It’s been 20 years since Irish football fan Mick Gibbs famously won £500,000 from a 30p accumulator bet. It’s stories like these that make accumulators the stuff of legends. But the fact that we are still talking about a win from 20 years ago tells its own story too. People place accumulator bets on the EPL and other top football leagues every week. Bear the following tips in mind and your payout might not run to six figures, but it also won’t be a once in a lifetime event. 

Resist the short-priced favourites

When you see fixtures like Arsenal vs Brentford or Manchester City vs Norwich, it’s tempting to throw them into your acca. The problems here are twofold. For one thing, short-priced favourites are not usually value bets. Stuff your acca full of them and the returns will be modest even if you pull it off. Secondly, you probably won’t pull it off. The Football Gods invariably decree that one minnow or another will have the game of its season and bring your entire accumulator tumbling down.

Use form as your guiding light

Instead, you need to make your acca picks based on current form. If you’ve got an encyclopedic knowledge of every team across the leagues then congratulations, but for the rest of us mere mortals – that’s what the internet is for. Listen to the pundits, the major sports publications and bookie sites pay them the big bucks for a reason. 

Consider goals galore selections

There are all sorts of accumulators out there, and you don’t have to base yours on match odds. Goals Galore is a popular alternative in which you just need both teams to score in order to win. Odds are fixed based on the quantity of fixtures in your accumulator. It’s becoming a popular choice at the major betting sites. This Ontheballbets review of the Betfred app describes Goals Galore betting in more detail. 

Don’t neglect the less glamorous leagues

If you insist on a traditional accumulator based on match odds, you’ve got a mountain to climb, so make it worth it. That means staying away from the glory leagues and tournaments like the Premier League or the Champions League. You’ll find the bookies are far more generous with the odds on a team to win when they haven’t got a million punters placing bets on them.

Play it smart with promos and bonuses

Speaking of generous bookies, many of them offer accas within their list of bonuses and promos, so make use of them. For example, some will offer to return your stake if your acca fails due to just one selection. It will feel like a pyrrhic victory at the time, but over the course of a season, it could represent a significant saving for your bankroll. Other bookies offer special bonuses on your acca if you win. Just remember always to check the bonus terms and the wagering requirement before you lay any money down. Good luck!