What is a double chance bet?

Double chance lets you cover two of the three football results in one bet: home or draw (1X), away or draw (X2), or home or away (12). Because you win in two out of three outcomes, it's more likely to land — so the odds are shorter than a straight win bet. It's a lower-risk, lower-reward market.

What is draw no bet (DNB)?

Draw no bet means you back a team to win, but if the match is a draw your stake is returned (the bet is void). You only lose if your team loses. It removes the draw as a losing outcome, so the odds are shorter than the straight win price but longer than double chance.

Is double chance or draw no bet better value?

Neither is inherently better value — both just repackage the same three outcomes with the bookmaker's margin still inside. Double chance is safer (wins on two results) but pays least; draw no bet refunds on a draw and pays a bit more; a straight win bet is riskiest and pays most. Which fits depends on how likely you think a draw is, not on any hidden edge.

Double chance & draw no bet explained

Last updated: 2026-07-14 · Gamblerfy editorial team · 🌐 Ler em português · 🌐 Leer en español

Football has three possible results — home win, draw, away win — and a straight win bet loses on two of them. Double chance and draw no bet are two ways to take some of that risk off the table, in exchange for a shorter price. Here's exactly how each settles, and the honest truth about the trade-off.

Double chance: cover two of three results

A double chance bet wins if either of two outcomes happens. There are three versions:

1X — home team wins or draws.
X2 — away team wins or draws.
12 — home or away wins (i.e. anything but a draw).

Because you're covered in two of the three results, the bet lands more often — so the odds are shorter than a straight win. If the home team is 2.20 to win and the draw is 3.40, a 1X double chance might be around 1.30. Safer, but you're paying for that safety in price.

Draw no bet: the draw gives your stake back

Draw no bet (DNB) is a bet on a team to win where a draw voids the bet and returns your stake. You win if your team wins, lose only if your team loses, and get your money back on a draw. It sits between a straight win and double chance: shorter odds than the win price, longer than double chance.

Worked example — $10 on the home team DNB at 1.75:

Home win: $10 × 1.75 = $17.50 returned.
Draw: bet void → $10 stake back.
Away win: you lose your $10.

DNB is really the same idea as an Asian handicap of 0 (level ball) — the draw simply refunds.

Which is "safer"? A quick comparison

Market	You win if…	Draw result	Odds
Straight win (1)	Your team wins	Lose	Longest
Draw no bet	Your team wins	Stake refunded	Medium
Double chance (1X)	Your team wins or draws	Win	Shortest

The honest part: no free safety

It's tempting to see these as "safer bets", but the safety isn't free. Each market just repackages the same three results, and the bookmaker's margin is baked into all of them. Lower risk always means a lower price; it never removes the house edge. Whether double chance, DNB or a straight win is the smart pick comes down to how likely you think a draw is — the maths of value betting still decides it, not the label. You can convert any of these prices to an implied probability with our odds converter.

"Safer" football markets still carry the house edge and can still lose — they only change the shape of the risk, not the long-run maths. Stake within a budget you can afford to lose and treat betting as entertainment. Set limits and get help here.

Related guides

Both teams to score (BTTS) — another popular football market, settled on goals not the result.
Asian handicap explained — draw no bet is the level-ball handicap.
Moneyline, spread & totals — the core bet types these build on.
How betting odds work — turn any price into implied probability.
Value betting explained — why "safer" isn't the same as "better value".