Why is it called a Canadian bet?

The name comes from a type of combination bet popular in North American horse racing. In the UK, the same bet is also called a Super Yankee — because a Yankee covers 4 selections and the Canadian extends the format to 5. Both names refer to exactly the same bet structure.

How many winners do I need to profit on a Canadian?

It depends on the odds. At 3/1 average, 3 winners produces comfortable profit. At 5/1+, even 2 winners from a single double comes close to covering the £26 stake. The more winners at longer prices, the more combinations pay out.

What's the difference between a Canadian and a Heinz?

A Canadian covers 5 selections with 26 bets. A Heinz covers 6 selections with 57 bets. Both exclude singles. The Heinz costs more than double but adds significantly more combinations — including a six-fold accumulator. If your 6th pick is strong, the Heinz offers more upside. If it's marginal, the Canadian saves you £31 per unit.

Can I place a Canadian each way?

Yes. Each of the 26 bets becomes 2 (win and place), giving 52 total. A £1 each way Canadian costs £52. Each way Canadians are popular in horse racing where place terms add significant protection — even selections that place without winning contribute to the place doubles, trebles, and four-folds.

What is a Canadian bet? The Super Yankee explained with worked examples

Q: What is a Canadian bet?

A Canadian — also called a Super Yankee — is 26 bets across 5 selections: 10 doubles, 10 trebles, 5 four-folds, and 1 five-fold accumulator. No singles. A £1 Canadian costs £26. You need at least 2 winners for any return.

Last updated: April 2026

A Canadian bet — also known as a Super Yankee — is 26 bets across 5 selections: 10 doubles, 10 trebles, 5 four-folds, and 1 five-fold accumulator. No singles. You need at least 2 winners for any return. A £1 Canadian costs £26. It sits between a Yankee (4 selections, 11 bets) and a Heinz (6 selections, 57 bets) in the full-cover bet family. If you've wondered whats a Canadian bet or why it's also called a Super Yankee, this is the Canadian bet explained in full — with real examples, honest break-even maths, and a clear guide to when it's worth the £26 outlay.

Try the Canadian Calculator → Work out your returns instantly with our free canadian calculator.

How does a Canadian bet work?

A Canadian takes 5 selections and creates every possible combination of 2, 3, 4, and 5 — excluding singles:

Bet Type	Count	What it covers
Doubles	10	Every possible pair from your 5 selections
Trebles	10	Every possible group of 3
Four-folds	5	Every possible group of 4
Five-fold	1	All 5 selections combined
Total	26 bets

Why is it called a Super Yankee? Because a Yankee covers 4 selections without singles, and the Canadian extends the same no-singles format to 5. The "Canadian" name comes from North American horse racing; "Super Yankee" is the UK equivalent. They're the same bet.

Canadian bet example — horse racing

Five selections across an afternoon at York:

Selection	Horse	Odds	Race
A	Northern Light	3/1 (4.00)	2:00
B	Silver Express	5/1 (6.00)	2:35
C	Storm Warning	4/1 (5.00)	3:10
D	Dark Thunder	7/2 (4.50)	3:45
E	Golden Arrow	3/1 (4.00)	4:20

£1 Canadian = £26 total stake

All 5 win

Bet Type	Count	Approximate Returns
10 doubles	10	Ranges from £16 to £30 per double. Total ≈ £213
10 trebles	10	Ranges from £72 to £135 per treble. Total ≈ £1,068
5 four-folds	5	Ranges from £360 to £540. Total ≈ £2,268
1 five-fold	1	4×6×5×4.5×4 = £2,160
Total	26	≈ £5,709

Profit: ≈ £5,683. The five-fold and four-folds account for over 75% of the returns.

4 of 5 win (A, B, C, D win — E loses)

Every bet containing E loses. That eliminates 4 doubles, 6 trebles, 4 four-folds, and the five-fold. What survives:

Surviving Bets	Count	Returns
6 doubles (AB, AC, AD, BC, BD, CD)	6	£141.50
4 trebles (ABC, ABD, ACD, BCD)	4	£453.00
1 four-fold (ABCD)	1	£540.00
Total	11	£1,134.50

Profit: £1,108.50. Four winners from 5 at these odds produces over £1,000 profit.

3 of 5 win (A, B, C win)

3 surviving doubles + 1 surviving treble:

Bet	Returns
Double AB	£24.00
Double AC	£20.00
Double BC	£30.00
Treble ABC	£120.00
Total	£194.00

Profit: £168.00. Three winners at 3/1 to 5/1 comfortably clears the £26 stake.

2 of 5 win (A and B only)

One surviving double: AB = 4.00 × 6.00 = £24.00. Loss: £2.00. At these odds, 2 winners nearly breaks even. At slightly longer odds (both at 4/1+), even a single winning double covers the stake.

The temptation when 2 of 5 results in a small loss is to increase stakes next time to "make up for it." That's the sunk cost fallacy — the £2 loss is gone regardless. Each Canadian should be staked independently based on your budget, not on yesterday's results.

Our Canadian calculator models every scenario with your exact odds.

Canadian vs Lucky 31 — with or without singles?

Both cover 5 selections. The difference:

	Canadian	Lucky 31
Total bets	26	31
Singles?	No	Yes (5)
Cost (£1)	£26	£31
1-winner return	£0	Single's odds + consolation bonus
Consolation bonus	No	Yes

At short odds (under 3/1), the Canadian saves £5 per unit without losing much — short-priced singles return too little to justify the premium. At longer odds (4/1+), the Lucky 31's singles and consolation bonus have real value — a single winner at 8/1 with double-odds bonus returns £18, covering more than half the Lucky 31's cost.

Canadian vs Yankee vs Heinz

	Yankee	Canadian	Heinz
Selections	4	5	6
Total bets	11	26	57
Cost (£1)	£11	£26	£57
Highest combo	Four-fold	Five-fold	Six-fold

Each step up adds a selection and roughly doubles the cost. The Canadian sits in the middle — significantly more coverage than a Yankee, but less than half the cost of a Heinz. If you have exactly 5 strong picks, the Canadian is the natural choice. If you're stretching to find a 5th, a Yankee on your best 4 is cheaper and more focused.

Canadian betting in different sports

Horse racing

The Canadian's natural home. Five selections across an afternoon card at Cheltenham, Ascot, or York is the textbook scenario. At typical racing odds (3/1 to 8/1), 3 winners from 5 is realistic and produces strong returns. The four-folds and five-fold provide the explosive upside while the doubles and trebles provide the safety net. Our horse racing guide covers how to assess fields and odds at major meetings.

Football

A football Canadian combines 5 match results. At typical Premier League odds (1.50-2.50), the maths is tighter — you generally need 4+ winners to see meaningful profit because the individual odds are low. Football Canadians work better on cup weekends or Championship fixtures where prices are more generous.

Mixed sports

Canadians work across sports — 2 horse racing picks, 2 football matches, 1 tennis match. The selections just need to be in separate events. Mixed-sport Canadians are common on busy Saturday afternoons when there's action across multiple sports simultaneously.

The maths — is a Canadian worth it?

Winners	At 2/1 (3.00)	At 4/1 (5.00)	At 6/1 (7.00)
0	−£26	−£26	−£26
1	−£26	−£26	−£26
2	−£17	−£1	+£23
3	+£19	+£169	+£555
4	+£157	+£2,419	+£11,459
5	+£703	+£21,849	+£159,257

Returns for a £1 Canadian (£26 stake). Assumes all selections at the same odds.

At 2/1, you need 3 winners to profit. At 4/1, 2 winners nearly breaks even. At 6/1+, 2 winners produces clear profit. The Canadian's value scales dramatically with odds.

Frequently asked questions

Written by

David Burke

David is a gambling industry analyst and poker player based between London, Spain, and Malta. He has spent over a decade observing the European betting and casino landscape, with particular expertise in odds, probability, game strategy, and how the bookmaking industry works. At WiseStaker, David writes guides on bet types, game rules, and the mathematics behind gambling.

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