football-data.org

football-data.org describes itself as a football data and statistics API for developers, covering live scores, fixtures, tables, squads, line-ups and substitutions. Access to the top competitions is free, while additional competitions and in-depth data sit on paid plans priced in euros per month, from €12 up to €199.

The coverage page groups competitions by region and country and reaches beyond Europe to Africa, Asia, South America and North America, including Liga MX, MLS, the J. League and the A League. The v4 documentation sets the base URL at api.football-data.org/v4 and lists resources such as Competitions, Matches, Teams, Areas, Persons and Trend. The country of establishment is not stated on the pages we read, and the imprint, terms and privacy URLs returned a 404 error.

• Free plan for 12 competitions. The Free plan is listed as free forever, covering 12 competitions at 10 calls per minute with delayed scores and schedules, plus fixtures and league tables.
• Live scores add-on tier. The Free w/ Livescores plan costs €12 per month and adds live scores with 20 calls per minute over the same 12 competitions, a small step for projects that need current results.
• Deep data tier. Free + Deep Data at €29 per month adds line-ups and substitutions, goal scorers, bookings and cards, and squads, at 30 calls per minute.
• Broader competition tiers. Standard (€49, 30 competitions, 60 calls per minute), Advanced (€99, 50 competitions, 100 calls per minute) and Pro (€199, 100 competitions, 120 calls per minute) widen coverage and throughput.
• Odds and statistics add-ons. Two add-ons cost €15 per month each. The Odds Add-On gives pre-match home, draw and away odds for 40 competitions, and the Statistic Add-On covers corners, fouls, possession, shots and cards. Both need a regular plan.
• Global competition coverage. Free-plan access is named for the UEFA Champions League, the European Championship, the FIFA World Cup, the Premier League, Championship, Ligue 1, Bundesliga, Serie A, Eredivisie, Primeira Liga, La Liga and Brazil's Série A.
• Versioned resource model. The v4 documentation lists Competitions with Matches, Teams, Standings and Scorers as subresources, plus Matches, Teams, Areas, Persons and Trend, which gives a clear map of what can be requested.

• A hobby developer building a league table app. The Free plan covers 12 competitions with fixtures and tables at 10 calls per minute, which is enough for a personal project that tolerates delayed scores.
• A small publisher adding live match pages. The €12 Free w/ Livescores plan adds live scores at 20 calls per minute, and the €29 deep data tier brings line-ups, scorers and cards for richer match reports.
• A fantasy or analytics start-up. Advanced or Pro tiers extend to 50 or 100 competitions, and the odds and statistics add-ons at €15 each supply extra data once a regular plan is in place.

The homepage and pricing page point developers to choose a plan, starting with the Free plan if only top competitions are needed. The v4 documentation gives the base URL https://api.football-data.org/v4/ and lists the available resources, so a first request can target Competitions or Matches.

The documentation pages we read do not name an authentication method or response format, although the homepage describes the API as RESTful, so confirm both in the docs before coding. Throttling exists and is set by plan, but its figures are not shown on the documentation page; use the per-minute limits from the pricing page instead.

football-data.org publishes every tier on one page. Seven monthly plans run from a free plan with 12 competitions at 10 calls per minute up to Pro, with 100 competitions at 120.

Odds and match statistics are add-ons. It covers football alone, free-plan scores are delayed, and the imprint, terms and privacy URLs returned a 404 error, so the operator is unknown.

The sports data apis list places football-data.org 1 of 13: The Odds API follows directly after it. Places 1 to 3 in every list go to challengers where the category has them, so this is a position on that rule and not a score.

The vendor states no country of establishment, so football-data.org is left out of the regional count for this list.

In the catalogue: Published monthly tiers with a free plan; odds and statistics sold as add-ons; VAT may apply.

Monthly plans are priced in euros, and asterisked prices are subject to VAT, which the page says may apply. Free is €0 forever. Free w/ Livescores is €12. ML Pack Light and Free + Deep Data are each €29. Standard is €49, Advanced €99 and Pro €199. The paid competition tiers allow 30, 50 and 100 competitions and 60, 100 and 120 calls per minute. Two add-ons cost €15 per month each: Odds (pre-match odds, 40 competitions) and Statistic; both require a regular plan. The pricing page does not mention a free trial, and the Free plan is the only no-cost option named. The homepage adds that historical data and higher request limits are available on request.

Where this comes from: the vendor pages at football-data.org, checked for Best Sports Data APIs in 2026 on 13 November 2026.

The coverage page also lists MLS, Liga MX and the J.

League.

The v4 documentation lists resources but names no authentication method, and the operator is never named.

The pages we read say nothing about certifications, encryption, hosting location or data retention. The imprint, terms and privacy URLs returned a 404 error when we opened them, so no legal or privacy text could be reviewed, and the country of establishment is not stated on the homepage, pricing page, coverage page or documentation.

The v4 documentation includes a request-throttling section, but the figures are set by plan and were not shown. Teams with compliance requirements should ask the vendor for written terms before building on the service.

Integrations the vendor names (10):

• REST API (v4)
• Competitions resource
• Matches resource
• Teams resource
• Standings and Scorers subresources
• Areas resource
• Persons resource
• Trend resource
• Odds Add-On
• Statistic Add-On

The choice below rests on shared catalogue tags, price model, free plan and region, with rank distance as the tie-break.

• BALLDONTLIE (#3 of 13): Not for: buyers who want one flat price for a single sport. Multi-sport API with per-league tiers and a plan at no charge.
• Sportmonks (#4 of 13): Football, cricket and Formula One APIs from Deventer with published prices. Watch out: the free football plan reaches only two leagues, so broader testing depends on the paid trial.
• Highlightly (#5 of 13): Video highlights and live scores API with daily request quotas. Watch out: three Highlightly pages list three different sets of tier prices.
• Pandascore (#7 of 13): Esports odds and statistics API from Paris, priced per game. (France)
• Goalserve (#9 of 13): Live scores and odds feeds in XML and JSON, sold by quote. Suits: Sportsbook and score sites wanting broad league and odds feeds on trial first.

Read from the vendor’s own pages on 12 November 2026.

• football-data.org/pricing: Plan prices in euros, limits, add-ons, no trial mentioned
• football-data.org/coverage: Competition coverage by region and free-plan competitions
• football-data.org: Product description, free top competitions, historical data on request, 404 legal pages
• docs.football-data.org/general/v4/index.html: v4 base URL, resources and throttling section

We test for four things rather than for features: setup time, price in practice, exit and audience. That puts football-data.org at #1 of 13. The editorial process sets out how facts are gathered and how commercial links are handled.