Key to making money at football betting is knowing when not to place a bet. I am not talking here about the situations when the odds and stats are not in line with your strategy. Rather, I am talking about moments or occasions when you are not in the prime position or condition to be making the right decision.
1. When you are intoxicated.
Let’s start with the obvious one. If you want to treat betting as a serious means of making money, you must treat it as a professional job. In order to profit from your betting you need to be alert, focused and disciplined. You would not go to work intoxicated. Don’t treat your betting any differently.
2. When you have just woken up.
With the number of football leagues that the various betting sites feature, there is an almost constant stream or supply of opportunities. It can be tempting to check out what matches are being played the moment you wake up. Resist the urge to do so. Wake up properly and get your head in gear before focusing on your betting.
3. When you are upset, frustrated or angry.
Your emotional state is key to your ability to profit from football betting. You need to know when you are not in the best state of mind to be making focused, intelligent selections.
Allow feelings of frustration or anger to pass or subside before you focus on betting. If you place a bet when you are feeling upset and you lose, you are at high risk of repeating this.
Take a walk and clear your head. Only when your mood is right should you re-engage with your betting activity.
4. When you are very tired.
You need to be sharp when analyzing a match and determining whether or not the opportunity is right. If you are tired your judgement will not be at its best and you will make weak and flawed choices.
5. Immediately after losing a bet.
No matter how successful you are at football betting, when you lose it hurts! You need to allow some amount to time absorb and deal with this. This might involve a number of minutes or a number of hours.
Reflect on the why you lost. Was it because you did not apply the strategy properly? Or did you do everything right and it was just one of those opportunities that did not go your way? Is there something you can learn from this loss?
Make sure you take the time to think it through and that you are in the right state of mind before focusing on the next opportunity.
6. When you are distracted.
You need to have your full attention on the match that you are considering. If you cannot give it your undivided attention, leave it. Don’t be analysing opportunities when you are driving or having dinner with your family.
If the time is not right, acknowledge this and concentrate on what it is that you need to be doing at that moment. Be patient and wait for the right occasions to focus on your betting.
7. When you have just missed an opportunity.
You are analyzing a match. The stats are favourable, but for some reason you are unsure if it is a sound opportunity. The right odds become available, but you decide to leave it. Moments later, a goal is scored and you see that you would have won, had you placed a bet.
This can be almost as frustrating as losing a bet. It can be tempting to immediately place a bet on a further goal being scored. Resist this urge.
8. When you have come to a match late.
You log into your betting site and scroll down through the available matches. You see a match that is about mid-way through the first half. It is 1:0 to the dominant team. There have been sufficient shots on target and dangerous attacks to justify placing a bet on one further goal being scored in the half. You immediately go for it.
Not a good idea! You just don’t have all the information you need to make a confident bet. When did the shots on target occur? Has there been a steady stream of dangerous attacks, or just an early flurry? Were the opening odds on the stronger team winning the match and scoring the first goal sufficient? If you can’t answer these questions, you are somewhat in the dark and liable to make an error.