FAQ

Pre-match arbs are arbitrage opportunities that arise before a sporting event begins, meaning at the stage when bookmakers set their odds in advance, and the game has not yet started. Unlike live arbs, which occur during an event and require a quick reaction, pre-match arbs allow players to place bets with more time to spare.

How Do Pre-Match Arbs Work?

Pre-match arbs occur when different bookmakers offer varying odds on the outcomes of the same sporting event. These discrepancies arise for several reasons, such as differing analyses of the event, incorrectly set odds, or the bookmaker's attempt to balance their risks.

Example: If one bookmaker offers odds of 2.10 on team A winning, and another bookmaker offers odds of 2.05 on team B winning, a player can bet on both teams with different bookmakers and guarantee a profit regardless of the match outcome.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Pre-Match Arbs

Advantages:

• More time for analysis: Pre-match arbs allow players to assess bets and allocate their budget more thoroughly, reducing the likelihood of errors.
• Stability of odds: Since the event has not yet started, odds change less frequently than in live betting, making the betting process more predictable.
• Accessibility for beginners: Pre-match arbs are easier for beginners as they don’t require instant reaction.

Disadvantages:

• Sanctions from bookmakers are quicker and more frequent: Since pre-match arbs are visible in advance, bookmakers may monitor arbitrage players and impose restrictions on their accounts.
• Risk of odds changes: If odds change after placing one of the bets, the arb may disappear, and the player may lose part of their funds. In this article, we explained how to minimize the risk of such a situation.

Overall, pre-match arbs are suitable for players who want to earn stable profits without the rush and pressure typical of live betting.

A soft bookmaker is a betting company aimed at a broad audience of amateur bettors, aiming to provide more flexible and "user-friendly" betting conditions, especially for beginners. Unlike "sharp" bookmakers, soft bookmakers generally do not welcome professional arbitrage bettors.

Main Characteristics of Soft Bookmakers

• Attractive Bonuses and Promotions: They often offer lucrative bonuses, promotions, and free bets to attract a large, general audience.

• Broad Selection for Popular Events: Soft bookmakers usually offer a wider range of betting options on popular sports and major events.

• Relatively Lower Odds: Soft bookmakers tend to have lower odds compared to professional bookmakers. This approach allows them to minimize risks by attracting a high volume of casual bettors rather than relying on precise calculations.

• Slower Odds Adjustment: Odds at soft bookmakers are not updated as quickly as at sharp bookmakers.

A sharp bookmaker, on the other hand, is a betting company aimed at professional bettors.

Main Characteristics of Sharp Bookmakers

• Accurate and Higher Odds: Sharp bookmakers often provide more competitive odds on sports events due to their advanced analysis and prediction systems. This appeals to experienced bettors who value high odds.

• Minimal or No Bonuses and Promotions: Such bookmakers rarely offer bonuses or promotions to attract casual bettors, as their target audience consists of experienced bettors betting for the efficiency of high odds rather than promotional incentives.

• Quick Reaction to Odds Changes: Sharp bookmakers swiftly adjust odds in response to changes in probabilities, helping them avoid significant losses in fast-moving markets.

• High Bet Limits: Unlike soft bookmakers, sharp bookmakers often allow high-stakes bets on sports events, as their primary audience is professional bettors with high betting volumes.

In general, soft bookmakers are better suited for casual bettors who value simplicity and accessibility in betting rather than high odds or professional opportunities for profit. Conversely, sharp bookmakers are attractive to experienced bettors and those knowledgeable in professional betting.

Negative middles in betting are a strategy where a bettor bets on opposing outcomes of a single event, with a scenario where both bets may win simultaneously under certain conditions. Generally, these middles imply that both outcomes cover different possibilities in the same event, but the odds do not fully cover each other. When the event outcome falls into the middle, both bets are successful.

Example of a Negative Middle

Imagine a football match where you have two possible bets on the total goals:

• Total over 2.5 goals with odds of 2.0

• Total under 3.5 goals with odds of 1.8

For example, your betting budget is 100 dollars. You place 50 dollars on the first bet with odds of 2.0 and 50 dollars on the second bet with odds of 1.8.

Possible bet outcomes after the match:

• If exactly 3 goals are scored, both bets win, and you receive a payout on both: 2.0×50+1.8×50 =175 dollars.
• If 4, 5, or more goals are scored, only the first bet wins with a payout of 2.0×50 = 100 dollars. The second bet loses, resulting in a net outcome of 0 dollars.
• If 0, 1, or 2 goals are scored, only the second bet wins with a payout of 1.8×50 = 75 dollars. The first bet loses, the overall result is negative -25 dollars (hence the name negative middle)/

Features and Risks

• Potential Profit: If the event outcome falls into the "middle" (in this example, exactly 3 goals), both bets win, resulting in increased profit.
• Risk of Loss: Unlike surebets, where any combination of outcomes results in a profit, some outcomes in negative middles can be unprofitable.

The "Both Teams to Score" bet, often abbreviated as "BTTS," is a popular betting market, especially in football. This type of bet predicts that both teams in a match will score at least one goal each, regardless of the final outcome. The bet offers two options — "Yes" and "No." If you choose "Yes," you are betting that both teams will score. On the other hand, selecting "No" means you expect that at least one of the teams will fail to score, or neither team will score at all.

Key Features of the "Both Teams to Score" Bet

1. Simplicity and Clarity: BTTS is one of the simplest types of bets as it doesn’t require predicting the match winner but only focuses on whether both teams will score or not.
2. Exclusivity to Football: The BTTS market is almost exclusive to football and is included in nearly every bookmaker’s lineup. These bets generally come with attractive odds due to their straightforward nature. For bookmakers, this market provides good margins, while it offers fewer opportunities for arbitrage bettors.
3. Easy to Understand: The straightforward nature of the BTTS bet makes it popular with beginners, as understanding the outcome is easy without deep technical analysis.
4. Potential for Quick Wins: A "Yes" outcome on BTTS can be confirmed relatively quickly in a game — after all, a goal only takes a moment to score. As a result, these bets are often popular in weekend "combo" bets. Conversely, bets on "Both Teams to Score — No" may need to be held until the final moments of the game.
5. In-Play BTTS Betting: Live BTTS bets are open until the last few minutes of a match if one team has yet to score, making them suitable for live betting strategies.
6. Settlement Terms: BTTS bets are settled only based on the regular 90 minutes of play, excluding any extra time.

The registration and verification process is undoubtedly an important part of working with arbitrage betting ("surebets"). However, people who engage in arbitrage are usually already familiar with betting, have opened accounts with bookmakers, and so on.

Which rules often differ across various bookmakers? What should you pay attention to in order to avoid losing on a surebet?

Bonus Credit and Withdrawal Rules

Many bookmakers offer bonuses to new users: welcome bonuses for registration or the first deposit. However, it is important to understand that bonuses often come with strict wagering requirements. For example, in order to withdraw bonus funds, you may be required to wager an amount equal to six times the deposit. Alternatively, there may be other actions required, often with time limitations. It’s crucial to carefully study these conditions to avoid finding yourself in a situation where the bonus is difficult to withdraw or not profitable.

You should also pay attention to the validity period of the bonuses and possible restrictions on betting on specific types of sports or events.

Deposit and Withdrawal Rules

Depositing funds generally does not cause problems. The only issues you might encounter are minimum and maximum deposit limits.

One of the most important rules to carefully examine is the conditions for withdrawing funds. Some bookmakers set minimum withdrawal amounts, restrict the use of certain payment systems, or have specific processing times for withdrawal requests. While some bookmakers process withdrawals within a few minutes, others may take several days. You also need to account for possible withdrawal fees or other hidden charges.

Bet Cancellation Policy

Bookmakers reserve the right to cancel bets under certain circumstances. For example, if it is determined that a match was fixed or there were technical errors in calculating the odds. It’s important to closely study the rules that allow a bookmaker to cancel bets so that you’re prepared for such situations. Typically, canceled bets are refunded with odds of 1.0, meaning the bettor only gets back the amount they originally wagered. While an ordinary bettor doesn’t lose money directly, in arbitrage betting, if one part of the surebet is settled with odds of 1.0 and the other part of the bet loses, this results in a net loss.

Bet Settlement Rules

Each bookmaker sets its own rules for settling bets, particularly in unusual circumstances. For instance, there may be differences in how bookmakers handle bets on events that have been postponed or interrupted. Some bookmakers cancel such bets immediately, while others keep the bets active and wait for the match to resume—sometimes up to 24 hours, or even 48 hours. This can be problematic if these bets are part of a surebet. Incidentally, many arbitrage betting scanners offer filters that allow you to choose bookmakers with matching bet settlement rules.

Betting Limits and Restrictions

Some bookmakers set limits on the amount you can bet. These can include both minimum and maximum bet amounts, especially for surebettors who win large sums. Bookmakers may lower the limits for successful bettors, reducing their ability to place large bets. It’s possible that one bookmaker has already reduced your limits, while another has not, and this restriction could be applied just seconds before you place a bet. Therefore, before placing a surebet, it’s important to check the available limits for all your bets.

Conclusion

Studying bookmaker rules is just as crucial a step in arbitrage betting as any other. We hope that our recommendations help you avoid financial losses and unpleasant surprises.

Traditionally, experienced bettors recommend focusing on the following markets when searching for value bets (overpriced odds):

• Asian Handicap/Point Spread
• Totals Markets (Over/Under)
• 1X2 Markets (Match Winner)
• Double Chance
• Both Teams to Score

Why These Markets?

1. Liquidity Allows for Larger Bets: Liquidity is crucial as it ensures that you can place significant amounts without heavily impacting the odds. On markets with high liquidity, your bets do not drastically shift the odds, allowing you to maintain your advantage. In contrast, on less popular markets or events, even a small $100 bet could significantly alter the odds, potentially eliminating the value.

2. Wide Range of Odds: These markets typically offer a broad spectrum of odds, which allows you to select those that suit your betting strategy, whether you prefer lower or higher odds. When placing value bets, having a wide variety of odds to choose from is always beneficial.

3. Analytical Methods: Effective methods of analysis exist for these markets, enabling bettors to identify value opportunities. For instance, analyzing match statistics, goals, or points can provide insights into the probability of certain outcomes. Popular analytical methods include Poisson distribution and expected goals (xG) models, which have become valuable tools for assessing bets. If you're not inclined to spend significant time calculating value bets, there are automated services that do this for you.

betting bankroll is the amount of money a player sets aside specifically for sports betting. It acts as a sort of "betting budget" that helps manage finances and minimize the risk of losing everything. The main idea behind a bankroll is that the player only uses an amount they are willing to lose, and they do not exceed this budget, even in cases of losses or wins.

Key features of a bankroll

• Risk management: A bankroll allows a player to place a certain percentage of their total funds on each bet, protecting them from large losses in case of failures. For example, if your bankroll is 10,000 rubles, you can place 1-2% of this amount on each bet (100-200 rubles).

• Long-term play: Proper bankroll management allows for betting over the long term, avoiding drastic losses, and providing the opportunity to gradually grow capital.

• Emotional control: With a clearly defined bankroll, a player is less prone to emotional decisions (such as trying to recover losses after a defeat or placing everything after a big win).

Main bankroll management strategies

• Fixed bets: The player always bets the same percentage of their bankroll (e.g., 1-5%), regardless of the event.

• Kelly criterion: This method is used to optimize the size of the bet based on the probability of winning and the offered odds.

• Bankroll splitting: Sometimes the bankroll can be divided into portions for different strategies or sports.

Bankroll management is one of the key components of a successful sports betting strategy, as it helps players minimize risks and make the most rational use of their capital.

The most important thing in any betting is not to rush—almost always, rushing leads to losing money.

Work at a pace that is comfortable for you. It’s crucial to treat arbitrage betting like a job—set aside time when you won’t be distracted and have at least an hour available. Over time, as you gain experience and skill, you’ll be able to place arbitrage bets in as little as 2-3 minutes during free moments, but at the start, you need to understand how everything works.

If you already have experience in sports betting, it will be a big advantage—you’re already familiar with betting, bookmaker rules, what markets they offer, and how to choose and place bets.

In the beginning, it usually takes about 5 to 15 minutes to place an arbitrage bet, but this depends on several factors:

Player experience: The more experience you have in finding and placing arbitrage bets, the faster you’ll be able to find the right odds and place the bet.

Tools: Using special tools for finding arbitrage opportunities, such as arbitrage scanners, can significantly reduce the time needed. They automatically find potential arbitrage bets and save time on analysis.

Betting bankroll: If you need to top up your account or withdraw funds for arbitrage betting, this can also take extra time. For safety and to avoid account blocking, it’s better not to frequently withdraw money from betting accounts.

Therefore, by using automated tools and gaining experience, you can reduce the time it takes to place an arbitrage bet to 2-5 minutes.

n sports betting, a banker (or "bank" in some cases) is a term that refers to the most reliable bet in an accumulator or a series of bets. It is considered that the likelihood of winning this bet is extremely high. Typically, when a player includes a "banker" in their accumulator, the other bets may be riskier, but this selection is added as a guaranteed or almost guaranteed win, which increases the overall chances of success for the entire accumulator.

It is important to understand that even a "banker" does not guarantee a 100% win, but it is generally perceived as a low-risk bet. To place a risk-free bet, you can use the arbitrage betting strategy.

Moneyline is an American term equivalent to the European concept of "match market." It means that the bet is placed on the outcome of a game or match. The labels "1" and "2" refer to the results: 1 for the first opponent, 2 for the second.

The 12 Moneyline market is used in sports, events, and matches where only two outcomes are possible, and a draw is excluded.

A clear and simple example of a sport where only the 12 Moneyline market is available is tennis, where only a win by the first or second opponent is possible. 12 Moneyline bets are also offered for final results, including overtime or shootouts, in sports like hockey, basketball, and American football.

If the game ends in a tie at the end of regular time when using the 12 Moneyline market, your bet remains active until a winner is determined in overtime, extra innings, or a shootout.

This lower level of risk is often reflected in the betting odds. Theoretically, when betting on the 1x2 market, you have a 33% chance of winning, as there are three possible outcomes. By eliminating the draw and choosing between two outcomes, the chance of winning increases to 50%. Therefore, odds on such markets are lower due to the reduced risk for the bettor and increased risk for the bookmaker.

Pros and cons of 12 Moneyline bets:

• Moneyline bets are the most popular, and every bookmaker, even with a modest offering, includes Moneyline bets.
• Moneyline bets usually offer the highest possible betting limits and good market liquidity for most sports and leagues, making them equally suitable for both professional and casual bettors.
• In some sports, such as tennis, depending on the bookmaker's rules, if only one set is played and the athlete wins it but then withdraws due to injury, the loss will be attributed to that player, and thus to the bet on them.
• Moneyline odds are the most carefully and accurately evaluated compared to other sports betting markets. Therefore, they are less suitable for finding overvalued odds (value bets).

Conclusion on 12 Moneyline bets:

It is reasonably believed that in this type of betting, the probability of winning is higher than in bets with three possible outcomes. To win the bet, the selected team must win the game, regardless of whether it happens in regular time, overtime, or after penalties or shootouts.

If the game is tied at the end of regular time, the bet is not settled yet; it's neither a loss nor a refund—wait for the match's outcome after overtime, etc.

P.S. There is a separate 1x2 Moneyline market, where a draw is also included, marked as "X." The results of bets are calculated based on the outcome of regular time (four quarters in basketball, three periods in hockey, or nine innings in American football). This market is often called the "main outcome."