Hamilton Academical v Airdrie United — prediction, stats and goal analysis

League One · Saturday, 15 August 2026 · 15:00. Final score 4–0 (half-time 1–0). Before kick-off we rated it 50% under 2.5 goals — the match finished with 4, so that call missed. That rating was frozen into a version-controlled ledger before the game and has not been touched since.

Open this match in the app →

Our ratings for this match

MarketYesNoOur call
Over 2.5 goals50%50%Under
Over 3.5 goals28%72%no pick
Both teams to score53%47%Yes

The result model puts Hamilton Academical at 40%, the draw at 30% and Airdrie United at 30%, from expected goals of 1.13 and 0.93.

Bookmaker prices and where we differ

MarketPriceImpliedOur ratingEdge
Over 2.5 goals1.9549%50%+1%
Under 2.5 goals1.8551%50%-1%
Both teams to score1.7354%53%-1%

Implied percentages have the bookmaker's margin removed, so they add to 100 and can be compared with our rating directly. Edge is simply the gap between the two. A positive edge means our model thinks the outcome is likelier than the price suggests — it is not a tip, and a high probability with a negative edge is a poor bet however safe it looks. Prices are a pre-match snapshot from a single bookmaker and move constantly.

Match odds: Hamilton Academical 2.05, draw 3.25, Airdrie United 3.10.

How we got this number

The league sets the starting point. League One has produced over 2.5 goals in 49% of its matches, and that is where a team with no record of its own would sit.

Each side's own record. Hamilton Academical have 1 in 2 this season (0 of 1 at home), Airdrie United 0 in 2 (0 of 1 away). Those records are pulled toward the league rate with the weight of about 32 matches — enough that two or three unusual games cannot swing a rating — giving 48% and 45%.

Last season still counts, briefly. With 2 and 2 games played this season, last season's rates are still blended in and fade out entirely by game 14 — the point at which our testing showed they stop adding accuracy. That moves the two figures to 58% and 47%.

The mix. Weighted 40% home side, 40% away side and 20% league — the split that beat every alternative across 30,582 matches of testing — that gives 52%.

Head to head. These sides have met 4 times in three years, producing over 2.5 goals in 100%. That nudges the number 10% of the way toward the head-to-head pattern — deliberately small, because fixtures change more than reputations do — landing on 57%.

Goal expectation. Separately a Poisson model built from attack and defence strength — using real expected-goals data where the league has it — puts this match at 34%, from expected goals of 1.13 for Hamilton Academical and 0.93 for Airdrie United. Folding in 30% of that view gives 50%.

This breakdown is generated from the same inputs the rating uses, so it cannot describe a calculation we did not perform. The full model is set out in the methodology.

Season form

TeamGamesO2.5O3.5BTTS
Hamilton Academical250%50%0%
Airdrie United20%0%50%

Head to head

29 Nov 25Airdrie United 4–0 Hamilton AcademicalO2.5
8 Mar 25Airdrie United 2–1 Hamilton AcademicalO2.5
28 Dec 24Hamilton Academical 3–2 Airdrie UnitedO2.5
2 Nov 24Airdrie United 0–4 Hamilton AcademicalO2.5
31 Aug 24Hamilton Academical 2–2 Airdrie UnitedO2.5
20 May 23Hamilton Academical 2–1 Airdrie UnitedO2.5

More: Hamilton Academical season stats · Airdrie United season stats · League One table and form. Ratings are calibrated probabilities, not tips — a 60% call is expected to miss two times in five.