Floorball

Floorball is indoor hockey played with light plastic sticks and a hollow plastic ball full of holes. Each side has five outfield players and a goalkeeper, who plays without a stick. A match is three periods of 20 minutes with the clock stopped when play stops, and line changes happen on the fly, so the pace hardly drops.

Scores are high next to ice hockey: ten or more goals in a match is common, which is why totals are one of the most followed markets. A tied match can go to overtime and penalty shots, but most match result markets are settled on regular time - after 60 minutes, a tie is a draw for them.

Markets you usually see

• Rezultatul meciului - home, draw or away after regular time.
• Total goals - over or under a line of goals.
• Handicap - the favourite gives a start in goals.

Competiții

The strongest leagues are in the Nordic countries and central Europe: the Swedish Super League, the Finnish F-liiga, the Swiss Unihockey Prime League and the Czech Superliga. National teams meet at the World Floorball Championships every two years, where Sweden and Finland have long been the teams to beat.

Questions people ask

How long is a floorball match?

Three periods of 20 minutes of playing time, with the clock stopped when play stops. Some games add overtime and penalty shots if the score is level.

Does overtime count for a floorball bet?

Match result markets are usually settled on regular time only, so a game level after 60 minutes is a draw for them. A market that includes overtime says so in its name.

Where is floorball most popular?

Sweden, Finland, Switzerland and the Czech Republic have the strongest leagues and national teams.

More sports: Hochei pe gheață, Handbal, Futsal.