What Is a Push in Sports Betting? Everything you need to know.

They say that a tie is like kissing your sister. I don’t really have any experience in that department, but it’s safe to say it’s not good.

Unfortunately, ties occasionally happen in sports betting. They’re known as a push, and they can happen in a multitude of different scenarios. They’re clearly not the preferred outcome for sports bettors, but at least they’re better than a loss.

Let’s dive into everything you need to know about pushes in the world of sports betting: when they occur, how you can avoid them, and how they impact parlays.

What Is a Push in Sports Betting?

Ultimately, a push is a pretty simple concept. It occurs when your bet is a “tie”—in other words, you neither win nor lose. This can happen in nearly every type of bet, including spread bets, totals, and player props.

Whenever a push occurs, you are given back your initial stake from the sportsbook. They don’t get to keep your money, but you’re not going to win any additional funds either. It’s the equivalent of a battle ending in a stalemate; both sides can look to retreat and regroup for future battles.

It doesn’t matter what betting site you're using—BetMGM, DraftKings, Caesars, FanDuel, Bet365, etc—all pushes are going to be handled the same way./

What Is a Push in Spread Betting?

This is one of the most common scenarios for pushes. In spread betting, the two teams are each assigned a point spread value. The favorite typically needs to win by a certain number of points, and if they don’t clear that threshold, the underdog is declared a winner.

However, in certain scenarios, the favorite can win by exactly the spread. For example, the San Francisco 49ers were roughly two-point favorites over the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl. If the 49ers won that game by exactly two points, the bet would be considered a push. In that scenario, it doesn’t matter if you bet on the favorite (49ers) or underdog (Chiefs)—bettors on both sides simply get their money back.

NFL games all offer spread bets, as do all NBA and college games. Most of the other sports are focused on moneylines.

Feb 11, 2024; Paradise, Nevada, USA; San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey (23) runs with the ball against Kansas City Chiefs safety Mike Edwards (21) during overtime of Super Bowl LVIII at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

Of course, a push is only possible in spread betting when the spread is a whole number. If the betting line was at 6.5 or 7.5 in the previous example, one of the two sides would be considered a winner and the other would be a loser.

That’s why a lot of bettors are tempted to buy points in those instances. Buying a half-point can ensure that you’re not going to push, but it means that your losses are going to be more substantial when they happen. It’s a big reason why most professional bettors consider buying points a “sucker move.” You might win a few extra bets a year that would’ve otherwise pushed, but it’s not enough to overcome the extra juice you're paying on your losing bets.

What Is a Push for Totals?

Pushing on a total—otherwise known as an over/under—works exactly the same way as pushing on a spread. The bookmakers set a total for each game, and if the final number ends exactly on the number, it’s considered a push.

If the Los Angeles Lakers are taking on the Boston Celtics in a game with a 220-point total and the final score is 112-108, that would be considered a push. It doesn’t matter which team wins or how the points are distributed; if the final total lands on the exact number, it’s a push for the over and the under.

Similarly to spread bets, you can also buy points in the total bets market. That said, it’s considered an even bigger no-no. Buying half a point to move a spread from +3.0 to +3.5 or -7.0 to -6.5 isn’t mathematically sound, but you’re at least getting some benefit moving off a key number. In totals, the numbers are significantly larger. NFL totals are most commonly in the 40s, while NBA totals can get as high as 250. Is half a point really worth 5-10 cents of juice when the numbers are that large? Absolutely not.

Can You Push a Moneyline Bet?

Believe it or not, you can push on moneyline bets as well. That’s not true in all sporting events. Sports like baseball and basketball have a clear winner and loser in each game, so there are no pushes. It doesn’t matter if it takes five overtimes or 18 innings—those games are going to play to a conclusion.

However, ties do happen in the NFL. They’re exceedingly rare, with only seven ties occurring since the NFL changed the overtime rules in 2017. However, that still works out to around one a year. If two teams go to overtime and neither team manages to score in the 10-minute frame, there is no double-overtime in regular season games. In that occurrence, all moneyline bets would be declared a push.

With soccer and hockey, there are more complex moneyline wagers. Those are lower-scoring sports, meaning more games will end regulation in a tie. With that in mind, there are ways to bet on those contests that factor tie games into the equation.

Feb 15, 2024; Tampa, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Lightning right wing Nikita Kucherov (86) celebrates with center Steven Stamkos (91) and center Brayden Point (21) after he scored a goal on Colorado Avalanche goaltender Justus Annunen (60) during the third period at Amalie Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-USA TODAY Sports

In the NHL, you can choose to bet on the “three-way moneyline.” Essentially, that gives you three different choices: Team A to win in regulation, Team B to win in regulation, or the game to go to overtime. Those will be priced differently than the traditional moneylines because you do not get the added benefit of what happens in overtime or a shootout.

In other words, there are no pushes in hockey. If you bet the regular moneyline, whichever team wins in regulation, overtime, or a shootout will be considered the winning side. If you bet the three-way moneyline, all bets are decided at the end of 60 minutes.

In soccer, there is no overtime in most games. They will go to extra time or a shootout in certain elimination contests like the Champions League or World Cup, but the standard bets are still all graded over the 90 minutes of regulation.

Like in hockey, there are two different styles of moneyline bets you can make. One is a three-way moneyline, which works exactly the same as in the NHL. That means if the game ends regulation in a draw and you bet on either team, both sides are considered losers.

There is also a two-way moneyline, also known as a “draw no-bet” line. In that market, moneyline bets will be considered a push if the game ends regulation in a tie. That provides a level of safety that the three-way moneyline does not, but it comes in exchange for better payout. For example, Liverpool is -150 on the three-way moneyline for their Feb. 17 matchup vs. Brentford, but they’re -330 in the draw no-bet market. Here’s how the payouts would work in those scenarios, with each bet placed to win one unit:

Additionally, if you are looking to bet on the final outcome in an elimination game, you can make a “to advance” wager. While traditional bets are graded at the end of regulation, betting on a team to advance gives you the benefit of any extra time or a shootout. Because there are only two outcomes—your team advances, or they don’t—there are no pushes in that market.

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Pushing on Prop Bets

Pushing on prop bets is a pretty simple concept. Each player is given a certain line in a specific category. It can be rushing yards in the NFL, rebounds in the NBA, or pitcher strikeouts in the MLB. If the player lands exactly on the listed number, it’s considered a push.

There are some specific prop bets that can’t end in a push, but those are all binary events. For example, if you bet on an MLB player to hit a home run, there are only two possible outcomes: he either hits a homer (and you win) or he doesn’t (and you lose). The same is true for bets like anytime touchdown scorers in football and double-doubles in basketball.

Pushes on Parlays and Teasers

This is where things start to get a bit trickier. We’ve established how the online sportsbooks handle pushes in single wagers, but what about in combination bets? What happens if you push one leg in a parlay bet or teaser?

For the most part, if you push part of a combination bet, that bet is simply removed from the equation and the betting odds are updated. For example, if you bet on a three-team parlay and one leg pushes, that bet will be removed and leave you with a two-leg parlay. The odds on that wager are also adjusted. From that point on, if the other two bets win, you will be paid out on a successful two-leg parlay. However, if either leg loses, the bet is considered a loss.

Jan 28, 2024; Santa Clara, California, USA; Detroit Lions running back David Montgomery (5) runs with the ball against the San Francisco 49ers during the first half of the NFC Championship football game at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Teasers work in a similar manner. If you have a teaser with at least three legs, if one bet pushes, it will be removed from the equation and the odds reduced. That would leave you with at least two other teaser legs still active: for example, a four-leg teaser with a push would become a three-leg teaser, a three-leg teaser would become a two-leg teaser, etc.

The exception is in a two-leg teaser. Unfortunately, the push rules in that scenario work pretty heavily against the player. If one leg pushes, it all comes down to what happens in the other. If that leg loses, the bet is considered a loss. However, if that bet wins, the bet is essentially considered a push and graded as no action. In other words, you can lose a two-leg teaser when one of the bets pushes, but you can’t win one.

This is why teasing the right kinds of bets is so important. Ideally, all of your teaser bets are moving the spreads across key numbers. For example, moving a team from +1.0 to +7.0 in a six-point NFL teaser is considered a mistake. Seven is one of the most common final margins in the NFL, so you wouldn’t want to leave yourself vulnerable to that outcome. Teasing a team from +1.5 through +2.5 is a much stronger practice since you’re getting on the other side of the key number and decreasing the possibility of a push.

Finally, with same-game parlays becoming more and more popular, you might be curious how pushes are handled in those. Fortunately, the oddsmakers don’t let you include any wagers in a same-game parlay that might push. If the spread for the game is on a whole number, they will either move it up or down half a point. The same goes for the total, while all props are listed on half points instead of whole numbers.