All posts by Mike Zimmerman

Cartoon Image of Man Celebrating After Being Awarded with Money He's Won

The Benefits of Sports Betting

Sports betting is one of the most fast-growing and exciting ways to enjoy sporting events. Betting on sports events has been happening for hundreds of years, maybe longer in some ancient groups. In recent years, sports betting has seen a massive increase in popularity mainly due to the internet. This is attractive for many as this means that people can bet on the go without having to go into a bookmaker’s shop. The convenience factor should mean that sports betting could see continued growth in the coming years. Sports betting is offered in almost every sport to ever exist including football, boxing & basketball. With sports betting you can go further than just betting on who will win the event, you can bet on what minute the first goal will go in or what round the boxing match will end. Sports betting is being developed continuously, with request a bet seeing a rise in popularity. This where popular bets that the public has asked for are now on the market. In this blog post, we will talk you through the advantages of getting into sports betting.

Increased Entertainment

Many people get into sports betting because of the entertainment factor. Viewing live sports is always exciting, however, if you’re betting on the sporting event as well it can make it more thrilling. If you’re watching games that you aren’t interested in, sports betting is a perfect way to get you absorbed in who wins the game.

Affordable Fun

Some people may call you crazy for putting bets on sporting events, people will say this whether you’re spending £5 or £500. They aren’t giving sports betting the respect it deserves, it brings excitement to many people’s lives. Look from the viewpoint that betting on sports events is like you’re paying for entertainment; it is an affordable form of entertainment. However, there should always be limits to your betting habits. You should only put money on that you can afford on a bet.

If you think you have a gambling problem or know someone with a gambling problem, please click here.

Possibility of Making a Profit

Possibly the best part of about betting on sports events is that you can make money. Irrespective of the size of the bet you have placed, the feeling of winning money off your bet doesn’t only give you a good feeling, it can help pad your wallet out. If you’re great at predicting the outcome of sports events, sports betting could be for you.

 Learning New Sports

Watching sports events is always better when you understand the game. It may take a couple of times of watching a sport to understand how it works. This means watching a new sport could prove boring and confusing, however, if you put a bet on the game it forces you to watch the sport and turn boring learning into exciting learning.

Simple to Get Started

Some sports take a while to get into and require expensive equipment to get started. Sports betting is the opposite, simply sign up to a betting app on your phone and start betting. You can simply put a limit of £5 on to get you started. With the growth of online bookies, you can bet on the go without having to go into bookmakers. It is most definitely one of the easiest hobbies to start!

In Conclusion

There are many positives in starting sports betting, however you need to bet the amount you feel comfortable losing. It’s very easy to lose control when betting and can be dangerous for your health and financial wellbeing. Focusing on the positives though, betting on sporting events can be a great way to enjoy sports!

BetSlayer does not offer sports betting.  BetSlayer offers sure bets? Sure bets or sports arbitrage bets are when a punter makes multiple bets on the same event to guarantee a profit no matter the result of the match. Want to get started with arbitrage betting? Start now by signing up to our subscription plan to get all of the latest sure betting tips.

Arbing/Sure Bets – The Do’s and Don’ts

At BetSlayer, we get asked a lot of different questions around the sure bets or arbs.  These handy do’s and don’ts apply to not only BetSlayer but to our more expensive competitors.

1. Don’t Place a Bet without Checking the Odds First!

Before placing any bet, Always, ALWAYS! check your odds at the bookies versus the odds on the arb website.  Every arb provider has false positives.  This will happen when the bookies update their odds before the arb website.

2. Do Watch Before Jumping In

A common mistake is to start arbing right away.  We know that you’re excited to get in on the sure bet opportunity.  However, it is a good idea to watch the sure bets.  Go to the bookies websites and make “fake” bets first.  By waiting you can start tracking which bookies work best for you; later you can take advantage of funding bonuses and then start arbing. 

BetSlayer has a 7-day free trial.  This helps customers get acclimatised to the bookies and exchanges that they want to use.

3. Do Try and Round Your Bets to the Nearest 5 or 10

Some of the bookies do not look to fondly on arbers.  So, you want to keep a low profile.  Start with smaller bets under £100 and try to round your bets to the nearest 5 or 10.  Also…

4. Don’t Bet Pennies

Make sure you round your bet to the nearest pound.  While you may not perfectly maximize the arb opportunity, betting pences is an arbing red flag for the bookies.

5. Do Give Some Back to the Bookies

If you are consistently winning at the same bookie, it is important to throw in a loss or two for smaller amounts of money.  While this may eat into some of your profits it will help reduce the risk of getting limited by the bookies.  A 4 team+ parlay is a good option for giving some quid back.  For every £100 of winnings, try a £10 parlay.

6. Don’t Move Money In and Out of the Bookies

It’s exciting to win money from the bookies.  However, it is important to keep the winnings held at the bookies for a decent amount of time.  Try to hold off on making too many withdrawals, aiming for one withdrawal every 3 months.  If you are moving money in and out of bookies it is a red flag.  You want to look like a punter not an arber.

7. Do Get a VPN

Some bookies limit the punter by geo-location.  To help increase your chances of placing sure bets, you should use a VPN.  There are a number of free and inexpensive VPN providers.  A VPN will give you the ability to switch from the U.K. to Hong Kong to Australia and even the United States.  We’ve experienced high success with ExpressVPN; here is a sign-up special offer and 30-day money-back guarantee.

8. Don’t Quit Your Day Job

Arbing is a nice way to increase your overall income.  You can spend relatively small amount of time placing your sure bets.  You should however view this as extra income not your primary income.  Extra income from arbitrage betting can help you to catch up on credit card bills, buy extra Christmas or birthday presents, pay for a holiday or build up a rainy-day fund.  If you quit your day job, you will run the risk of being limited by the bookies with no warning and then you will have no income at all.  You should be very wary of any arbitage website that touts huge returns.

9. Do Watch the Time

The closer it gets to match-time.  The more likely the lines will move.  This will cause discrepancies between odds presented in the sure bets feed versus the odds at the bookie.  Most likely, the sure bet will not be there as odds are moving quickly.  This also brings us back to our first recommendation – Don’t place a bet without checking the odds first!

10. Don’t Get Frustrated

There are a number of factors that can affect an arbitage bet.  Fast moving odds, odds presented on your surebets site but not on the bookies website, arb % return not to your liking, etc.  Some days the presented sure bets on BetSlayer are great.  Some days the odds move or the odds are not on the bookies website and there can be some false positives.  Ensure that you don’t get frustrated.  BetSlayer presents the top odds by bookie for each match.  So if the first bookie didn’t work, see if the next bookie on the list will work.  Alternatively, if there is an over/under bet repeating that didn’t work for a certain match, feel free to skip other over/under for the same match. 

The goal is to make some money each day.  BetSlayer presents a lot of good, new sure bets every day.  You will quickly gain experience to help identify good arbs quickly.  The longer you put in the work the easier and more profitable sure betting will become.

Image of monitor with text saying Palpable Error

Do Bookmakers Make Mistakes? – Beware of the Palpable Error

First, a quick review of arbitrage betting or sure bets.  Arbitrage betting occurs when 2 or more bookies differ on the odds of an event.  The difference is big enough where you can place a bet on all outcomes of the event and make a small profit.  BetSlayer’s website identifies the games, the bookies and does the math to determine if there is a betting arbitrage opportunity.

Wow!  arbitrage betting sounds great.  It is pretty cool.  But, there are some pitfalls.  Today, we will be discussing one of those pitfalls.  Palpable Error or Obvious Error.  A Palpable error occurs when a bookmaker has flipped the odds on a certain event.  For example, the favorite is listed as an underdog or the favorites or underdogs odds are grossly understated.

Not to make anyone angry, but let’s take an upcoming match Chelsea v. Aston Villa.  Barring something crazy happening, we can expect Chelsea to be favored.  Let say the odds to win (draw no bet) at most bookmakers look like this:

Aston Villa 4.0 (+300 for the Americans)

Chelsea 1.22 (-450 for the Americans)

In this situation, put up £100 on Aston Villa and return £400 (£300 profit) or put up £450 on Chelsea to return £550 (£100 profit).  These odds make sense for these two teams and the expected outcome of the game.  But, occasionally, the bookmakers flip the odds by mistake.  Let’s say William Hill, a well known and reputable bookmaker, flips the odds to:

Aston Villa 1.22

Chelsea 4.0

But, LadBroker’s has the odds the correct way at:

Aston Villa 4.0

Chelsea 1.22

Between these two bookmakers, a huge betting arbitrage opportunity exists.  If you put £100 on Chelsea at William Hill and you put £100 on Aston Villa at LadBrokers, then you have £200 at risk, but your payout is guaranteed at £400 (assuming the match isn’t a draw).  The £200 guaranteed win computes to a 100% return on your bet without any risk.  Nowhere in the world is there a 100% return without any risk.  Certainly, not in any betting arbitrage scenario.

So, what happens?  Most likely, William Hill will recognize this error.  They will call it a palpable error and void the bet. 

Uh oh, I already placed the other side of my arbitrage bet at LadBrokers.  What do I do now?   William Hill’s timing to reverse the bet is the key.  There are three scenarios:

  1. William Hill voids the bet before the match starts – This gives you an opportunity to hedge your Aston Villa bet.  Since the match did not start yet, you can look for the best odds at another bookmaker to hedge on Chelsea.  Let’s say you can find Chelsea 1.28 at Paddy Power and put up £312 that returns £399 for a profit of £87.  If Chelsea wins, you have minimized your loss from £100 (original bet on Aston Villa) down to £13 (£87 win on Chelsea – £100 loss on Aston Villa).  If Aston Villa wins the match, you will lose £12 (£300 win on Aston Villa – £312 loss on Chelsea).  If the match is a draw, then no harm no foul as both bets return to you.  Below is visual presentation of this hedge scenario:

2. William Hill voids the bet during the match – This is a little trickier.  Many bookmakers have in-game wagering.  During the match, you will be offered a moving line as the bookmakers continually adjust the odds based on game action.  You can find a line to hedge your loss as discussed above.  Or there may be an opportunity to execute a profitable arbitrage. 

In the arbitrage scenario, let’s say Aston Villa scores 25 minutes into the match.  After the goal, the odds that Aston Villa wins and Chelsea loses changes.  So, the in-game wagering could look like Chelsea 1.4 (instead of the pre-game odds of Chelsea 1.22).  Now, you have an arbitrage opportunity. 

You could place an in-game bet on Chelsea of £287 to return £401 (a profit of £114).  So, if Chelsea comes back to win the match, you win £114 on the in-game Chelsea wager and lose £100 on the originally Aston Villa wager.  This nets you a profit of £14.  On the other hand, if Aston Villa holds on and wins the game, you will receive £400 (£300 profit).  The £300 profit on Aston Villa less the £287 in-game wager on Chelsea nets you a profit of £13. You now have a good arbitrage bet in place where you win no matter which team wins the match.

3. William Hill voids the bet after the match – Here you are SOL.  Can this happen after the match is over?  Sure, most bookmakers include the ability to void a bet especially in the case of a palpable error.

So, what does this all mean?  It means be aware of the really good-looking betting arbitrage returns.  Anything 10% or greater is at great risk to be called a palpable error.  When your arbitrage return is under 10%, the chance that a bookmaker will call a palpable error declines dramatically.  BetSlayer’s website clearly identifies the percentage return to help you navigate your way through this potential pitfall.

As always, comments and questions are encouraged.  Happy Arbing!

Since you made it this far, please feel free to sign up for the free, no credit card required 7 day free trial.  When you are ready to get access to all of BetSlayer’s system, use code GO19 to get £30 of your first month (£49 per month thereafter).

What is Arbing? Image

What is Arbing?

What is Arbing Betting?

Arbing is a form of betting where you can bet on all outcomes of an event and still make a profit. You do this by simultaneously betting on all outcomes on different bookies that guarantee profit, whatever the result of the sports event.

Arbing has been around since bookmakers began but the rise of online bookmakers & the competition between them has led to an increase in the amount of arbing opportunities that have arisen.

This type of betting is also known as arbing betting, arbitrage betting, arb betting, surebetting, surewins, miraclebets, sure bets or just arbs. An Arb is when the opportunity for profit regardless of outcomes arises, people who do this type of betting are called arbers. Unlike normal sports bettors, arbers normally have no interest in the sport they are betting on, they are just interested in the opportunity for profit.

Arbing Betting or Sports Arbitrage Betting to give it it’s full name, is popular throughout europe with many people using it to make a side income online and beat the bookies. In this article we will go over exactly what arbing is, examples of arb bets & answers to the most commonly asked questions about arbitrage betting.

Arbing opportunities arise when there is uncertainty surrounds the outcome of an event. Basically where bookmakers disagree on the probability of an outcome, arbitrage opportunities arise.

What is arbitrage betting?

Arbitrage Betting takes advantage of the high competition in odds between online bookmakers. When bookmakers odds vary enough we can bet on all outcomes of the event and win a profit of around 2-10% no matter what.

This may seem like a small return of £2-10 at first (given a £100 stake) but over time this can lead to great profits, especially as on some events you can bet upwards of a £300 total stake on a single arb which means £15-30 per trade!

Arbitrage is similar to matched betting but instead of using free bets to get a risk-free profit it uses the natural variation in odds instead.

Arbitrage betting has been dubbed as “the only way to make constant profit” in sports betting and there are tens of thousands of people who regularly arb because it is typically a far better way to invest money than a bank.

How does arbing work?

For Example you bet on a football match.

Swansea v Wolves

The odds for the game to have total goals of over 2.5 has odds of 2.6

The odds for the game to have total goals of under 2.5 has odds of 1.75

We place a total stake of £100 and have covered all outcomes.

We make £4 profit if Outcome A happens & £5 profit if outcome B happens.

Outcome A

£40 - stake

Marathon

2.6 x 40 = £104 (+£4)

Outcome B

£60 - stake

188Bet

1.75 x 60 = £105 (+£5)

To break down what is shown above:

If there are over 2.5 goals in the match, your return will be a total of £104 (2.6 x £40=£104) = £4 profit

If there are under 2.5 goals in the match, your return will be a total of £105 (1.75 x £60=£105) = £5 profit

Remember we’ve only place a total of £100 so anything over this figure is profit.

What do bookies think of arbing?

Arbing is completely legal but bookmakers don’t like it too much because they think it costs them money. Arbers don’t actually know which outcome will happen so if the bookies lose it’s just bad luck but many people believe if you just bet on “best odds” every time then the bookies will take notice. Arbitrage bettors accounts normally last less than a year but in that time they can make some big profits. When a bookie stops you receiving promotions it’s called being gubbed. When a bookie limits how much you can place on an event, it’s called being limited.

How much money can I make?

It depends on your arb betting bankroll. Many people can make £500 or more every month, but it also depends on how much time you have available.

What does arbing software do?

Arbing betting opportunities normally only last an average of 15 minutes so you have to be quick. Arbing software like Betslayer updates the odds of an arb in real time and navigates you to the correct event on the bookmaker making the arbing process much quicker and easier. They also have tools to track your arbing profits.

Arbing mistakes to avoid?

It’s important you always double check the arb market you are betting on. It’s also important you open both windows side by side to ensure you can lock in the bets without delay. It’s also important that you practise small stakes trading when starting arbitrage betting because in that way you learn quickly and then when the stakes are higher you are less likely to make arbing mistakes. Also It’s important you have a back up plan. Always place the higher number stake first because that means you will never run into a situation where one side of the arb is locked in but on the other side the bookies only allows a lower figure. Another thing to note is that if one side of the arb bet is locked in but the other you can’t place you should use a tool like betslayer or oddschecker to find similar odds so you can use another bookie to make profit from, or you can cash out your bet in some cases or use the betting exchange to place the other side of the arb. It’s best not to bet on arbs with an ROI of 20%+ because it could be a palpable error which means the bookmakers odds are an error and your bet may get cancelled.

What do betting exchanges think of arbing?

Exchanges think favourably towards arbers because they make money on commission rather than profit when you lose like online bookmakers. They like the high amounts arb bettors place through the exchange and how they act as market makers, quickly correcting over generous bets. There are opportunities for back lay arbing using low commission exchanges like smarkets. These are normally called horse racing arbing.

What is the role of Ewallets in Arbing?

Ewallets like Skrill, Neteller or PayPal are an important part of arbing betting because they allow you to withdraw your funds in 12 hours rather than 3-5 days, this allows you to keep your money working and reinvesting it in arbs to make profits.

How Does Football Index Work Image

How does Football Index Work?

play

How does Football Index Work?

Betslayer is all about making a side income through low-risk betting strategies and so I'm always on the lookout for the next great thing to make some more profits and that's how I came across Football Index. In this blog post you'll learn everything you need to know about football index and how to get started risk-free. Football Index allows you to buy shares in football players. It's like a football players stock market.

Football Index reviews

Some people ask is Football Index legit? Yes it is, it was founded in 2015 by Adam Cole. The business name is BetIndex Limited which is registered in Jersey and licensed by the gambling commission under the number 119040. Football Index has just signed a big TV advertising deal with Sky & has Guillem Balague as a brand ambassador . You can also check out their Trustpilot reviews to see what people think.

Football Index Explained

Football Index is the first football player stock market that allows you to buy, sell and trade football player with your own money. Essentially you're betting on the value of your players going up over time. It’s like a mix between fantasy football and traditional sports betting.

How does Football Index work?

Unlike stock market trading where most people don't have a clue about the stocks and they’re basically guessing. Many people have great knowledge about football that they do not put to good use. In Football Index even just being slightly ahead of the curve or having a little bit of knowledge pays big dividends in because getting onto the platform early will mean that you make bigger profits long-term because as more people come onto the platform the price of the players go up and you make more profits when you sell a player because of this.

The best thing about football index is that on a bad day you don't lose your whole bet like in normal betting,  you only lose a couple of pennies of players value and that's why it's a great alternative to normal betting. It's also worth noting football index have no control over the price of any player it's simply due to market demand.

How do you make money on Football Index?

Our main strategy with football index is to buy low & sell high, but there are also other ways to make money which we will go over. So to know how to make money from buying and selling players which is the main way to make money on football index, we also need to know what affects player's prices.

  1. Why could a players price go up?

    Maybe the player wants to leave the club which leads to more media mentions which means more they get media dividend. Or maybe he's on a great run of form and has won performance buzz a couple of times again.

  1. Why could a players price go down?

    Maybe lack of form, maybe he's been injured or suspended. Maybe he signed a new contract so there will be no more transfer rumours and media mentions so less media buzz dividends. It’s worth noting that Media buzz is based mainly on UK-based networks and attributes points to players based on if they are mentioned in articles about transfers or about their talent. It is worth noting that squad players cannot get media buzz.

What is the difference between Squad Players & Top 200 Players on Football Index

The top 200 players in Football Index are simply the players with the highest price based on their demand. Squad players are lower value players, normally they don't start matched all the time and are considered young talents. Squad players get into the top 200 when their value is above the lowest value player in the top 200. Top 200 players then get relegated if a squad player overtakes their value. 

Squad players can still get Performance Buzz Dividends but are not eligible for Media Buzz Dividends, we'll explain what these terms mean in the next section.

What are media buzz dividends?

Football Index scans online football news from UK newspapers and gives points to players based on article mentions. For example transfers rumour mentions. Players with the most mentions and most points at midnight every day are the winners of the days media buzz dividends. If you have those players shares then you will get a dividend. 

Note: you dont need to withdraw dividends, they get automatically credited to your balance.

What are performance buzz dividends?

Football Index monitors the footballing performance and players across the top leagues.

Premier League. La Liga. Bundesliga. Serie A. Ligue One. Champions League and Europa League

Football index has their own scoring matrix which basically will will rank the top players based on things like scores and assists or clean sheets. It's also worth noting that match days are split into three categories with different dividend rates depending on the number of matches taking place. The table below displays the dividend for each share for both match days and non match days

What are In-Play dividends?

In the first 30 days of owning a share, you'll get the following In-Play Dividends:

 - 2p per Goal for a Forward or Midfielder

 - 3p per Goal by a Defender or Goalkeeper

 - 1p per Assist by any position

-  2p for a Starting Goalkeeper Clean Sheet over the full game

Selling On Football Index

The two ways to sell on Football index are called Market Sell and Instant Sell.  Both have a 2% commission fee from the total sales. 

Football index makes money from taking a commission on the total sales you make. The difference between the buying price and the sale price is known as the spread. Market sell allows you to set a reserve price and place shares in a queue, the time taken to sell depends on how in demand the player is (sold at higher blue price). If you want an instant sell you sell them at the red price, and the difference is the spread. An instant sell allows you to immediately cash out your position on player shares for an increased percentage of commission 

How do I know which players to buy?

I wouldn't overthink this, I think it's similar to fantasy football. The best players to buy in football index are the underpriced players. For example maybe you want to buy shares in Heung Min Son because you think he's in form and is underpriced. Maybe it's a new player who's come into to the team like Juan Foyth who's shares will be good long term. In a transfer window you can get some quick wins by being on top if the latest transfer news. If they get bought they may be media buzz dividends and their price will then likely go up in the coming weeks so getting in early then selling when the players price has increased is a good strategy.

 But it depends on your strategy, you can have a long-term strategy if you want to build up media dividends and and performance buzz and bank on the price of football index in the whole going up.

Football Index App

The mobile app is a great way to check on your portfolio & the best way to use football index in my opinion

What are the turquoise lines?

These represent the highs and lows of a player's price for that day so the bigger the line the bigger the volatility maybe it's a good thing maybe his price has gone up because he scored a couple of goals or got lots of worthy media attention and it's up to you to interpret this graph to see where the players price is going.Enter your text here...

How do I get a Money Back Offer ?

In general diving straight in is a great strategy especially because football index has the Money Back Offer.  Withing the first 7 days, Football index will refund your losses (if any) up to £500.

Football Index Sign up Offer

(OFFER EXTENDED UNTIL 31st May 2020, BE QUICK!)

>> https://betslayer.com/recommends/football-index

Details
● You receive the money back offer of your losses up to  £500 for 7 days
●18 + only, Football Index is gambling if you have a problem do not sign up & go to https://www.gamcare.org.uk/

 Full T&C's - https://www.footballindex.co.uk/terms-and-conditions

Helpful Links

Football index help - Football Index Rules - Indexgain - football index customer service

What is Matched Betting? Banner Image

What is Matched Betting?

If you’re looking for an answer to the question, “what is matched betting?” then you’ve come to the right place.

Matched Betting is one of the best ways to earn a side income from the comfort of your own home. Many students do it whilst studying to supplement their income.

You don’t need any experience at all to make money from matched betting. You don’t even have to be able to name a bookmaker or have placed a bet before. Seriously, you don’t even have to like sports.

Link to FREE TRIAL of Profit Accumulator  - The free trial will show you step by step how to make £45 tax free cash with matched betting.

You need exchanges for Matched Betting so sign up to Betfair Exchange & Smarkets through these links  to get the best sign up offer available.

What is matched betting?

A Matched betting is a way to turn the free bets offered by bookmakers into real money. The technique relies on maths rather than chance which means the risk is low.

What is no risk matched betting?

Lots of bookmakers use promotions and incentives to attract new customers to their sites in the hopes of encouraging them to sign up. They’re a kind of welcome gift. These offers come in all shapes and sizes:

  • Bet £X, Get X

  • £X no deposit

  • X% free bet refund

  • Deposit bonus

By removing the risks associated with gambling, you can ensure that your money is protected and you win no matter what the outcome of your bet is.

Is matched betting risk free?

If you’ve Googled matched betting at any point, you might’ve seen it referred to as ‘no-risk matched betting’. This is when you compare it against traditional betting or gambling.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) considers the claim of matched betting being 100% risk-free “misleading because although theoretically sound, the process was open to human error”.

If done ‘properly’, the risk is minimal. However, with the ASA ruling in mind, let’s look at some of the potential risks of matched betting:

  • Human error: If you leap before you look and start placing bets before you understand exactly what to do, the chances are that you’ll make a mistake. There are a few steps to get your head around at first so just take your time, double check everything and make sure you’re comfortable with how it works before you do anything.

  • Again, to minimise the chances of making a mistake, just make sure you check the odds before you place any bets.

However, with matched betting you’re not putting your money at risk. Instead of placing just one bet with a bookmaker, you actually place two; you ‘match’ that bet with another one at a betting exchange.

Is matched betting legal?

In a word: yes.

It’s just a different way of using the promotional offers. As long as you’re over the age of 18, matched betting is completely legal. And the betting industry’s fine with it, too.

In an article with The Telegraph, Graham Sharpe, former Media Relations Director at William Hill, said that “There’s no illegal element,” and that “It’s a free bet and you can do what you like.”

(from an article by: Murray-West, Rosie. “Is this a bet you can’t lose?”, The Telegraph. Dec 2010.)

Is matched betting gambling?

Not technically, no. Even though you’ll be using a gambling site (the bookmaker) to do it. It also benefits from the fact that winnings from gambling activities are not currently taxed in the UK. So why isn’t matched betting gambling? With gambling, you take a risk when you play games of chance in the hopes of winning money. You’re ‘taking a punt’ on the outcome ending up in your favour.

What do you need to get started?

#1 - To be 18+ : Although matched betting isn’t gambling, you’ll open accounts with online bookmakers, so you do need to be aged 18 or above. This is the minimum legal age in the UK.

#2 - To live in the UK : Because we’re located in the UK, most of the offers we find and post on BetSlayer are UK-based.

#3 - A laptop and the Internet : At this point, all you need is a computer with a good internet connection. It doesn’t matter if it’s a laptop or desktop. The most important thing is that you need to able to move between tabs and windows quickly without worrying about your connection dropping out.

#4 - Matched Betting Software : Matched betting software allows you to find the opportunities for profit. Mainly it's broken down into 2 parts, 1 is the profit finder & 2nd is the oddsmatching software. 

#5 - A separate bank account: This one’s completely up to you. The main argument for having an account especially for matched betting is so everyday spending doesn’t get in the way. It’s as simple as that. With a separate bank account, you can keep track of your incomings and outgoings more easily.

Most of us have direct debits set up for things, so we need money in the bank on a certain date. Withdrawal times differ between bookmakers and sometimes there’ll be extra delays that are out of your control. It can be a bit of a waiting game. And this all means that you won’t always be able to guarantee when you have the amount of money you were expecting. Or that you’ll have enough money for those bills.The easiest way to do this is to open an account with monzo, which is a great challenger bank which moves quickly. Simply download the app and they’ll approve you within a couple of hours and then your card will arrive in 2 days normally.

#6 - A float/bankroll : Another one that’s up to you. Well, it depends on your circumstances and how much money you can afford to set aside for matched betting. We’d recommend a minimum bankroll of at least £50, but the more you start with, the more you can earn. A larger bank roll means you can do more offers at once, without having to wait for your money to transfer between bank, bookmaker and betting exchange accounts.

Free bet offers

Free bets and promotional offers are where your matched betting profits come from. You need to find bookmakers who are running promotions or sign up offers. But searching for offers could take up quite a bit of time. That’s where matched betting companies come in.

How does it work?

Here’s a quick example, but we’ll also take you through a real offer step-by-step in a minute:

How matched betting works

There’s an offer to ‘Bet £10, Get £30’. To get the £30 bet from the bookmaker, you have to stake £10 of your own money. This is known as the ‘qualifying bet’.

Place a £10 ‘back bet’ at the bookmaker on England to win a game.

With matched betting, you match this at the betting exchange by placing a ‘lay bet’. In this example, a £10 bet that says that England won’t win. This covers both a loss and a draw:

Now, because you’ve placed two bets which cover all possible outcomes, you won’t win any money. The important thing is: you won’t lose any either – the two bets cancel each other out. So where does the money come from, then? It comes from the £30 free bet, which you’ve unlocked by doing the qualifying bet.

5 steps to making a profit from matched betting.

How does matched betting work?

In this section, we’ll go through how matched betting works:

#1. Sign up with a bookmaker

Find one offering a welcome bonus and deposit some money into the new account. Check the T&Cs of the offer to make sure you’re meeting the criteria.

#2. Open an account with a betting exchange

…and deposit some money. You’ll need to put in more than you did in the bookmaker account to cover something called ‘liability’. (have explanation below in “Betting dictionary” section)

#3. Use matched betting software to find an event to bet on

The original odds matching software sources and sorts the best odds for you. Use the filters to finds matched betting opportunities which fall within the T&Cs of the offer you’re doing and use the built-in calculator to work out how much you’ll need to back and lay, as well as how much money you’ll make.

#4. Complete your qualifying bet

Find and place your back bet at the bookmaker and do the same for your lay bet at the betting exchange. Once the event you’ve bet on has taken place, the bookmaker will credit your account with the free bet. Depending on the bookmaker, this could take up to 48 hours.

#5. Complete your free bet

In matched betting, you’re looking to keep around 75% and 80% of the free bet amount. For a £20 free bet, this is around £15 to £16. Using almost exactly the same method you’ve just completed the qualifying bet with, find and place the back and lay parts of your free bet. Again, we’ll show you exactly how to do this with written and video guides.

How much money can you make from matched betting?

The answer to this question is a bit ‘how long is a piece of string?’. But that just means that matched betting is a flexible way to make money and can fit around your lifestyle.

Based on the expected value of each of the initial signup offers, you can probably make between £1000 – £1500. Obviously this is reliant on a few things, such as odds taken and float, but it’s a pretty nice chunk of money.

Then once you’ve opened all of your bookie accounts, there are many ongoing and daily offers you can take advantage of. Betslayer has guides and tips for these offers, as well as the support available in our thriving Community.

Matched betting isn’t a get-rich-quick scheme but with a little time and effort, you can earn tax-free money each month.

[surveyslam id=513]

Betting dictionary

BOOKMAKER: A bookmaker, or ‘bookie’, offers odds on sporting and non-sporting events to people who want to gamble. They accept bets and then pay out if they win! For example, if you bet on England to win, and they do, you get money. The amount you win depends on the odds you took.

Traditionally, bookmakers were located in shops on the high street and at racecourses. You’ll have seen them on any high street you’ve walked down. Examples include, Coral, Betfred and William Hill. You can walk in, place a bet and (if your bet wins) return with proof of your bet to collect your winnings.

These days, bookmakers are online too. Online bookies offer the same service as shop ones but with the obvious convenience of being able to ‘visited’ whenever your internet connection allows. Choose and place a bet and if it wins, your funds will be added directly into your bookmaker account. It’s then up to you to withdraw these into your bank account. Depending on the bookmaker and/or your payment type, withdrawals can take 2-5 working days.

Not all bookmakers are created equal, so make sure you know who you can trust. It’s your money, after all. OddsMonkey looks into bookmakers that are licensed to operate in the UK & Ireland and who have a good reputation. But we’d always recommend doing your own research too. And if you’ve got any doubts or reservations, don’t hesitate to ask.

ODDS: The way the likelihood of a particular outcome is shown in betting. Odds are shown as ‘fractional’ (10/1) or ‘decimal (11.00). 10/1 means that you’d receive 10 ‘units’ for every 1 units you staked (put on), plus your original bet amount too. If you stake £1 and you win, you’ll get £11 in back.

PUNTER: (Traditional) Also known as a ‘bettor’ or ‘gambler’. A person who risks money by gambling or placing a bet on something.

BETTING EXCHANGE: An online website, platform or marketplace where gamblers can bet against each other, rather than against a bookmaker. Essentially, you can take the place of the bookmaker against someone else’s bet. There are currently 4 online betting exchanges available to UK customers: Betfair, Smarkets, Betdaq and Matchbook.

BET: In sports, this is the act of predicting the outcome of a race, game or event and agreeing to forfeit money if you’re wrong. Betting isn’t just limited to sports though. Bets can be placed on anything from TV shows to the date Man’s going to land on Mars.

FLOAT: The amount of money you have available to you before you start betting. Also known as a bankroll. The idea is to build this up by completing all of the welcome offers so that you can boost your earnings later on in your matched betting journey.

QUALIFYING BET: The first bet you have to place at the bookmaker in order to qualify for and unlock the advertised free bet amount. In matched betting, you’re not aiming to make any money from this bet. That comes from the free bet itself.

BACK BET: A type of bet placed at the bookmaker. When you ‘back’ something, you are betting ‘for’ the team (or horse, or player, etc) to win. Another way to think of it is that you believe it will happen.

LAY BET: Just a complicated way of saying you’re ‘betting against’ something. Lay bets are placed at the betting exchange and are the opposite of back bets. If you ‘lay’ England to win, then you’re saying that you don’t think they will. Again, this covers both a loss and draw outcome.

FREE BET: The type of bet often ‘given away’ by bookmakers. In gambling, you’ll have to risk some of your own money in order to unlock the free bet, but with matched betting, you can unlock it and protect your own money at the same time.

LIABILITY: This is probably one of the most confusing things you’ll come across when you’re starting out matched betting. But stick with us. In traditional betting, liability is the amount of money that the person you’re betting against with Betfair stands to win from you. However, it’s different with matched betting. Don’t worry if they win it from you because you’ll win the same amount from the bookmaker. You won’t lose the liability amount.

The liability of a lay bet depends on the odds taken when you placed the bet. If you’re into the maths side of things, this formula shows how to calculate your liability: Liability = (Decimal Odds -1) x Stake.

Here’s a quick example: if you were to place a lay bet using £10 stake with decimal odds 6.5 your liability would be:

Liability = (6.5-1) x £10

= 5.5 x £10

= £55

Cartoon Man Celebrating

The Ultimate Guide to Arbitrage Betting in 2018

A classic arbitrage bet looks like this:

1 - see arbitrage opportunity
2 - Make sure you have available funds in those accounts
3 - Place both sides of the arb (place highest stake first)
4- wait for bet to settle
5 - Withdraw funds and reload account

What exactly is arbitrage betting?
Arbitrage Betting takes advantage of the high competition in odds between online bookmakers. When bookmakers odds vary enough we can bet on all outcomes of the event and win a profit of around 2-10% no matter what.

This may seem like a small return of £2-10 at first (given a £100 stake) but over time this can lead to great profits, especially as on some events you can bet upwards of a £300 total stake on a single arb which means £15-30 per trade!

Arbitrage is similar to matched betting but instead of using free bets to get a risk-free profit it uses the natural variation in odds instead.

Arbitrage betting has been dubbed as “the only way to make constant profit” in sports betting and there are tens of thousands of people who regularly arb because it is typically a far better way to invest money than a bank.

How does it work?
Example You bet on a football match.

Swansea v Wolves

The odds for the game to have total goals of over 2.5 has odds of 2.6

The odds for the game to have total goals of under 2.5 has odds of 1.75

We place a total stake of £100 and have covered all outcomes.
We make £4 profit if Outcome A happens & £5 profit if outcome B happens.

To break down what is shown in the table.

If there are over 2.5 goals in the match, your return will be a total of £104 (2.6 x £40=£104) = £4 profit

If there are under 2.5 goals in the match, your return will be a total of £105 (1.75 x £60=£105) = £5 profit

Remember we’ve only place a total of £100 so anything over this figure is profit.

Common questions about Arbitrage Betting
Do I need to be in the UK?

It helps to be in the UK as we have the largest amount of bookies in europe but as long as you have access to a decent about of mainstream bookmakers sites you should be fine.

Do I need to have bookmaker accounts open?

Yes you need bookmaker accounts open to do this.

Won’t the bookmakers limit my account if they think i’m arbitrage betting?

It’s true that some bookmakers are not too keen on arbitrage betting but many people stay under the radar for a while by being smart like only betting round stakes.

Many matched bettors arb on their gubbed accounts to double their matched betting profits.

The 3 things to consider are:

  1. The amount of stake you place
  2. How big a % the arb is
  3. How mainstream the event is.

If you balance these three factors then you can keep accounts open, we’ll go into more detail on this later. Other tips include only withdrawing funds from the exchange because they never limit you and it makes bookies think you’re losing when you’re winning because you never withdraw from cash from a winning account.

Is it legal?

Arbing might seem too good to be true, but it is an entirely legal way to bet. All you are doing is taking advantage of the differences that occur in the market.

Won’t it take ages for me to withdraw funds?

If you use skrill or paypal you can withdraw funds to your skrill wallet in 12 hours or with paypal instantly, and load bookie accounts instantly making it easy to control cashflow and easy to take advantage of arbitrage opportunities.

How much money do I need to get started?

You need at least £100-200 to make arbitrage worthwhile.

You say its risk-free, so what’s the worst thing that can happen?

Even though Arbitrage is risk-free, there are certain things you have to keep in mind when implementing it. Like in the rare case that a bookmaker doesn't accept your bet, but you've already placed 1 out of 2 outcomes of the arb?

There are 2 solutions for this.

  1. Many bookies will allow you to cash out of a bet, you can do this on your original bet and lose a couple quid.
  2. Or you can find similar odds on our software dropdown menu and place a bet with another bookmaker. This feature means you could still make just as much money, or if they are slightly worse odds, you may win or lose a couple of pennies.

What are the best bookmakers to use?

Pinnacle is an arb friendly bookmaker that welcomes arbers and will never limit you. Currently its not available in the UK unless you use brokers like premium tradings or Bet IBC. There is great opportunity for safe profit by using Pinnacle and a low commission exchange like Smarkets. Other good bookies include Marathon & Bet365.

**Are all arbing opportunities back/lay like matched betting? **

Nope there are lots of opportunities between bookmakers directly without the use of an exchange.

So why isn’t everyone doing it?

A lot of people don’t know this exists and if they do they are overwhelmed by thinking they have to calculate every arb themselves or pay £100+ a month for betting software. Using Betslayer you only have to make 1-2 bets a month to make a good profit of the service.

Many people do arbitrage betting after finishing the sign up offers because they have many accounts open and want to turn their bankroll and double it.

Advantages of arbitrage betting:

  • No qualifying bet to place
  • Takes less time
  • Very profitable
  • Great to squeeze profits out of gubbed accounts

Disadvantages of arbitrage betting:

  • Puts your accounts at risk

Claim your free 7 day trial at betslayer.com/pricing (no card required)

Best Bookies for Arbitrage Betting? Image

Best Arbitrage Friendly Bookies in 2017

Best Arbitrage Friendly Bookies in 2017

Here's the transcript
hi guys Max here from betslayer with a really cool video on the best bookies for arbitrage, now this is foundational fundamental to everything we do in arbitrage betting and I've just put my two cents in on which bookmakers I use the people that use betslayer use the most and just a bit of an explanation about Sharp and soft bookies. I'll jump straight in but this is going to be a very useful video so make sure you watch until the end and as ever please take a moment to subscribe like the video and leave a comment below it really helps me out and I really appreciate it. Anyway let'sjump straight in there are a number of arbitrage friendly bookmakers out there which will never live limit you there are also bookmakers for arbitrage who will limit you that provide some of the best odds and they're actually more lenient than most,and this article I will go over the best bookmakers for sports arbitrage betting and explain some of the reasons why the first thing to consider when choosing a bookmaker is, is it a sharp or soft bookmaker. Now what does that mean? Okay Sharp bookmakers like pinnacle have automatic odds movement and rapid response to movements in the market the odds are generally less competitive compared to soft bookmakers for this reason, but many sharp bookmakers like pinnacle will never limit you so they're an extremely useful type of bookmaker to have if you are just using Sharp bookies in arbitrage you would have extremely limited opportunities and the arbs would probably rarely go over 1% ROI but don't sweat that's why we have soft bookies and competitive rate exchanges. So here are the best Sharp bookmakers for arbitrage: Pinnacle 3ET,SBObet which is Asian Handicap betting which is a subject for another video.Bet365 188bet these guys have you know competitive odds but still will maybe eventually limit you 188Bet used to be a bit better. Bet365 is one of the best pinnacle I'd say is the best bookmaker for arbitrage just because they'll never limit you you can have really high betting stakes and it just works. 3et is a bit newer you need to apply to get an account there but I think that you know that they're very similar to soft bookmakers like Bwin are useful because unlike sharp bookies their odds are changed manually usually by a trader this means odds might be substantially different between these bookies meaning there are lots of opportunities for big arbitrage so here are the best soft bookmakers for arbitrage they're rated by you know how long they keep your accounts open and you know usually wanna if you're using a soft cookie to make sure they're a big bookie because they're more likely to play by the rules and and not mess you around with with withdrawals and things like that William Hill, bwin Coral, marathon bet, Ladbrokes was on that list up at this point but recently we've been getting lots of complaints about their doing some stuff but I think Ladbrokes is still okay I use them. So why are betting exchanges useful for arbitrage? betting exchanges are like an online marketplace with punters to bet against themselves on sporting events around the world customers bet against each other not the exchange and that's how the odds are calculated the exchange just takes a commission of you know 1 to 5 percent,they're useful because they'll never limit you because their odds aren't manipulated by traders it means there can be great opportunities for arbitrage especially because you can lay a bet. ie bet against every outcome apart from winning which means there's fewer bets to place in order to cover all outcomes to make a profit many people see great results from arbing a soft bookie against an exchange or sharp bookie so Smarkets, MatchBook I think they do 1 percent commission, Betfair's the biggest exchange in the world so they're up to 5 percent BetDAQ think that's about 2% and and those are basically what you need to know about bookmaker arbitrage to do with soft bookie, sharp bookies, exchanges if you have any comments or questions leave a comment in the description box again please subscribe it really helps me continue to make videos for you guys like this and good luck with your arbitrage betting.

 Cheers.

Guide for Behinners Image

Arbitrage Betting For Complete Beginners

Arbitrage Betting For Complete Beginners

What is sports arbitrage betting?
An arbitrage bet arises when bookmakers have different opinions on the outcome of a sports event. This is reflected in the odds they provide and because the odds are so far apart it means we can bet and win regardless of outcome.

Is it similar to matched betting?
In a lot of ways, yes. Instead of using the bookies free bet to make a guaranteed profit we use the variation in odds between bookies. There is no need to place a qualifying bet in arb betting and most of the time instead of laying at the exchange we simply cover the other 1 or 2 outcomes at other bookies.

What is arbitrage software used for?
Because bookmakers odds can change quickly and the calculation of stakes needed to make a successful arbitrage bet can take time arb betting software was born. Arbitrage software makes a lot of things much easier. It automatically tracks odds and calculates the stakes needed to make the most money from an arb opportunity. Most add the bet to your betslip automatically saving you from having to navigate endlessly on bookmaker markets.

It also is a much more efficient arb finder because instead of you having to keep an eye out for the right odds the software does it for you. The arb software scrapes all the odds from the bookies and then automatically calculates which contain sure bet arbitrage opportunities. Sports Arbitrage Software like Betslayer highlights hundreds of Arbitrage sure bet opportunities every day.

Free bets?
You may be asking if you can use free bets to boost your arbitrage betting bankroll. The answer is yes. Combining free sign up offers with arbitrage actually gets you a 150% (2.5x) profit compared with if you did it with matched betting and used an exchange like Betfair. This is because Betfair charges a 5% fee and matched bettors look for the same odds to take the opportunity rather than always looking for profitable arbs. The only difference when redeeming free bets is that you shouldn’t use an e-wallet like skrill, neteller or PayPal (check terms and conditions though) you can withdraw your winning via an e-wallet but deposits should be via credit/ debit card.

How to place an arbitrage bet?
Step 1
Pick a 3-10% arb from betslayer Software in a generally popular market ie Premier League/ championship not League 2 that has been recently refreshed.

Step 2
Use filter to round to £5 and play around with stake until you find the best fit for profit.

Step 3
Open both bookies side to side before placing arb.

Step 4
Double check

Step 5
Place bet

To begin with you should never place a bet of more than £100 on one outcome.

Here is a good example to start with as it contained the bookies you have placed money with.

Let’s break this bet down.

Stake
Bookie
Outcome A
Outcome B
£50
Coral
1.91 x 50 = £95.5 (+£10.5)
0
£35
WHill

2.62 x 35 = £91.70 (+£6.7)

So you see, whatever happens we make a profit because our total original stake was £85.

Make £100.64 in your 7 day free trial

The basics of which arbs to place..

  • Less that 7 days in advance
  • Never choose an arb which has more than a 10% ROI
  • Choose Arbs that have been updated 1-2M ago
  • Use round to 5 feature
  • Bet stakes less than £100
  • Relatively mainstream (ie. not challenger tennis or romanian premier league)
  • Keep outcomes to 2-3 so it’s easy to place the arb
  • Open both bookmakers side to side to reduce the time gap between placing one bet and the other
  • Double check the odds
  • Open both windows side to side before placing arb

How Much Money it takes to Start?
We recommend having at least £250 to start with. This will be enough to make you £100 in your first week whilst you’re still learning the ropes. We recommend putting £50 in five bookmaker accounts. We recommend - Bet365, Ladbrokes, Marathon, 188Bet & Coral.

Managing your bankroll
The reason we recommend spreading your bankroll across different bookies is so you never miss out on arbitrage opportunities. Think about it, you place an arb of 2 outcomes. One wins. This means one of your bookie accounts has no money in it and the other has 5-10% more than the total stake you placed on the arb. This means you need to reload the account to make it available to you again. We do this by using e-wallets like skrill or neteller which takes 12 hours to withdraw funds rather than 3-5 days via bank transfer. E-wallets only charge when you withdraw to your bank, they’re a neat tool that allow you to deposit and withdraw to your e-wallet for free quickly and efficiently. They are essential for arbitrage betting.

Avoiding mistakes/ getting limited
Start off with small stakes to learn the ropes. Unlike matched betting this is evergreen, there are always arbs so don’t feel like you’re missing out if you start off place £20 bets. This eliminates the number one mistake when arbitrage betting : human error. Arbitrage betting by nature is risk free but there are certain things like getting limited and certain situations you have to adapt to to make it 100% the case.

Is Arbitrage Betting Legal?
Arbitrage betting is completely legal. We are simply doing as a trader would do and buying and selling odds to make profit.

Don't bookies hate this - won't they limit me?
If you are stupid and have abnormal betting patterns then it’s a possibility. Most people keep their accounts open for a 6 months to a year but you can keep accounts open much longer with certain bookies like Bet365 and there are endless opportunity for arbitrage even with just BEt365 and an Exchange like Betfair. There is only so far a bookie can go with limiting players because they don’t want to limit players that have a lifetime ROI of profit. This is why it’s important to track which bookies you’re winning and losing with so you can place mug bets (A normal bet of 1-2% of your bankroll) just to throw them off. I always thought that even though arb bettors are gaming the system we don’t actually know which bookie we are going to win and lose with so they shouldn't care.