Suppose you place an online bet on tennis, and you already know you will win money regardless of who wins the match. The technique, known as arbitrage betting, may seem too good to be true, but in reality, it is rather widespread.
The practice of “arbing” has enabled many intelligent gamblers to triumph against bookmakers by eliminating the element of risk associated with gambling, ensuring that every possible angle is covered, and assuring a guaranteed return no matter the results bet may be.
How exactly does the betting strategy known as arbitrage work?
There are dozens of the greatest online betting companies competing for your business, and each one will give slightly different odds on the same athletic event. You may use these variances in some situations to guarantee a profit regardless of the situation’s outcome.
The first thing you need to do is locate a bookmaker that is providing odds that are better than the average odds offered by the market on a certain player winning a match. The next step is to locate an alternative bookmaker willing to give odds higher than the norm on his opponent winning the game in question. It is common to have the opportunity to place a wager on either participant to emerge victorious from a certain match while still guaranteeing a profit regardless of the outcome.
What are the mechanics behind the practice of arbitrage betting?
There are a variety of factors that could contribute to the appearance of these disparities. To stand out from the competition and lure in new clients, a bookmaker could provide odds that are better than the industry standard. Maybe it takes too long to respond to a change in the market, or a trader makes a mistake. Both of these scenarios are possible.
If you or someone you know is interested in learning more about arbitrage betting, the simplest way to do it is with an example:
Let’s assume that Bookmaker A is providing odds of 1.30 on Novak Djokovic defeating Nick Kyrgios and odds of 3.93 on a Kyrgios victory and that Bookmaker B is offering odds of 1.44 on Djokovic and odds of 2.90 on Kyrgios. Which bookmaker do you think has the better deal?
If you place a wager with Bookmaker A for £55 on Kyrgios to win at odds of 3.93 and a bet with Bookmaker B for £145 on Djokovic to win at odds of 1.44, you will earn a profit regardless of whether the player ends up victorious.
If Kyrgios wins, you will get a return of £216.15; if Djokovic wins, you will receive a return of £208.80; both amounts are more than the entire bet of £200 that you put.
The Benefits Associated with Participating in Arbitrage Betting
Arbitrage betting is the equivalent of searching for the Holy Grail for everyone interested in betting on sports online. It offers risk-free returns and ensures you will profit from your investment. It would be best if you were merely observant enough to spot disparities in the odds offered by various bookmakers and exhibit the requisite speed and talent to place your bets in a timely manner. It would be best if you kept an eye on betting exchanges, and in addition, you should benefit from free bets and sign-up bonuses wherever possible.
Most online betting websites will have attractive promotions in the days leading up to important competitions, matches, and other events. For instance, check out our rundown of bookmakers now providing free bets on the Grand National.
Arbitrage has its drawbacks, chief among them being that it may take up a lot of time. Since the margin you receive is fairly small and the odds you need to compare to locate an opportunity are quite high, you will need to spend significant money to get a modest return on your investment. On the other hand, you have the potential to generate a sizable profit over a considerable amount of time in the event that you work hard.
Cross-Market Arbitrage
The chances for you to lock in a guaranteed profit may expand when you engage in arbing across many markets. One illustration of this would be placing a wager with one bookmaker on Arsenal to win against Liverpool and then placing a bet with another bookmaker on Liverpool to draw a double chance. If you can uncover a significant enough difference in the odds, you can guarantee a profit regardless of how the game turns out.
While planning your live arbitrage betting strategy for football, another option is to combine the match goals market with the clean sheet market. If you bet on the home side to win by more than 0.5 goals and for the away team to maintain a clean sheet, and the odds for both outcomes are more than evens, then you are certain of a profit.
Cross-market arbs are often less visible to bookmakers than standard arbs, which is one reason why they frequently continue to be active for longer. Arbitrage is also a possibility for anybody interested in sports spread betting. This is because you may play competing sites against one another.
Is Arbitrage Betting Legal?
While arbitrage betting is legally legal, the great majority of bookmakers despise it, and they take precautions to prevent it from happening in their establishments. It is a technique to wager that does not involve any risk and may result in a profit, and clever arbers might take bookies to the cleaners if they did not fight. They have the authority to terminate or place restrictions on your account at any time, and they will not think twice about carrying out this right if they see behavior patterns consistent with arming.
A few betting sites allow arbers since they have faith in their traders, but the vast majority of betting sites will not allow it. They are not permitted to seize your profits and are required to pay out on bets that have already been made, but if you engage in arbing, you run the possibility of being banned for life.
Some gamblers can avoid detection by lowering the stakes of their wagers, betting on strange arbitrage and less popular sports, spreading their chances among a wide variety of bookmakers, and forming arbitrage partnerships with their acquaintances.
Applying Arbitrage Betting Online
You can locate the greatest pricing on various athletic events by using odds comparison websites, and you can also utilize these websites to uncover possible arbs. The next step is to create accounts with different online betting sites, and you must be ready to act swiftly whenever an opportunity presents itself.
Arbitrage in betting shops may make it simpler to avoid detection because you are not required to present any form of identification; however, working with online bookmakers is much more efficient, and many more bookmakers are available to choose from.
An exchange like Betfair is the place to go if you want to get odds different from the average on the market. Exchanges do not have any issues with arbing since they only let visitors bet against one another and collect a small commission fee on each wager made. If you browse Betfair Sports’ betting markets, you will encounter some exciting prospects for arbitrage betting, enabling you to plunge into this fascinating area.
