AFL betting: main markets, odds explained and the margin

Key facts

The core AFL markets are head to head, line, margin, total points, quarter by quarter, goal kicker and player stat markets, plus same game multis.
A head to head at $1.45 and $2.80 adds up to 104.68%: the 4.68% over 100% is the bookmaker's margin.
AFL games can be drawn: Essendon and Collingwood drew on Anzac Day 2024. Under the TAB's Victorian rules, a head to head with no draw option pays half the normal return on a draw.
Line bets use half points, so they cannot finish level. The TAB's rules set a points start to half a point unless it says otherwise.
Online in-play betting on AFL is prohibited in Australia; the only exception is a bet placed wholly by phone.

How AFL betting works

AFL betting means putting a fixed odds bet on an outcome in a match or a season with a licensed Australian bookmaker. You pick a market, take the price on offer, and that price is locked in. Every bet has to be placed before the bounce if you bet online. Nothing on this page is a tip: it explains the markets and the maths so you can judge a price yourself.

AFL betting markets

These are the markets you will find on most AFL match pages. The settlement notes come from the TAB's help pages and its Victorian sports rules; other bookmakers publish their own rules.

Market	What you pick	How it is settled
Head to head	The winning team	Your team must win the game
Line	The winner after a points start	Your team needs more points once the handicap is applied
Margin	The winning team and a range of points	Your team must win by the margin you picked
Total points	Over or under a set number	The combined score of both teams
Quarter by quarter	The team leading at each change	You must name the leader at the end of every quarter
Goal kicker	A player to kick the first goal, a goal, or a set number	Settled under the bookmaker's rules for that market
Most disposals	The player with the most kicks and handballs	Settled by the official AFL statistician
Same game multi	Several of the above in one bet	Every leg must win; TAB SGMs are pre-game only
Futures	A premiership or season award	Settled when the premiership or award is decided

Goal kicker and disposal markets are prop bets: our prop bets guide explains how they are settled and what they cost, and the first goal scorer guide covers first and anytime scorer markets. Season markets are futures bets, and most of them are All In. The Brownlow Medal betting guide covers the votes, the odds and the integrity rules behind that award market.

AFL odds explained

AFL odds are decimal prices that include your stake. If the favourite is $1.45 and the outsider is $2.80, a $10 bet on the outsider returns $28 and a $10 bet on the favourite returns $14.50. The price also implies a chance: 1 / 1.45 = 68.97% and 1 / 2.80 = 35.71%.

Those two chances add up to 104.68%, and that is the point. The bookmaker has priced a game that has to end one way or the other at more than 100%. Strip the extra 4.68% out evenly and the fair prices are about $1.52 and $2.93. Use the implied probability calculator to do this for any market, or read our guide on how to read odds if decimal prices are new to you.

How the margin works across AFL markets

The margin is the reason the house wins over time, and it is not the same in every market. Compare three example markets on one game.

Example market	Prices	Market adds up to	Bookmaker keeps on a balanced book
Head to head	$1.45 / $2.80	104.68%	4.47%
Line (-15.5 / +15.5)	$1.90 / $1.90	105.26%	5.00%
Total points (over / under)	$1.87 / $1.93	105.29%	5.02%

The last column is 1 - 1 / total. It is what the bookmaker keeps if money comes in exactly in line with its prices, and it is roughly what you lose on average per dollar if your picks are no better than the market's. Markets with many outcomes, like first goal kicker, margin bands and player stats, have a price on every option. Add up all of them before you assume a market is fair.

Multis add another layer, because the margin is built into every leg. The multi bet calculator shows how fast the combined price, and the combined chance, move as you add legs.

Line betting and the half point

A line bet gives the outsider a head start. If the line is Team A -15.5 and Team B +15.5, Team A has to win by 16 or more for a Team A line bet to win, and a Team B bet wins if Team B wins or loses by 15 or less. The TAB's Victorian rules set a points start to half a point unless the bookmaker says otherwise when you bet, so there is no such thing as a line bet finishing level.

When both sides of a line are $1.90, as in the margin table above, you need to win 52.63% of your line bets just to break even.

When an AFL game is drawn

AFL matches can end level. Essendon and Collingwood drew on Anzac Day 2024, and AFL.com.au noted that the extra time used in finals did not apply to the regular season. What a draw does to your bet depends on the market and the bookmaker's rules.

Situation	Rule in the TAB's Victorian sports rules	$20 bet at $1.70
Your team wins	Normal payout	Returns $34.00
Draw, and no draw option was offered	Dead heat: payout divided by the number of tied teams (rule 12.5)	Returns $17.00
Draw, and a draw price was offered	Bets on anything other than the draw lose (rule 10.9)	Returns $0

If a game does go to extra time, rule 10.8 says results include it unless the bookmaker said otherwise when you bet. Rule 10.9 is the exception: where a draw price was offered, the result is decided without extra time. Read the market name on your slip carefully.

Pundit tip: if you back a short-priced favourite in a two-way head to head, a draw costs you half your stake under a dead heat rule. At any price under $2.00, half the return is less than your stake.

You cannot bet in-play online

Online in-play betting on sport is prohibited in Australia. ACMA says the only exception is a bet where the selection, bet type, amount and confirmation are given wholly by phone. ACMA enforces it: in 2026 it reported that Tabcorp paid a $158,400 penalty after accepting 426 in-play bets across 32 tennis matches online. Plan your bets before the bounce.

Same game multis on the AFL

AFL same game multis link legs such as a winner, a goal kicker and a disposal count. Because those legs move together, the price is set for the whole combination rather than multiplied. On the TAB they are pre-game only, web and app only, and one void selection refunds the whole bet. Our same game multi guide shows the maths.

Before you place an AFL bet

Name the market exactly, including whether it counts extra time or offers a draw.
Convert the price to a chance and ask whether you rate it higher.
Add up the whole market to see the margin you are paying.
Check the void rules for player markets if a player is a late withdrawal.
Bet before the bounce, and only what you are happy to lose.

The same principles apply to rugby league in our NRL betting guide, and every other bet type is in our bet types guide.

Frequently asked questions

What are the main AFL betting markets?

Head to head (pick the winner), line (pick the winner after a points start), margin (pick the team and how much it wins by), total points (over or under a number), quarter by quarter, goal kicker markets and player stat markets such as most disposals. Same game multis combine several of them.

How do AFL odds work?

AFL odds are decimal and include your stake. $2.80 returns $28 from a $10 bet. The chance a price implies is 1 / odds, so $2.80 implies 35.71%.

What happens to a head to head bet if an AFL game is drawn?

It depends on the bookmaker's rules. Under the TAB's Victorian sports rules, if a draw was not offered as an option, the dead heat rule divides your payout by the number of tied teams, so a $20 bet at $1.70 returns $17 instead of $34. If a draw price was offered, bets on either team lose.

Can you bet on AFL during the game?

Not online. Online in-play betting on sport is prohibited in Australia. Licensed bookmakers can take in-play bets only where the selection, bet type, amount and confirmation are all given wholly by phone.

Does PokiePundit give AFL tips?

No. This guide explains how the markets and prices work so you can judge a price for yourself. It does not predict results.