What Does Draw No Bet Mean? World Cup Betting Explained

The draw no bet market provides a twist to match odds, offering a bit of security to punters wagering on World Cup games at UK betting sites.

Simply, draw no bet (DNB) means that your stake will be returned if the match ends level, whilst winnings are paid out if your backed team wins.

Draws weren’t all that common at the last World Cup in 2022 with 10 out of 48 group stage games ending all square. However, in a game that’s expected to be tight, draw no bet can prove a valuable betting tool.

If you’re new to the draw no bet football market, The Standard’s sports team has unpacked how it works.

Essentially, draw no bet removes the draw as a possible outcome. If the match ends level, your stake is refunded. However, if the team you backed wins, your bet will be settled as a winner. Of course, if the other team wins, your wager loses.

Because of the added security and removal of an outcome, the prices on both teams are shorter than the standard match result market.

Draw no bet should not be confused with the match result market, where the draw is still an option. Instead, it is a separate market on World Cup betting sites.

A punter picks the team they think will win from the draw no bet section, adds it to their bet slip, and places a stake as normal.

Take England’s first World Cup game as an example. The Three Lions play Croatia in their first group-stage match, and in the match result market, England are priced 13/20, a draw is priced 27/10, and Croatia ar 7/2.

In comparison, on the draw no bet market, England are priced at 2/7, and Croatia 5/2 – showcasing how the odds quickly shorten.

Draw no bet acts as a safety net, with your stake refunded if the match ends in draw. This is useful for cautious bettors or backing credible underdogs in tight matches.

Also, a favourite who is losing or drawing mid-match offers much better draw no bet potential in-play than pre-match, still with that same safety net.

However, that all comes at the cost of a smaller payout than if the bet had been placed on the match result market. Some bookmakers won’t allow free bets to be used on draw no bet markets.

There are numerous betting markets available for every game at the World Cup, with draw no bet just one option. Double chance is quite similar to DNB, as it covers two of the three possible outcomes – typically one team winning and the draw. With double chance, more outcomes count as a winner, but the odds are even shorter than draw no bet.

The Asian handicap market assigns a virtual goal advantage or deficit to one side, which can offer better value but can be tricky for novice bettors to get to grips with. If you want to learn more about different bet types, visit our World Cup betting markets explainer.

Yes. If the match ends in a draw, the stake is refunded as cash. This is the main appeal of the market, and the reason prices are shorter than the standard match result market.

If a draw no bet leg in an acca ends level, the leg is voided and the acca reduces to fewer selections, which also leads to the odds being recalculated. For example, a five-leg acca with one drawn draw no bet selection becomes a four-leg acca, with the odds recalculated.

Yes – but most bookmakers void World Cup free bets staked on draw no bet markets if the match ends level, rather than returning them, so the safety net only really applies to cash bets.