Serie A is the foremost professional league of the Italian football system. Serie was established in 1929 and is now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia.
Twenty clubs compete in Serie A. During the course of a season (from August to May), each club plays each of the other teams twice; once at home and once away, for a total of 38 games.
The first half of the season is called the "andata" (or going o go) and each club plays once against each league opponent, for a total of 19 games. The second half of the season is called the "ritorno" (return) where the teams play in exactly the same order that they did in the first half of the season, the only difference being that home and away situations are switched.
Since the 1994-1995 Serie A season, teams were awarded three points for a win, one point for a draw, and no points for a loss.
The Serie A Championship title is often called the "scudetto" (small shield) because the champion club bears a small coat of arms with the Italian tricolour on their strip in the following season. This practice started in the 1924-25 season.
The most successful Serie A club is Juventus with 27 championships, followed by Internazionale (18), Milan (18), and Genoa (9).
Since Italy is currently rated as one of the top three European countries in terms of club football ratings, the top four teams in the Serie A qualifies for the UEFA Champions League. The top three teams qualify directly to the group phase, while the fourth-placed team enters the competition at the third qualifying round and must win a two-legged knockout tie in order to enter the group phase.
Teams finishing 5th and 6th qualify for the UEFA Europa League Tournament. A third UEFA Europa League spot is reserved for the winner of the Coppa Italia. If the Coppa Italia champion has already qualified for the major European tournament by placing in the top four of Serie A, the third UEFA Europa League spot goes to the losing finalist.
Throughout its 80-year history, Serie A has produced the highest number of European Cup finalists. In fact, Seria A clubs have reached the final of the competition on a record 26 different occasions, winning the title 12 times.
There are generally three ways to bet on the Serie A, these are:
Serie A Outright Winner - a bet on which club will win the championship.
Serie A Matchup - a bet on the winner of individual Serie A matches (e.g. bet on the winner of the match between Bologna and Cesena or Catania and Chievo).
Serie A Specials - a bet made on the outcome of certain aspects of a Serie A match, but which is not a typical part of the in-game betting. Specials in Serie A matches may include betting on which club or player will score the first goal, how many total goals a particular player will score, how many yellow cards will be given in the match, etc.
In a bet on the outright Serie A winner, sports betting sites list the competing clubs with their respective odds, just like the following:
| Serie A Outright Winner | |
|---|---|
| AC Milan | 10/11 |
| Juventus | 5/2 |
| Napoli | 9/1 |
| Lazio | 12/1 |
| Inter Milan | 14/1 |
| Udinese | 18/1 |
| Roma | 22/1 |
| Palermo | 200/1 |
| Fiorentina | 200/1 |
| Genoa | 250/1 |
| Chievo | 500/1 |
| Cagliari | 500/1 |
| Atalanta | 500/1 |
| Parma | 500/1 |
| Catania | 750/1 |
| Bologna | 1000/1 |
| Siena | 1000/1 |
You just have to bet on which club you think has the best chance of winning the Serie A championship.
Let's say you picked AC Milan City and placed a €20.00 bet. At odds of 10/11, if Manchester City wins the championship, your €20.00 bet will win €18.18 for a total return of €38.18 (your original bet plus your winnings).
Looking at the bottom of the list, if you bet €20.00 on Siena, and Siena wins the championsip, at odds of 1000/1, you'll get €20,020.00 (€20.00 original bet plus €20,000.00 winnings).
Meanwhile, in a Serie A matchup bet, you just have to pick the winner of a particular Serie A match.
Sports betting sites usually list the matchup of the competing clubs and their corresponding odds plus the odds for the "Draw", like the following:
| Home | Draw | Away | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inter Milan v Cagliari | 1/2 | 14/5 | 6/1 |
| Fiorentina v AC Milan | 12/5 | 11/2 | 23/20 |
| Napoli v Lazio | 11/10 | 11/5 | 13/5 |
Some sites show Home as "1", Draw as "X" and Away as "2". Don't get confused if ever you encounter Serie A odds shown that way.
Let's say you picked Inter Milan to win over Cagliari and placed a €20.00 bet. At odds of 1/2, if Inter Milan wins the match, your €20.00 bet will win €10.00 for a total return of €30.00.
In the second matchup, let's say you picked AC Milan to defeat Fiorentina and placed a €20.00 bet. At odds of 23/20, if the AC Milan wins the match, your €20.00 bet will win €23.00 for a total return of €43.00.
In the Napoli v Lazio matchup, let's say you picked the "Draw" and placed a €20.00. At odds of 11/5, if the match is declared a draw (or the match ended in a tie), your €20.00 bet will win €44.00 for a total return of €44.00.
Meanwhile, Serie A Specials (also called Propositions or Prop Bets) are offers which include betting on which player will score the first goal, how many goals a particular player will score, how many yellow cards will be given in the match, how many goals will be scored in the match, etc.
Casual and professional sports bettors should consider placing a bet on Serie A. Lots of Serie A betting options are available plus the winnings can really be rewarding! Buona fortuna!
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