What Happens In NFL Betting For A Tie Game?

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New York Giants kicker Graham Gano, center, looks after his field goal during overtime of an NFL football game against the Washington Commanders, Sunday, Dec. 4, 2022, in East Rutherford, N.J. The kick missed and the game ended in a tie.
(AP Photo/John Minchillo)
Chase Kiddy @chaseakiddy Aug 26, 2024, 5:23 PM

Fortunately or unfortunately, ties are a part of sports. So too, then, are they a part of online sports betting.

Whether youโ€™re wondering how ties are resolved in a moneyline NFL betting situation, or youโ€™re wondering how point spread bets resolve a โ€œtieโ€ score, hereโ€™s a quick rundown on how ties are graded.

Does Moneyline Void In a Tie?

Generally speaking, a tie in an NFL game results in a voided moneyline bet.ย 

The only real exception would be a three-way market, where a tie is an explicit outcome thatโ€™s available to bet in the market. In this case, a tie would result in a loss for both traditional moneyline sides.

Hereโ€™s a quick example. Imagine the Chiefs are playing the Chargers. The Chiefs odds price KC as a -240 favorite; the Chargers are a +200 underdog.ย 

This is a traditional two-way market that NFL betting regulars are used to seeing. In this case, a tie would result in a voided bet, with every bettorsโ€™ original stake refunded back to their account.

In a three-way market, that same game might be priced as Chiefs -225 and Chargers +180, with a third option of Tie +4000. In this case, because the tie is a bettable outcome, Chiefs -225 and Chargers +180 would both be graded as losers.

What Happens If You Tie Against the Spread In NFL Betting?

In spread betting, a โ€œtieโ€ results in a push. Much like a voided moneyline bet, all bets that are graded as a push return the original principal to their bettors.

Itโ€™s not just football where you can find a push in sports betting. But in the case of NFL betting, a push is most common when dealing with major key numbers like three, seven, or 10.

Another quick example: Imagine you bet on the Chiefs -6 against the Chargers. If they win 34-28, that is a Chiefs moneyline win; however, as far as the point spread market is concerned, this is a โ€œtie.โ€

That results in a push, which returns the exact amount of money that was initially bet.ย 

What Happens if an NFL Game Ties on a Parlay?

Any leg of a parlay that is graded as a push, no action, or any other kind of voided โ€œtieโ€ is removed from the odds of the parlay.ย 

When this happens, this doesnโ€™t automatically mean your parlay is a loser; instead, it means your parlay is altered to have a lesser payout, as if that leg never existed at all.

Letโ€™s take one more example. Say youโ€™ve built a three-leg NFL parlay that includes a -300 moneyline favorite, a -200 moneyline favorite, and a point spread favorite with a standard vig of -110. That parlay would price out to about +282, meaning a winning $100 bet would return roughly $282 in profit, plus the original $100 of principal.

If the -200 game resulted in a tie, that leg of the parlay would be graded as a no action. That would reduce your three-leg, +282 parlay to a two-leg, +155 parlay. Youโ€™d still win the parlay if the other legs come through, but at a reduced rate of return. Itโ€™s as if the no-action leg was never there at all.

For more on the nuances of parlay rules, or just sportsbook rules in general, consider checking out the house rules for BetMGMโ€™s online sportsbook. I highly recommend anyone who wants to bet to read all the rules that apply to football odds and any other sports they want to bet in. It clarifies a lot of similar questions about ties and no action, too.

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About the Author

Chase Kiddy

Read More @chaseakiddy

Chase Kiddy is a writer for BetMGM and co-host of The Lion's Edge, an NFL and college football podcast available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and everywhere else. He has also written for a number of print and online outlets, including the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Washington Post, Daily News-Record, and HERO Sports. His first novel, Cave Paintings, is in development.

Chase Kiddy is a writer for BetMGM and co-host of The Lion's Edge, an NFL and college football podcast available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and everywhere else. He has also written for a number of print and online outlets, including the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Washington Post, Daily News-Record, and HERO Sports. His first novel, Cave Paintings, is in development.