Footy Tipping Guide
How a footy tipping competition works in Australia: picking AFL and NRL winners, scoring, margins, common mistakes and how to run your office comp.
Common footy tipping mistakes
A footy tipping competition is a friendly contest where you pick the winner of every AFL or NRL game each round and score a point for each correct tip. Join a free office or pub comp, submit before the first bounce, add a margin guess for tiebreaks and keep it fun.
Most tipping comps are not lost on bad luck. They are lost in the first month, through a handful of habits that trip up beginners and old hands alike. One missed round can cost as many points as a surprise upset, and in a tight office comp a single point often decides who gets the trophy, the pot or just the bragging rights. Here are the mistakes worth fixing before round one.
Tipping with your heart
Picking your own club every week feels loyal but costs points. Tip the side more likely to win, then enjoy being wrong about your team when they lose.
Forgetting to submit
A missed tip usually scores zero. Many comps lock each game at the first bounce or kick-off, so a Thursday night game can lock before you open the app on Friday.
Ignoring team news
Late outs, rested stars and wet weather change a game. Check the named team lists before you finalise any close pick, especially late in the week.
Overlooking bye rounds
Byes thin out the fixture, and some comps change the scoring in those weeks. Read the rules so a short round does not catch you off guard.
Guessing the margin
The margin is usually the tiebreaker, so a random number wastes your best weapon. Start from the typical winning gap in recent games and adjust from there.
How to join and play, step by step
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1
Find a comp
Ask around at work, your footy club or the pub. Free comps, or ones with a small buy-in like A$10, are the easiest way to start.
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2
Read the rules
Check the scoring, lock times, how draws count and how a tied ladder is settled at the end of the season.
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3
Register your entry
Create your entry on the comp's website or app, or add your name to the group sheet, then choose a winner for every game in the round.
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4
Add a margin
Enter your guess for the winning margin in the designated game. It only matters when tippers finish level, but then it matters a lot.
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5
Submit before lock
Save your tips and confirm they show on your sheet. A phone reminder for Thursday night saves a lot of regret.
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6
Check the ladder
After each round, compare your score with the ladder, look at which picks went wrong and adjust your approach for the next one.
If you are new, start with one code and learn its rhythm before adding a second. AFL and NRL both run a similar weekly cycle, but the teams, the venues and the fixture quirks are different, and trying to follow both from day one is how tips go missing.
Local flavour: AFL, NRL and the office comp
In Australia, footy tipping is as much about workplace banter as it is about winning. Comps start in the first weeks of the season and run through the finals. A whiteboard in the kitchen, a shared spreadsheet or a busy group chat keeps everyone honest, and the wooden spoon for last place is a tradition of its own. Which code you tip often depends on where you live: AFL is strongest in Victoria, South Australia, Western Australia and Tasmania, while NRL leads in New South Wales and Queensland. Plenty of workplaces run both.
- AFL teams
- 18
- NRL teams
- 17
- Games per AFL round
- Up to 9
- Games per NRL round
- Up to 8
- Standard scoring
- 1 point per tip
- Usual tiebreaker
- Margin guess
NRL tippers also face State of Origin weeks, when star players leave their clubs and the depleted sides are harder to read. In AFL, finals bring higher stakes, and many comps add bonus points for the finals or the grand final. Check which twist your comp uses before the finals start, because it can reshape the whole ladder in a few weeks.
Before and after: small habit changes
| Area | Was | Became |
|---|---|---|
| Picks | Gut feel | Form check |
| Margin | Random number | Recent average |
| Byes | Forgotten | Tipped early |
| Team news | Ignored | Checked Thursday |
| Submitting | Last minute | Early, confirmed |
| Rules | Assumed | Read once |
None of these changes needs special knowledge, only a little routine. Checking form and team news takes a few minutes, and tipping early removes the single most common way to lose a point. Writing the margin down as an average of recent results, rather than a wild guess, turns your tiebreaker into a real advantage. Reading the rules once, including how draws and byes are handled, saves arguments at the end of the season and keeps the comp friendly for everyone involved.
A worked example: one round, two styles
Here is an illustrative AFL round with nine games. Tipper A always backs the home side. Tipper B looks at recent form, team news and the venue. Suppose A gets four right and B gets six. Over a 24 round season at that rate, A finishes on 96 points and B on 144, a gap of two tips per round. Nothing here is guaranteed, but it shows how a small edge adds up across a long season.
- Recent form: how a team has played in its last three to five games.
- Venue and travel: home grounds and long flights both matter.
- Team lists: key players in or out change the balance.
- Rest days: a short turnaround can tire a side.
Run through the checklist before each round: rules read, tips entered, margin set, team news checked and submission confirmed.
Tipping, betting and staying in control
A tipping comp is a game of prediction and bragging rights. Betting on the same games is different: it involves real money and real risk. The RollXo sportsbook lists Aussie Rules and Rugby League among its top sports, so some fans follow the same fixtures there. Players must be over 18. If you do bet, set a budget first and read the responsible gambling page before you begin. You can also return to the RollXo Casino home page for an overview of what the site offers.
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Footy tipping questions
What is a footy tipping competition?
It is a weekly contest where each entrant picks the winner of every AFL or NRL game in a round. Correct tips earn points, and the ladder updates after each round. Most comps run from the start of the season to the grand final, and many are organised by workplaces, pubs and clubs.
How are footy tips scored?
The usual system gives one point for each correct winner. Some comps add bonus points for finals or a nominated joker round. A margin guess in one game normally acts as the tiebreaker, so the closest guess wins when two tippers finish with the same score. Always read your comp's own rules.
What happens if a game is drawn?
It depends on the comp. Some give every tipper a point, some give half a point and some give nothing. Draws are rare, but they do happen, and it is much easier to agree on the rule before the season than to argue about it in the middle of a close finish.
When should I submit my tips?
Submit as early as you reasonably can, and always before the first game locks. Many comps lock each game at kick-off, so a Thursday night match can close before the weekend begins. Check the team lists first for close games, then confirm your tips show on your sheet.
How do I run a comp at work?
Pick a free or small-buy-in format, write down the scoring, lock times, draw rules and tiebreaker, and share them with everyone. Use a spreadsheet or an app to keep a live ladder, and agree on the prize in advance. Keep it light so everyone stays involved.
Is tipping the same as betting?
No. A free tipping comp is a prediction game, while betting stakes real money with a bookmaker. If you decide to bet, only use money you can afford to lose and set limits first. Free support is available from Gambling Help Online at gamblinghelponline.org.au, and BetStop at betstop.gov.au offers self-exclusion.
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Written by Alex Turner
Casino Expert • RollXo Casino
Published 2026-10-28 • Updated 2026-10-28 • Checked 2026-10-28