A betting market defines the question being priced. Before analysing odds, identify the selection, period, line and settlement rule. Two prices are comparable only if those details match.
Match result and moneyline
Football 1X2 has three outcomes: home win, draw and away win. Two-way moneyline markets have two outcomes under the stated rules. A regulation-time ice hockey market can include a draw, while a winner market including overtime uses a different outcome space. Do not group them under a single “match winner” label.
Totals: the line is part of the selection
Over/under markets ask whether a combined score is above or below a specified line. In a goals example, over 2.5 wins with three or more goals; under 2.5 wins with two or fewer. There is no push at a half-goal line.
At a whole-number line such as 3.0, an exact total of three commonly produces a push under the market's rules. An analysis must retain push outcomes and distinguish a stake refund from a win or loss. Quarter lines split the selection into two adjacent lines and need their own settlement logic.
Both teams to score
BTTS yes requires both teams to score within the stated period. BTTS no covers the remaining outcomes. A high total-goals expectation does not establish the same probability for BTTS because one team might score all the goals.
Handicaps
A handicap adds or subtracts a stated number from a team's score for settlement. In a hypothetical football −1.0 handicap, a two-goal win wins the selection, a one-goal win pushes, and a draw or defeat loses, assuming standard whole-goal Asian-handicap rules. A three-way European handicap is a different market because it offers a handicap draw.
Do not sum overlapping outcomes as if they were a book
The three double-chance selections overlap: home-or-draw, draw-or-away, and home-or-away. Adding their reciprocal odds and subtracting 100% does not give the same overround calculation used for mutually exclusive 1X2 outcomes. Likewise, an exact-price comparison cannot replace the settlement model for markets with pushes or half wins.
Record definitions before comparing archives
Use separate fields for market, selection, period and line. The Football-Data dictionary illustrates this by identifying handicap sizes separately from handicap prices.
Continue with football odds analysis for a worked 1X2 example, or learn how changing lines affect an odds-movement comparison.