Espanola comes in next with 12.44 corners within a game. In third place is F.C Tokyo, the professional football club from Japan’s capital, with 12.58 corners, followed by Cork City of Ireland, with 12.63 corners on average in a match, ranking second. However, the most corners are earned by Nagoya Grampus, from the Japanese association football club, with 12.71 corners per match.

The Summary of Our Guide for Corner Betting Success

Before we wrap up our top tips, let’s look at the betting tips above summarized in these points below.

  • Find League and Cup matches that consist of a game between stronger and weaker teams and if possible, an attacking team vs a defensive team.
  • Bet on the total number of corners to be “Over” or “Under” the numbers given by the betting sites.
  • If halftime ends up with a 0-0 or 1-1 score, then gamble that more corners will happen in the second half than the first half.
  • If the stronger team loses in the first half of the game, then bet on the stronger team to have more corners than the weaker team during the next half.
  • Place a bet on corners awarded in both 40-45- and 80-90-minute periods.
  • Don’t bet on “no corners.”
  • Don’t bet on even/odd corners totals, except if you play them in accumulators for fun.
  • Expect more corners to happen when it’s raining.

There are also many more advanced strategies bettors use for corner betting, but our guide can be a great place to start to make you earn some extra profits for starters. Good luck!