How Football Betting is Shifting from Team Results to Performance-Based Markets 

Why This Is Happening Now: The Data Shift

The transition from traditional football betting to performance-focused betting is being driven by the availability of reliable sports data. This helps unlock the benefits of this approach:

• Granular Player Analysis:
  • Many bettors now analyze player-centric actions, such as passes and shots on target, rather than focusing only on final results.
  • Giovanni Bertoli, Co-Founder and CEO of WSF Odds, believes granular data has made live performance markets more feasible for online casinos with sportsbooks.
• Real-Time Data and Analytics:
  • Real Time access to accurate statistics on individual players collected from football venues enables sportsbooks to offer live player props.
  • Operators can update football player odds in real time during matches, creating more betting opportunities.
• Market Growth Trends:
  • Aggregated growth trends across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) highlight the rising importance of performance-based markets.
  • Spending on player props in these regions reached billions of euros between 2023 and 2025.
  • The data shows that adopting a performance-focused approach is a strategic move for operators, platform providers, and product leaders to succeed in the competitive football betting industry.

This level of detail makes betting more exciting. It’s no longer just about who wins. What matters is how they play. For operators, this means finding new ways to keep users engaged throughout the 90 minutes with live football odds and advanced sports betting data.

Industry data shows that live prop betting volumes more than doubled from 2023 to 2024, and by 2025, nearly every major sportsbook in Europe had introduced some form of live player prop or micro-betting market.

Source: Kambi’s Sports Betting Trends Report

Why Player Props Work So Well

Performance-based football betting differs from traditional football betting in that it goes beyond wagering on the final outcome of a match. Many fans follow their favourite players more closely than the teams themselves. Therefore, betting on these players seems like a natural thing to do.

To this end, it requires a data-driven and analytical approach and specialisation. Operators that implement a statistics-based strategy can cover complex betting markets with even more comprehensive knowledge of team metrics and individual player performance markets.

In this context, specialisation allows operators to focus on a specific market to collect and consolidate real-time data with reliable in-play football odds. In order to work successfully, this process requires investment in:

• Automation,
• Advanced algorithms
• The best human trading expertise

WSF Odds saw its footballer prop bets turnover increase by more than 76% year-on-year among its customers, which is a clear indication of how rapidly demand is accelerating.

As an early mover in the provision of B2B pre-match and live odds for football matches, Wall Street Football Odds specialises in:

• Performance betting
• Player, team, and match prop bets

The company covers leading and emerging leagues, making it easy for operators to price micro-markets and complex bets with API odds feed and well-designed operator dashboard. Moreover, its odds products and services offer the option to price and settle markets involving player substitutions.

Real-World Applications of Performance Markets in Live Betting

A major area of application of the approach outlined in this article is micro-betting on individual performances in live football matches. Instead of the final score, punters can place bets on granular outcomes. Setting odds on performance betting markets isn’t easy. This includes real-life scenarios in in-play football, such as betting on the goalscorer or outcomes of the next corner kick. Operators need live data, automated pricing tools, and sharp trading logic that can handle changes like player substitutions.

With team, match, and live player props provided by WSF Odds, bettors can wager on passes, fouls, player substitutions, free-kick goalscorer, fast or last scorer, yellow cards, shots on goal, and offside, among other performance-based markets.

WSF Odds approach allows them to offer:

• Pre-match and live player props
• Team and match player performance markets
• Odds feed across 80+ competitions
• Smart pricing logic that accounts for player subs

The integration of live video streams and real-time data can also have a positive impact on how football enthusiasts experience performance betting. With accurate data provided instantly on the screen, bettors can watch football matches and place the right bets. Moreover, the introduction of in-play bet builders can enhance the overall wagering experience.

The Future Outlook: Meeting the Changing Needs of Bettors

Performance betting is growing fast. In Europe, billions of euros are now wagered each year on football player props. Live player betting, in particular, is experiencing a significant rise. In some markets, they already make up nearly half of all prop bets.

Without sports betting product differentiation and data-driven specialisation, operators will have difficulty catering to all customers. The same applies to white-label and turnkey sportsbook solution providers.

Therefore, it is essential to integrate football player props across major and secondary football competitions to succeed in today’s saturated market. WSF Odds’ CEO acknowledges the important role prop bets play in boosting engagement and satisfaction, unlike traditional bets that tend to be slow.

To increase engagement, sports betting should highlight the advantages of performance betting through odds-boosting promotions, personalised experiences and AI-powered insights. The next step? Live betting generators, deeper personalisation and enhanced odds capabilities – WSF Odds is already helping operators deliver these.