Andy’s Guide to Betting on Fouls Won

Fouls Won is now one of the most popular player markets in football Bet Builders. It lets you bet on a player being fouled by an opponent during a match, and most major UK bookmakers now offer it on games across the Premier League, Championship, Champions League and other major competitions.

In this guide, I'll explain exactly what fouls won means, what does and doesn't count, and how I research players to back in this market.

If you want to follow along with live numbers, open my Bet Builder Stats tool. It shows official Opta fouls won and fouls committed data for every player in an upcoming match.

What Does Fouls Won Mean in Football?

Fouls won is the number of times a player is fouled by an opponent and is awarded a free kick or penalty as a result. You'll also hear it called drawing a foul or fouls drawn. All three terms mean the same thing.

Put simply, if an opposition player commits a foul on your player and the referee gives a free kick or penalty for it, your player is credited with a foul won.

The formal definition comes from Opta, the official data provider most bookmakers use to settle these bets. Opta defines a foul won as being "when a player wins a free kick or penalty for their team after being fouled by an opposing player."

What counts as a Foul Won?

A foul won is recorded when a player is fouled by an opponent and the referee awards a free kick or penalty. Common examples include:

• A player is tripped and wins a free kick. For example, a winger is clipped while running past a full-back.

• A player is pulled back and the referee awards a free kick. For example, a forward has their shirt pulled as they try to break away.

• A player is fouled inside the penalty area and wins a penalty. For example, a striker is brought down by a defender in the box.

However, not every stoppage or infringement counts as a foul won. According to Opta, "there are no fouls won for a handball, dive, back pass, illegal restart, dissent, GK 6-second violation or obstruction where a free kick is conceded."

So if a free kick is awarded because an opponent handles the ball, or a player is booked for dissent, nobody is credited with a foul won. The free kick has to come from a player being fouled.

What does 1+ Foul Won mean?

1+ fouls won means the player you've selected needs to be officially recorded as winning at least one foul during the match for your bet to win.

The same logic applies to higher lines:

• 2+ fouls won means the player must win at least two fouls.

• 3+ fouls won means the player must win at least three fouls.

Settlement is based on the official match data, so it's worth checking your bookmaker's rules for that market.

Fouls Won Example

Here's a simple scenario.

Bukayo Saka dribbles past Luke Shaw. Shaw trips him, and the referee awards a free kick.

• Saka would normally be credited with one foul won.

• Shaw would normally be credited with one foul committed.

One foul creates two stats, one for each player involved. These two terms are often confused, so here's the difference:

• Foul won: credited to the player who is fouled.

• Foul committed: credited to the player who commits the offence.

Both stats matter for betting. Fouls won tells you which players get fouled most. Fouls committed tells you which opponents are most likely to do the fouling. I use both in the strategy below.

1️⃣ Check the Foul Won stats for players

I have made this data readily accessible through my Bet Builder Stats tool. It's official Opta data (listed as "Fouls Drawn" in some data sources), so you know it's accurate.

With the tool, you can see exactly which players win the most fouls for any upcoming match in the Premier League, Champions League, English Championship and other major competitions.

The key figure I look at is fouls won per 90 minutes. It's a fairer comparison than raw totals because it accounts for players who come off the bench or have missed games. A player averaging close to three fouls won per 90 is a regular target for defenders. A player averaging under one is a much riskier choice, even at a 1+ line.

Sort each team's players by fouls won and create a shortlist for a possible bet.

2️⃣ Identify Potential Opponents

I have made this data readily accessible through my Bet Builder Stats tool. It's official Opta data (listed as "Fouls Drawn" in some data sources), so you know it's accurate.

With the tool, you can see exactly which players win the most fouls for any upcoming match in the Premier League, Champions League, English Championship and other major competitions.

The key figure I look at is fouls won per 90 minutes. It's a fairer comparison than raw totals because it accounts for players who come off the bench or have missed games. A player averaging close to three fouls won per 90 is a regular target for defenders. A player averaging under one is a much riskier choice, even at a 1+ line.

Sort each team's players by fouls won and create a shortlist for a possible bet.

3️⃣ Additional Data Points

How does a player draw a foul? Usually it happens when they play aggressively, taking on opponents directly with dribbles. It also happens when they're heavily involved in the game and get tripped or pulled back after quick movements.

Other useful Opta data points to consider include:

• Take-Ons Attempted: how many times a player tries to dribble past a defender.

• Touches in Attacking Third: how often a player touches the ball in the attacking third of the pitch.

Players who rank highly for take-ons and touches in the attacking third very often rank highly for fouls won as well.

Think about it logically. If a player attempts a lot of take-ons, they're more likely to draw fouls. If they have lots of touches in the attacking third, opponents are more inclined to foul them in that area. There's a clear correlation, so these data points should also be considered.

4️⃣ Finally, how many minutes and what position will they play?

As with any player bet, it's crucial to understand how long your player is likely to be on the pitch.

There's nothing more frustrating than your player being substituted before the event you're betting on can happen.

You can't predict exactly how many minutes each player will play, but you can use data to spot trends. To work out a player's average minutes per appearance, divide their total minutes played by the number of matches they've appeared in.

For example, a player who has played 920 minutes across 12 appearances averages around 77 minutes per game, which is a strong figure. A player averaging under 50 minutes per appearance is a far less appealing fouls won option, even if their per-90 numbers look impressive. Always factor in recent rotation trends as well.

Remember that forwards and midfielders are more likely to be substituted, and the five-substitute rule increases the risk of your player not completing the full match.

Keep an eye on what bookmakers offer Super Sub or a variation of it as well, you'll usually get covered on most major leagues if your player is replaced with your bet carrying on with the new player.

Summary

I hope you found my guide to betting on player Fouls Won helpful. To recap:

• Fouls won is credited to the player who is fouled. Fouls committed is credited to the player who commits the foul.

• 1+ fouls won means your player needs at least one officially recorded foul won for the bet to land.

• Check fouls won per 90, identify opponents who commit lots of fouls, look at take-ons and attacking-third touches, and make sure your player is likely to play plenty of minutes.

For up-to-date fouls won and fouls committed numbers for every upcoming match, head to my Bet Builder Stats tool. It's the quickest way to build your shortlist and check this season's leading foul winners in the Premier League and beyond.

Feel free to reach out on X or Instagram to share your thoughts and your winning bets.

Good luck.

Andy Robson

18+ Please gamble responsibly.