Race for the Premiership Golden Boot

With the Premiership season now in full swing, it's a good time to look at some long-term football markets. Punters can often find some decent value at this early stage, and the Sporting Index Premiership Golden Boot Index is no exception. If you're new to spread betting, take advantage of the £150 per goal football bet that's on offer to new clients** (details below).

How does the Index work?
The Premiership Golden Boot Index is one of the most popular football spread betting markets. At the beginning of the season, Sporting Index chooses 16 of the Premiership's top strikers, and then makes a prediction on how each striker will fare over the course of the season.

Click here to spread bet on the Premiership at Sporting Index

Each striker's position on the Golden Boot Index is determined by a points system. The number of points awarded to a player is based on where Sporting Index think each striker will finish the season, in terms of goals, in relation to the other 15 players chosen.

Points are awarded as follows:

1st place = 60pts
2nd = 40pts
3rd = 30pts
4th = 25pts
5th = 20pts
6th = 15pts
7th = 10pts
8th = 5pts
other = 0pts

Example

Take Arsenal's Jose Antonio Reyes as an example. Sporting Index is currently predicting 8 to 11 points for the Spaniard. You therefore have a relatively straightforward choice to make:

a) Will he finish the season in higher than 7th place (and be awarded 15pts or more)?
b) Will Reyes finish the season in lower than 7th place (and be awarded 5pts or less)?

Let's say you think that Reyes is set to bang in the goals this season, and will finish higher than 7th on the Golden Boot Index. You would therefore buy (bet `high') at 11 points for the stake of your choice e.g. £5 per point. If Reyes goes on to have a free-scoring season, and finishes 4th in the Golden Boot Index with a total of 25 points, you would win 14 times your stake:

(25 - 11) x your stake = 14 x £5 = £70 profit

However, you could also end up losing more than your original stake. Let's say you bet `high' on Reyes at 11 points, but his season is plagued by injuries and he ends up finishing outside the top 8 positions on the Golden Boot Index. Reyes would be awarded 0 pts and you would therefore lose 11 times your stake:

(0 - 11) x your stake = -11 x £5 = £55 loss

Remember that with the Premiership Golden Boot Index, it's not the number of goals each striker scores that counts, it's how well they do in relation to the other 15 players on the Index that really matters.

£150 Football Bet for New Clients

If you're new to spread betting, take advantage of the free football bet that Sporting Index is offering to new clients**. Simply open a Sporting Index account* before 30th October, place five sports bets and claim a free £150 per goal bet on any live Premiership, Championship or League match. Each qualifying bet must be able to win or lose you £20.** They'll also refund your losses (up to £50) if your first bet is a loser.**

*Credit and suitability checks, **terms and conditions apply. See site for further details about an account with Sporting Index. Sports spread betting involves a high level of risk and you can lose more than your original stake. It is not suitable for everyone so please ensure that you understand the risks involved and only bet with money you can afford to lose. Sporting Index is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority.

Please note that odds are correct at time of publication and are subject to change.