A clean sheet in football refers to a match where a team’s goalkeeper prevents the opponents from scoring any goal. Here, we’ll walk you through everything you need to know about clean sheets in football – its meaning, origin, & rewards. Additionally, if you’re into sports betting, we’ll explain how you can bet on a clean sheet.
What does clean sheet mean in football?
In football, a clean sheet refers to a match in which a goalkeeper doesn’t concede any goals. A clean sheet is mostly achieved whenever a goalkeeper and their defenders work together to prevent the opponents from scoring any goal.
For example, if Manchester City plays an EPL match against Liverpool and Liverpool doesn’t score any goal in the match, it means Ederson (Manchester’s goalkeeper) has kept a clean sheet.
However, clean sheets are not so easy to come by. They often require goalkeepers and the rest of the team, particularly the defenders, to be skillful, highly focused, and “lucky”. A deflection, a single mistake from the goalkeeper, or an opposing player channeling their inner Messi can ruin a clean sheet. And sometimes, defenders make mistakes and score own goals, ruining their team’s clean sheet.
Clean sheets are a lot harder to keep than maintaining goal streaks. For example, Haaland can lose 99 chances in a match and still score 1 goal to keep his goal streak alive. On the other hand, a goalkeeper might make 99 saves and 1 mistake. That single mistake can ruin their clean sheet.
Meaning of clean sheet in football: Origin of the term “clean sheet”
The origin of the term “clean sheet” in football can be traced back to journalism in the early days of football. Back in the 20th century, whenever match officials wanted to keep records, they would use sheets of paper to write key match events.
If one of the teams did not concede any goals, their own sheet of paper would be “clean”, without any ink. This was what led to the term “clean sheet” being used to describe the scenario where a goalkeeper doesn’t concede a goal.
Rewards for clean sheets in football
Just as the “Golden Boot” award is presented to the highest goalscorer in every tournament as a recognition of their skills, goalkeepers who keep clean sheets are also rewarded.
How is clean sheet rewarded in football?
Goalkeepers who have the highest number of clean sheets in a tournament are rewarded with an award named “Golden Glove” as a reward for their efforts.
In modern football, the Golden Glove Award is presented in almost all tournaments including the AFCON (African Cup of Nations), EPL (English Premier League), and the UCL (UEFA Champions League). In each of these tournaments, the Golden Glove Award is presented to the goalkeeper who kept the highest number of clean sheets.
How do clean sheets contribute to the Yashin trophy?
The Yashin trophy is named after the legendary keeper Lev Yashin, and it’s often presented alongside the Ballon d’Or to the best-performing goalkeeper in the world.
One of the major criteria used to present this award is the clean sheets each goalkeeper kept, and the number of goals they conceded. These two factors often influence the decisions of the selection team. The first goalkeeper to win this trophy is Liverpool’s Alisson.
Who is the goalkeeper with the most clean sheets in the Premier League?
In the history of the English Premier League, the top three goalkeepers with the highest number of clean sheets are:
- Petr Čech: 202 clean sheets
- David James: 169 clean sheets
- Mark Schwarzer: 151 clean sheets
How to bet on a clean sheet
Clean sheets are very important in football betting, and there are a lot of football betting markets where clean sheets matter. Here are some of them:
BTTS (Both Teams To Score)
BTTS is a type of football betting market that allows you to bet on whether both teams will score in a match or not. If you think one of the teams would keep a clean sheet in the match, then you can place a “No” bet, which means that both teams won’t score and one or both teams would keep a clean sheet.
For example, in a match between Kano Pillars and Enugu Rangers, if you think one or both of them will keep a clean sheet, then you can bet on “No BTTS”.
To Win To Nil
A To-Win-To-Nil betting market is a type of betting that involves betting on one of the two teams to win without conceding a goal. For you to win this type of bet, your chosen team must win their match, and they must also keep a clean sheet, making it quite risky but highly rewarding.
For example, if there’s a match between Nigeria and Ghana, and you bet on Nigeria winning to nil, it means you’re predicting that the Super Eagles will win the match, and Stanley Nwabali, the Nigerian goalkeeper, will keep a clean sheet.
Over/Under
Over/Under is one of the most popular betting football markets in the world. It allows you to bet on the total number of goals that’ll be scored in a match. For example, if you bet on a match to end in Under 1.5, it means that you’re predicting that just one goal or no goal at all will be scored in the match and one of the teams will keep a clean sheet.
Should you bet on clean sheet in football?
Out of all the betting strategies I tried, clean sheet betting is the hardest because it only takes a single mistake or a moment of magic from the opponents for the bet to be ruined. For example, if you bet on To-Win-To-Nil, this is very difficult because your selected team must win and not concede any goal, which makes it highly difficult to win.
In the UCL game between Barcelona and Monaco, I placed a bet on Barcelona to win to nil, and Eric Garcia's red card within the first 20 minutes of the game led to Barcelona conceding twice in the game, which made me lose my bet. I recommend placing other bets such as 1×2 or double chance, instead of clean sheet betting.
Frequently asked questions on clean sheets in football
What is clean sheet in football?
A clean sheet in football means that a goalkeeper didn’t concede any goal in the match.
Is win to nil the same as clean sheet?
Even though win-to-nil and clean sheets involve not conceding a goal, they are still different. A clean sheet means that a team doesn’t concede any goal regardless of the match outcome (win, lose, or draw). On the other hand, a win-to-nil means that a team wins without conceding.
Which goalkeeper has the most clean sheets in World Cup history?
Both Fabien Barthez (France) and Peter Shilton (England) have 10 clean sheets in the World Cup which is the current record for the most clean sheets in the tournament’s history.
Which goalkeeper has the most clean sheets in AFCON history?
Egypt’s Essam El-Hadary holds the record for the highest number of clean sheets in the history of the African Cup of Nations.
