Football matches ending in a tie are an inevitability and, as an outcome, create another worthy betting opportunity. They are, after all, an extremely likely outcome, even if betting on the draw remains unpopular relative to the amount of times it happens.
Many people rarely place a bet on a match ending in a draw because it isn’t very often the desired outcome. We often bet on matches we want to watch and few people want to see a draw, so there is a propensity to avoid the market.
For small teams in a David versus Goliath type match, a draw can be as welcome as a win, but for the most part teams, and supporters and by extension bettors, will opt for a win, with 2-1 one of the most popular bets made with bookies.
Despite not often being what you wanted to see, from a betting angle, draws can be attractive. Betting odds are affected by the amount of money wagered on a market, not many people bet on the draw and that can in some instances mean the draw market offers the most value to the punter.
But how often do draws occur after 90 minutes in international mega tournaments such as the upcoming Euro 2024?
Looking at the two most recent renewal of the European Championships – the 2020 European Championship across Europe – there were 51 matches played across ten venues.
Of those 51 matches, only 12 returned a draw result after 90 minutes. There were 13 draws out of 52 matches at Euro 2016. That is around a quarter of the games played.
At Euro 2020 three of these were goalless when the final whistle blew (6%), two in the group stages and one in the last 16. Seven matches ended one goal apiece. At Euro 2016 there were 4 goalless draws, all of which were in the group stage, while eight matches ended one goal apiece.
Drawn Matches After 90 Minutes (Since Euro 96)
| Tournament | Host | Matches | Tie (after 90 mins) | Final Drawn? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Euro 1996 | England | 31 | 11 | Yes (1-1 after 90 mins) |
| Euro 2000 | Belgium And Netherlands | 31 | 5 | Yes (1-1 after 90 mins) |
| Euro 2004 | Portugal | 31 | 10 | No (1-0) |
| Euro 2008 | Switzerland And Austria | 31 | 5 | No (1-0) |
| Euro 2012 | Poland And Ukraine | 31 | 7 | No (4-0) |
| Euro 2016 | France | 51 | 13 | Yes (0-0 after 90 mins) |
| Euro 2020 | Pan-European | 51 | 12 | Yes (1-1 after 90 mins) |
Going back further, in the history of the tournament as a whole, on only one occasion has a UEFA European Championship final ended in a tie after extra time.
That was back in 1974 when Czechoslovakia drew 2-2 with West Germany with, amazingly, the Germans being beaten on penalties.
Most Common Score For Draws Since Euro 96
| Final Result | Number of Games |
|---|---|
| 1-1 | 32 |
| 0–0 | 21 |
| 2–2 | 5 |
| 3–3 | 5 |
Out of the 61 draws that there have been in the Euros from Euro 96 onwards, 32 were recorded as 1-1. That’s almost half the time a match in the Euros is drawn, the score has been 1-1.
On 121occasions, matches ended with the score 0-0, while there are five times each that the final score at the end of 90 minutes the result was 2-2 and 3-3 telling us that low or scoring draws are far more likely.
