Birmingham vs Ipswich Town Betting Odds | EFL Championship

The 2025 season of the EFL Championship kicks off on 8th August with the first match between Birmingham City and Ipswich Town.

The Blues, as Birmingham City is popularly known, earned a promotion to the Championship after winning the League One trophy in the 2024/25 season. They finished first with 111 points, a new record for the English Football League.

Birmingham’s promotion came thanks to new manager Chris Davies, who joined them in June 2024. He guided the team to 34 wins in 46 matches, and also won the League One Manager of the Season award.

Ipswich Town, on the other hand, didn’t have a good run last season as they were relegated from the Premier League. They lost their spot in the top flight after finishing 19th last season. They were demoted to the Championship along with Southampton and Leicester City.

However, bettors and fans shouldn’t write off the Tractor Boys. They were placed second in the Championship 2023/24 season, earning a promotion to the Premier League. They were also second in League One in the 2022/23 season. They’ve earned two back-to-back promotions in the last five years.

Both teams will be looking for a win at the first game of the season, so fans can expect plenty of action. The match kicks off at 8:00 pm BST at the St. Andrew’s stadium, Knighthead Park, Birmingham.

Below, we give you the Birmingham City vs Ipswich Town preview, betting markets, and odds.

Championship Betting Odds: Birmingham City vs Ipswich Town

Since this is the very first match of the tournament, expectations are high for both teams. While Birmingham City will be riding high on their League One success, Ipswich Town will be looking to redeem themselves in the first match of their relegation season. So, bettors should closely watch the betting lines (markets) for the latest odds.

7bet offers competitive Birmingham vs Ipswich Town betting odds.

Please note, the odds mentioned below are accurate as per the publishing time of the article. Visit 7bet’s Championship betting page for the latest odds.

1X2 Odds

The 1X2 or the match winner market is the most popular choice among new bettors. Here, you can pick one out of three possible outcomes:

• 1: Birmingham City wins
• X: Draw
• 2: Ipswich Town wins

These odds (accurate to the time of publishing the article) reflect how bookmakers rate each team’s chances. 

UK sportsbooks use fractional odds, as can be seen above. The denominator indicates the bet amount, and the numerator is the expected return. For example, Birmingham’s odds are 16/11, which means you stand to win £16 for every £11, along with your stake (betting amount) back. Similarly, a successful bet on Ipswich Town pays £13 for every £7, and correctly predicting a draw pays £21 for every £10.

Upon simplifying the fractions, for every pound, you receive £1.45 for correctly predicting Birmingham City’s win, £2.1 for predicting a draw, and £1.85 if Ipswich Town wins.

Bettors will notice that the expected returns on Birmingham bets are slightly lower compared to Ipswich. Low odds reflect a team may be the favourite to win the fixture. When an outcome appears to be more likely, bookmakers offer low odds to even out the market.

However, it is important to note that the odds are just an initial analysis. They can neither affect nor influence the outcome. Don’t rely only on the odds before placing your bets. Research both teams’ form, injuries, and lineup. The game could tilt in any direction on matchday.

Double Chance

The Double Chance market is useful when both teams appear to be evenly matched, and you are unsure who to back. This market allows you to predict two out of the possible three outcomes:

• Birmingham or Draw: This bet loses if Ipswich wins.
• Birmingham or Ipswich: You lose if the game ends in a draw.
• Draw or Ipswich: This bet loses if Birmingham wins.

This market is a variation of 1X2. However, your probability of winning in Double Chance is higher than 1X2, since you get to pick two outcomes. But this also means that your payout will be lower. That’s because bookmakers lower the odds when the likelihood of a result becomes very high.

Check both teams’ win-loss-draw record in the last 10 matches before considering this market. Ipswich Town has 4 wins, 5 losses, and 1 draw in their last 10 matches, whereas Birmingham City has 7 wins and 3 losses in the same period.

Use this data to minimise your risk. You can consider removing the option of a draw if you feel this may be the least likely outcome.

Draw No Bet

The Draw No Bet (DNB) is another variation of the match winner market. This removes the options of a draw, and in case the match ends level, bets are refunded. For example, if the Birmingham City vs Ipswich Town final score looks something like 0–0, 1–1, 2–2, or 3–3, you will receive your stake back.

If you back Birmingham in the Draw No Bet market, you’ll get £20 profit on a £27 bet (£0.74 for every pound) if they win. Your stake will be refunded if the game ends in a draw. Choosing Ipswich at 1/1 odds will give you an even return of  a pound for every pound.

Handicap Betting Odds

This market is useful if you think both teams are not evenly matched and the odds will be tilted heavily in one team’s favour, making the match all too predictable.

In this case, the bookmaker gives you the option of handicap betting where the weaker team gets a head start and the stronger team gets a disadvantage.

If a team has a positive handicap, it means a fixed number (chosen by you) will be added to their final goal score. The same number will be deducted from the other team, giving them a disadvantage or a negative handicap. Your bet wins or loses depending on the adjusted final score.

The handicap betting line at 7bet for this fixture is set at zero, which indicates that both teams are evenly matched. However, bettors are free to select handicaps between (+/-) 0.5 to (-/+) 0.75. The final score gets adjusted as per your chosen handicap.

Here are two examples of how positive and negative handicaps work:

• Birmingham (+0.5) / Ipswich (-0.5): Birmingham has the advantage here, and Ipswich needs to win with at least a 2-goal difference to overcome this handicap. For example, Ipswich wins 2–1. Based on the handicap, the final score will be calculated as 1.5–1.5, giving a win to Draw bets. If Ipswich wins 3–1, the final score become 2.5–1.5, and bets on Ipswich win. If the game draws, bets on Birmingham win.
• Birmingham (-0.75) / Ipswich (+0.75): This is the opposite scenario where Ipswich has the advantage. Birmingham will need to win the match with a 2-goal difference to overcome the handicap. For example, Birmingham wins 2–1. The handicap score becomes  1.25–1.75, giving a win to bets on Ipswich. However, if Birmingham wins 3–1, the adjusted score becomes 2.25–1.75, and bets on Birmingham win.

Consider the goal difference of both teams in their last 10 fixtures. If they’ve consistently won multiple matches with a big goal difference, then choose a bigger handicap. However, if most of their matches have been tight, play it safe with the shortest handicap.

Both Teams to Score (BTTS Odds)

The Both Teams to Score (BTTS) is a special market that only considers one aspect of the match. Here, you have to predict whether both teams will be able to score at least once. The final winner or the score doesn’t matter. Your bet wins as long as both Birmingham City and Ipswich Town score.

The “Yes” bets win as long as the final score doesn’t have a zero in it. For example, if the score is 1–2, 3–1, or 4–2, your bet wins. Even if the match ties, your bet wins as long as the score is at least 1–1. However, if the score has a zero, such as 1–0, 0–0, or 2–0, the “Yes” bets lose. The “No” bets are the opposite, where bettors predict that one or both teams will keep a clean sheet. “No” bets win if the final score is 1–0, 0–0, 2–0, and so on.

It’s important to study both teams’ clean sheet records in this market. A clean sheet means the team’s goalkeeper didn’t allow even a single goal to slide in. In their last 10 fixtures, Birmingham City has kept four clean sheets and Ipswich Town has kept one.

Goal Total (Over/Under) Odds

This market is known as Total, Over/Under, or O/U. Here, bettors predict what the final goal total will be. For example, the match ends 3–2 with a win for Birmingham. The final goal total is five.

On 7bet, the goal total betting line can be adjusted from 1.5 to 4.5. For this fixture, the betting line is fixed at 2.5 goals combined. Adjust the OU line higher if you believe we’ll see a high-scoring match. Similarly, bet on a small total if you think both teams have a strong defence.

For example, you think we’ll have a high-scoring match and both teams will score over 4.5 goals combined. The final total has to be at least 5 for your bet to win. The score should look like 3–2, 3–4, 3–3, or higher for your bet to win.

This is a special market, where the match winner and the final score don’t matter. You just have to predict whether the combined goal total will be over or under your chosen number.

Correct Score Odds

This is a high-paying market. However, it is a difficult market to predict as bettors have to consider two aspects of the game: which team will win and what the exact score will be at the final whistle. For example, predicting a precise 1/0 win for Birmingham pays £7 for every pound. Bettors are free to pick any combination of the final score by adjusting the betting line on our page. 

Note that this market pays only if the score matches precisely. There’s a fair bit of risk here. Consider this only if you have been following both teams closely.

Where to Watch the Championship in the UK

UK residents can catch the live action for free on Sky Sports TV. Sky Sports+ will also broadcast the fixtures on its streaming service, which is available for subscription through a NOW TV pass. Sky Sports will stream 1,059 of the EFL’s 1,891 games across the Sky Bet EFL, EFL Cup, and EFL Trophy.

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