Friendly Football Bets With Friends
Friendly football bets with friends are a great way to build rapport and add extra spice to your competitive nature.
Nobody likes to lose, do they?
It’s bad enough at any time, but when you’re up against a close friend with pride or a forfeit at stake, things start to get a little more serious — the bet means more!
In this article, I will share with you seven fun football bets to have with your friends. By the time you have finished the article, you’ll be ready to set the wager and let the fun begin.
Let’s crack on.
What Is A Good Football Bet To Make With A Friend?
The options are endless. Choosing which bet to place is mainly dependent on whether you want a quick result or one that can be spread throughout the season.
The seven bets below offer a variety of different bets that suit both outcomes. They’re all fun, simple, and easy to organize.
Tournament Winner
This bet is self-explanatory and determined by the winner of a tournament.
Take the NFL as an example.
You and your friend choose a team of choice that you think will win the Super Bowl.
If the team of your choosing wins, then you win the bet — pretty straightforward.
But what happens if neither of your team wins?
You need to decide if the bet is void or if the team that performs the better throughout the season takes the win.
Tournament winner bets are a fun way to bet with your close friends and offer extra excitement throughout the campaign.
Season Win Total
How many wins will a team of your choice accomplish throughout the season? Over or under a certain amount?
Here’s how it works.
You and a friend decide that the team in question will be the NFL Buffalo Bills. One of you thinks their total wins will be over a certain amount, and the other says it will be under that amount.
For example: under 11 wins and over 11 wins — you both choose one of the options.
Golden Touchdown
The way to win this bet is to pick a time during the game where you think the first touchdown will be. The person who gets the closest to that time will win the bet.
The beauty of this bet is the possibility of involving multiple friends; the more, the merrier in this case.
Traditionally, these types of bets are placed on a big game, such as the Super Bowl, but nothing stops you from doing this for other games during the season.
You could even add up the wins throughout the season, and the person with the most wins takes the prize.
Player of the Season (Awards Betting)
At the end of the season, there are awards given out to the players. Your job is to predict which player will win them.
Player of the season wagers are easy to place with a friend. Basically, you choose an award, say ‘Rookie Player of The Year’, and whoever gets it right wins the bet.
First Team To Score
Another fun and easy bet. You and a friend decide which game to target and choose your team. The great thing about this bet is the speed of placing the bet — simply select a team that you think will score first.
Spread Betting
Each game will have a money line determined by the sportsbook. The favorites will have a minus number, while the dogs will have a plus number.
The minus number for the favorite is a handicap, so they will need to win by that number to win the bet.
For example, the New York Jets are -1.5, and the Green Bay Packers are +1.5 on the spread. To win this bet, the person who chooses the New York Jets will only take the bragging rights if they win by 1.5 points; if not, they lose the bet.
Your job is to choose the right team.
Read More: What is Spread Betting?
Over or Under Betting (Total Points)
Another simple bet to have with a friend is the over/under selection. With this bet, you are predicting the total combined points for the game.
For example, Las Vegas Raiders vs Los Angeles Rams — You have two choices, over 35 points or under 35 points.
Your job is to pick the correct one. For fairness, you could toss a coin or take turns if the bets are ongoing to determine who gets to choose first.
Football Prop Bets
Prop bets are another funny way to bet against your friends. It’s hilarious(and frustrating) when that one friend who hardly understands football keeps predicting correctly with these prop bets. Some interesting weekly football prop bets to try include:
- What team wins the coin toss?
- Will the coin toss be heads or tails?
- Will the first score be a touchdown, a field goal or a safety?
- Will the national anthem be over or under 2 minutes or 3 seconds?
- Will touchdowns be celebrated with a dance move?
Are bets with friends legally binding?
Listen, you’re betting with a friend, so the thought of taking a legal case against them for a friendly bet shouldn’t really be entering your mind.
Also, it’s a bet with no contracts involved, so no, they’re not legally binding, and the only thing at stake should be pride.
What is a good friendly wager?
A friendly wager is a bet that should be fun, trackable, and easy to place. It should not have the potential to cause unrest between the two or more friends.
If you want to add an extra incentive to win, you could consider a forfeit for the loser, adding an extra layer of fun and low-key pressure to the bet.
What are good punishments for bets?
A suitable punishment for losing a bet can be anything really, but remember that you are betting with a friend, so nothing too sinister is recommended.
Below are a few ideas for suitable friendly punishments for losing a bet:
- Jersey of Choice: The loser has to wear the football jersey of choice chosen by the winner for a full day (outdoors). Not only that, they have to agree to photos being uploaded to social media.
- Pay for Lunch: This one is quite a mild punishment, but one you don’t want to lose. The loser has to pay for lunch.
- Shave Your Hair: Again, you don’t want to lose this — the loser will have to get a number 1 haircut all over.
- Sing a Song: A great friendly punishment for an upcoming night out or event. The loser of the bet has to get up and sing a song in front of a busy crowd.
Read More: Best Punishment for Losing a Football Bet
Wrapping Up (Which Friendly Football Bet Will You Choose?)
All of the football bets in this article are straightforward to place. You can choose to bet for fun, pride, or even suggest a forfeit for the loser.
Which one should you choose? That’s up to you.
Remember, friendly football bets with friends should be easy-going and fun; after all, you’re friends, so try not to fall out with each other over a bet.
If you’re looking for a user-friendly sportsbook app to suggest bets, track results, and provide live odds on games, then social friendly betting apps like WagerLab will save you a lot of hassle and stress and can even be synced with your friends.
You now only have one question left to ask yourself.
Are you ready for the challenge?
WagerLab is available as a Android betting app and iOS betting app
