Bundesliga Matchups

THE Matchup of the Week:

Season will be back

Date:January 20, 2023

Understanding Bundesliga Fixtures & Matchups

German Bundesliga clubs have a somewhat unique 34-game Bundesliga schedule instead of the 38-game schedule the rest of Europe’s top five leagues play. That’s because there are only 18 teams instead of 20, who all play a double round-robin schedule. The juxtaposition of traditional powers like Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund with up-and-comers like RB Leipzig make Bundesliga fixtures and matchups interesting to bet on.

There are no explicit point spreads in soccer but goal-lines instead. The other most popular lines to bet on are totals and moneylines. American sports typically offer simple moneylines with options to bet on both teams, but soccer moneylines are three-way because of the possibility of draws.

Home-field advantage is an important consideration, as well as absences due to injury and suspensions, Bundesliga form and head-to-head records. If you’re betting on the Bundesliga make sure you’re aware that the home team appears first in the sportsbook and the road team is second.

The head-to-head record is generally useful for betting but shouldn’t be the only consideration when looking at two teams side by side. Maybe one team has covered the goal-line more often than the other when they’ve met previously, or the total has gone over or under way more often than expected.

A DFB-Pokal matchup that’s more recent than a Bundesliga fixtures and matchups could be a good tool for comparison. Note that if there’s a lot of change on either team’s roster, or if either team has a new manager, matchup history could be of limited use.