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Sportmonks vs OpenFoot API (2026)
Short answer: Sportmonks scores clearly higher overall (69 vs 49). OpenFoot API is the better pick for football developers who want a free-to-start REST API with fixtures, lineups, live events and shot-level xG, plus streams and webhooks on paid plans.
From public data checked . How we know
Choose Sportmonks if you…
Sports data API
Best for: Football apps and betting models that need many leagues, lineups, xG and stats on a self-serve monthly plan with a free tier and trial.
- ✓ need Cricket, Formula 1
- ✓ need commercial use allowed in the public terms
- ✓ value a large open-source ecosystem of wrappers and examples
- ✓ care most about what developers report in practice
Not ideal for: Projects that need US sports or the full league list on a small budget; leagues per plan are capped and history is on Enterprise only.
What developers say
Widely used paid football data API for side projects, dashboards and betting models, with many wrappers and GitHub repos. Users like the stats depth and reasonable price versus Opta or Sportradar, but call it pricey for hobby use, say premium odds lack player props, and report unreliable live data and sales or custom-plan frustrations.
Choose OpenFoot API if you…
Sports data API
Best for: Football developers who want a free-to-start REST API with fixtures, lineups, live events and shot-level xG, plus streams and webhooks on paid plans.
Not ideal for: Other sports or xG outside the top five leagues; the API is football-only and still labelled beta.
What developers say
Newer football API with a free tier and low-priced paid plans. Only one thread names it, listing it at about $14 a month among cheap options for post-match stats next to Sportmonks and API-Football. A community MCP server and a couple of hobby repos use it; no hands-on reviews yet.
Side by side
| Sportmonks | OpenFoot API | |
|---|---|---|
| SportDex Score | 69/100 (#4) | 49/100 (#60) |
| Popularity | 76 | 15 |
| Community & reliability | 49 | Not enough data |
| Transparency | 100 | 90 |
| Developer experience | 51 | 67 |
| Type | Sports data API | Sports data API |
| Starting price | from €29/mo | from $14/mo |
| Free tier | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | 14 days | Demo access |
| Sports | Football (soccer), Cricket, Formula 1 | Football (soccer) |
| Data | Fixtures, Historical data, Lineups, News, Odds, Player stats, Predictions, Live scores, Standings, Team stats, Widgets, xG | Fixtures, Lineups, Odds, Predictions, Results, Live scores, Standings, xG |
| Delivery | Polling only (REST) | Streaming (SSE) |
| Protocols | REST | REST, SSE, Webhooks |
| Live / in-play | Yes | Yes |
| Commercial use | Commercial: Allowed | Commercial: not disclosed |
| Betting products | Betting: not disclosed | Betting: not disclosed |
| Documentation | Docs | Docs |
| Developer discussions | 40 | 1 |
| GitHub repos | 207 | 3 |
| Community tone | Mixed | Too little discussion |
Empty fields mean the provider does not say, not that the feature is missing.
Quick answers
- Is Sportmonks or OpenFoot API better?
- Sportmonks scores clearly higher overall (69 vs 49). OpenFoot API is the better pick for football developers who want a free-to-start REST API with fixtures, lineups, live events and shot-level xG, plus streams and webhooks on paid plans.
- Which is cheaper, Sportmonks or OpenFoot API?
- Sportmonks: from €29/mo. OpenFoot API: from $14/mo. Entry plans differ in limits and coverage, so compare what each plan includes.
- Do Sportmonks and OpenFoot API have a free tier?
- Sportmonks: yes. OpenFoot API: yes.