Shots on Target Betting Explained Updated for April 2024

Updated: 25 November

Tired of betting on the same old winners of a game? Why not spice things up a little bit with some side-bets?

Let's tell you everything that you need to know about one of the most common side-bets in football; shots on target betting.

What is Shots On Target Betting?

Shots on target betting does pretty much what it says on the tin.

You will be betting on the number of shots a player or a team has on target during a game.

In most cases, when you bet on ‘shots on target', you will be betting on whether the total number of shots will be higher or lower than a certain figure. This will be very similar to totals bets.

It is exceedingly rare that you can bet on the exact number of shots on target. If you do, then you can bet your bottom dollar that these will carry some of the absolute best odds.

How Do I Place a Betfred Shots On Target Bet?

 

It is worth noting that Betfred will not have shots on target betting for every single game on the site.

Go To BetfredGo To Betfred

We are not quite sure why this is. Although, in some cases, games that do not have shots on target betting available before the game will have this type of betting market available for live betting.

Betfred defines a shot on target as any shot that would have gone into the net if it weren't for the last man stopping it from going in.

Technically, their rules state that the shot must have been intentional.

However, because the whole idea can be debatable, pretty much any ball that heads in the direction of the goal is going to be classed as a shot. All goals will be defined as a shot on target.

In order to find a shots on target bet on Betfred, you will need to head to the ‘football' list and find the game that you want to bet on there.

If you click the game, you will be given a list of potential markets.

If they have Betfred shots on target betting available, then it will be listed on this page. If you don't see it, then you may be able to request a bet.

If they have bets available, then choose the option that you think is going to be the most likely and add it to your betting slip.

if you are looking to make an accumulator, just to squeeze a bit more from the bets that you place, then you can hit the ‘Bet Builder‘ link that you will find on all of the matches for Betfred.

You can combine your shots on target bet with another type of bet here.

How Do I Place a Vbet Shots on Target Bet?

Just like Betfred, not every single match is going to have shots on target available. In pretty much all cases, they will never have shots on target bets available once a game starts.

Vbet rules with regards to shots on target will be the same as Betfred.

In order to find shots on target bets, you will need to navigate to the market that you want to bet on.

At the top of the page, it will say “All Markets”. Select that.

If you don't see shots on target listed on this page, then you will not be able to bet on it with Vbet.

What Counts As a Shots on Target Bet?

How an online betting site defines ‘shots on target' can vary a little bit. This means that you should probably go through the terms and conditions listed on any page to know what is covered.

It is also worth noting that during live betting, things can be a little bit different between online betting sites. This is because some may class certain shots as on-target, while others don't.

Generally speaking, the official stats at the end of the match will be followed.

An on-target bet will cover any clear attempts at goal that meet the following criteria:

• The ball is targeted toward the goal. This means in between the two posts.
• The goalkeeper OR the last man saves the ball.

If another player stops the shot and that player is not the last man, then this is not classed as an on-target shot. It is just a shot.

Of course, if the ball is not in play at the time of the shot, then it will not be classed as an on-target shot.

For example, if a player shoots the ball after the linesman has raised their flag or the referee has blown their whistle.

There is one unique thing that we want to discuss here, though. This is the fact that a goal scored from a corner is classed as a shot on target i.e. if the corner taker swings the ball into the goal.

However, if there is a person that prevents the ball from going in from that corner, then it is not classed as a shot on target.

Does Hitting The Post Count As On Target?

Well, it depends.

If the ball just hits the post or the crossbar, then no.

The only parts ‘on target' will be the bits between the posts.

If the ball hits the post and then goes into the goal then, yes, it is classed as being an on-target shot.

Who Has The Most Shots on Target in the Premier League This Season?

The person with the most shots on target during the 2021/2022 Premier League season was Mo Salah for Liverpool.  He had a whopping 30 shots on target.

While things could always change by the end of the season, at that time, the player just behind him (Sadio Mane) for Liverpool had just 19 shots on target. This means that we didn't expect Mo Salah to be overtaken any time soon.

Liverpool had several players in top players for shots on target.

Who Decides On How Much Shots Per Target There Were?

Most sportsbooks in the UK use stats from Opta to determine how many shots on target there were. This means that you won't be paid until the sportsbook has uploaded the stats from Opta.

This also means that the number of shots on target in a live game can be different at the end of the match.

Is Shots On Target Betting Worth It?

It depends.

It isn't a popular bet to make.

However, if you are planning on watching a game that you anticipate will be high-scoring, then it could be a huge amount of fun to bet on the number of times that ball is going to be sailing toward the goal.

Conclusion

Shots on target betting will allow you to bet on the number of shots that a player or team takes towards a goal.

These must be direct shots.

They can go in, or be saved by the last man.

It isn't the most popular type of bet that you can make online, but it is a great way to round out an accumulator particularly if you want to bet on a player's performance.

References

https://betting.betfair.com/betfair-announcements/whats-new-on-betfair/opta-definitions-shots-and-shots-on-target-061020-204.html

https://sports.ndtv.com/english-premier-league/stats/shots-on-target-player-statsdetail

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