What is dutching?
Dutching means backing two or more selections in the same market and splitting your stake between them, so that whichever one wins you get back the same amount.
The shorter a selection's odds, the more you put on it. The longer its odds, the less. Each winner then pays the same, and you only need one of your selections to come in.
Why dutch football bets?
In football you often like more than one outcome but can only back one at a time. Dutching lets you cover them all without working out each stake by hand.
- Correct score. Cover the two or three scorelines you think are most likely. Only one needs to land.
- First goalscorer. Back a few players you rate. Each pays the same if they score first.
- Several outcomes you like. Two of the three match results, or a handful of teams in a cup draw, in one go.
You trade a bigger win on one selection for a higher probability of winning something. It lowers your risk of losing the whole stake, but it does not make a bad bet good.
How to use the dutching calculator
- 1
Choose how to dutch. Total stake splits an amount you choose. Target profit works out the stake needed for the profit you want.
- 2
Add the selections. From 2 to 10. Enter the odds for each one in any format.
- 3
Type your stake or profit. The table shows the stake, return and profit for every selection.
- 4
Round if you need to. Round the stakes to 1, 5 or 10 so they look like normal bets.
How to calculate a dutch bet
Turn each selection's odds into an implied probability with 1 ÷ odds, and add them up. That sum is the market total.
Market total = 1 ÷ odds 1 + 1 ÷ odds 2 + ...
Stake per selection = total stake × (1 ÷ odds) ÷ market total
Return = total stake ÷ market total
Stake for a target profit = profit × market total ÷ (1 - market total)
With odds of 7.50, 9.00 and 8.50 the market total is 36.21%. On a 100 stake you put 36.82, 30.69 and 32.49, and any winner returns 276.17.
Dutching examples
Load any example into the calculator to change the odds or the stake.
Correct score
You like three scorelines for a derby: 1-0, 2-1 and 2-0 to the home side. Dutching spreads 100 over all three so any of them pays the same.
| Selection | Odds | Stake | Return |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1-0 | 7.50 | 36.82 | 276.17 |
| 2-1 | 9.00 | 30.69 | 276.17 |
| 2-0 | 8.50 | 32.49 | 276.17 |
Profit 176.17 on 100.00 staked if one of them wins. If none wins you lose 100.00.
First goalscorer
Three strikers you rate for the first goal, at different odds. The longest odds get the smallest stake, and whoever scores first returns the same.
| Selection | Odds | Stake | Return |
|---|---|---|---|
| Striker A | 4.50 | 21.62 | 97.30 |
| Striker B | 6.00 | 16.22 | 97.30 |
| Striker C | 8.00 | 12.16 | 97.30 |
Profit 47.30 on 50.00 staked if one of them wins. If none wins you lose 50.00.
Target profit
You want 50 profit from three outcomes you like. The calculator works out how much to stake in total, and how much on each.
| Selection | Odds | Stake | Return |
|---|---|---|---|
| Outcome A | 3.20 | 61.11 | 195.56 |
| Outcome B | 4.00 | 48.89 | 195.56 |
| Outcome C | 5.50 | 35.56 | 195.56 |
Profit 50.00 on 145.56 staked if one of them wins. If none wins you lose 145.56.
Common dutching mistakes
- Thinking it removes risk. If none of your selections wins you lose the whole stake. Dutching spreads the risk, it does not remove it.
- Ignoring the market total. Over 100% means a winner returns less than you staked. Check it before you place anything.
- Mixing markets. Only dutch selections that cannot win together. Two bets that can both win, like over 2.5 goals and both teams to score, break the maths.
- Odds that move. Place every stake before the odds change, or the returns stop matching.
- Voids and different rules. If a bookmaker voids one leg, your returns change. Void rules