Football Data Sources & Tools We Use
Every prediction we publish rests on data that came from somewhere. These are the external sources our editorial team works with — and what each one is actually for.
Advanced Stats & xG
Underlying performance data. Results lie — a team can win 1-0 having been outplayed. These sources tell us what actually happened.
Detailed match and player statistics across a wide range of competitions, including expected goals, shot-creating actions and possession-adjusted metrics.
Our starting point for team form beyond the scoreline. When a side has won three in a row on poor underlying numbers, FBref is usually where we spot it first.
Expected goals data and shot maps for Europe’s major leagues, with per-match and per-player breakdowns.
Cross-reference for xG figures and shot quality. Two sources disagreeing on xG is a useful signal that a match is harder to read than it looks.
A REST API for structured football data: fixtures, live scores, standings, and event-level match feeds across a wide range of competitions.
For pulling in fixture and event data programmatically so a tip can be checked against live movement before it goes out, not just against a static table.
Historical Data & Archives
Long-run datasets we use to backtest ideas before they ever become a published tip.
Free downloadable datasets of historical results paired with bookmaker odds, including closing prices, going back many seasons.
The backbone of our closing-line-value work. Historical closing odds are what let us test whether a strategy beat the market or just got lucky.
Squad data, market valuations, transfer history and injury/suspension records.
Team-news context. Squad depth and who is unavailable often explains a price move better than any statistical model does.
A volunteer-run archive of football results and tables spanning decades and covering competitions few other sources document.
Reference for historical records and long-run head-to-head context in smaller competitions.
Live Scores & Results
Fixture lists, line-ups and final scores — the raw feed our predictions and track record are settled against.
Ratings & Models
Independent, publicly documented rating systems we use as a sanity check on our own numbers.
How we choose what to list
This page is short by design. It is not a directory, and no listing on it is bought or sold.
- We list a source only if our editorial team uses it in the course of producing predictions, reviews or research.
- No placement on this page is paid for, and none of these links are affiliate links.
- Bookmakers are deliberately excluded. Commercial relationships live in our bookmaker reviews, where outbound links are marked accordingly.
- A source that stops being useful gets removed. The list is meant to stay small enough to be honest.
We are happy to hear from football data and statistics sites whose work our readers would find useful. We do not take part in bulk link exchanges, and we do not add a source to this page purely in return for a link. Get in touch.
See how this data becomes a prediction
Our five-step method is published in full, and every tip we make is settled publicly in our track record.