Rugby betting has seen a serious increase in popularity over the past few years and currently sits as the 5th most popular sport to bet on in the UK. Not bad, especially when you consider that rugby is competing with the likes of football and horseracing. And what makes the rugby betting market particularly good is that there’s something to bet on all year round, from Premiership Rugby to the Six Nations.
At the moment, “accas” are the big trend in rugby betting. Short for accumulators, you’ve probably heard about this type of bet by now. In fact, your rugby friends probably even send screenshots of their accas to the groupchat. But if you don’t know what accas are, they’re bets that combine multiple selections into one, meaning if every pick wins, you get a much bigger payout.
Understanding Rugby Accas and How They Work
So, with Premiership Rugby wrapped up for the summer, what we’ve got going on at the moment is the 2025 Lions Tour. Even though it’s an international rugby tournament, there are still plenty of opportunities to build accas, and here’s an example of one 3-fold acca you could put together right now through bet365:
✅ Tournament winner: Australia (9/1)
✅ Top Points Scorer: Finn Russel (1/7)
✅ Top tryscorer: Dan Sheehan (7/4)
Just like with any acca, you’re betting on multiple different outcomes to come true. In this case, there are 3 individual bets you’re combining, giving you final odds of roughly 30/1. If you were to stick £10 on this particular acca, it’d mean you win £300 back, assuming Australia win the tournament, Finn Russel gets the most points, and Dan Sheehan finishes as top tryscorer. However, this particular acca’s odds are too high and so your chances of winning aren’t great, which is why it’s generally recommended you build rugby accas with odds no higher than 8/1 to 10/1. Otherwise, you’re just wasting money.
Remember, there’s no limit on how many legs you can add to any rugby acca. Again, though, the more legs you add, the higher the odds go. Rugby games can be unpredictable at the best of times, so successfully predicting 10 or more different outcomes in a single acca borders on impossible. The sweet spot is usually between 3 and 6-folds instead, as that’s where you can get good odds but still maintain a decent chance of winning.
Another thing to keep in mind is always build your accas early. It was discovered recently that 40% of rugby bets are placed pre-match, which is usually the best course of action when it comes to accas. You need at least a day’s gap to analyse upcoming games and the specific outcomes you’re going to bet on, as building accas in-play is simply too risky most of the time.
Where to Build Rugby Accas
The good news is that every rugby betting app out there lets you build accas, whether you’re betting on Rugby League, Rugby Union, or specifically the Widnes Vikings. This includes bet365, Sky Bet, Coral, and William Hill, all of which offer impressive rugby odds and special acca promotions.
If you look at bet365, they have a special “acca boost” promotion where if you build a rugby acca with 3 or more selections, you can get an additional 5-70% added onto your winnings if the bet is successful. Then there’s even BoyleSports, who if you place 5 x £5 bets with during a week you’ll then receive a free £5 acca from. BoyleSports also comes with the cash out feature, something that’s great for those moments when you’re a little nervous and want to cash out your bets early to secure a profit.
Make Sure to Use “Acca Insurance”
A handy little tip is to always make sure you use acca insurance if it’s available. Some rugby betting sites have it, while others don’t. How it works is that if 1 of your acca legs fails while the others all win, then you’ll either receive your money back or get rewarded with some type of free bet. It’s especially useful during big events like the Rugby World Cup, as you can place accas with more confidence knowing that, if 1 leg does go wrong, your losses will be covered.
As of right now, Paddy Power, Betfair, and Ladbrokes all offer some type of acca insurance, which you’ll definitely want to make use of during the ongoing 2025 Lions Tour. Surprisingly, bet365 is a big rugby betting site that doesn’t offer acca insurance, despite having its excellent acca boost promotion. Whether or not it’ll be introduced in the future remains up in the air, so stick with the other acca insurance betting apps if you’re more concerned with protecting your accas than anything else.
Upcoming Rugby Events to Bet On
We mentioned a little earlier that rugby is a sport that always has something going on. You can build accas all year around if you want to, as there’s going to be at least one tournament or league to bet on at any given time. And as we sit here in the summer, some of the upcoming rugby events to bet on include the Asia Rugby Championship (June), World Rugby Under 20 Championship (June), and the Rugby Championship (August). Then, of course, there’s the Gallagher Premiership, which starts at the end of September and will no doubt continue to draw the most amount of bets throughout the season. Bath are the current favourites at 6/4, so you might want to consider adding them to one of your future accas in anticipation for September.
