How does matched betting work?
Let’s say that you wanted to bet on a football game without the risk of losing any money. That’s the basic concept of matched betting, but it also aims to get you some bonus credit that you can use to make some real money wins. Nice, right?
So how does matched betting actually work? Well, first of all you would have to bet on something happening in a sporting event at an online sportsbook. Doing this would unlock some bonus credit as part of a welcome bonus.
Next, you would have to go to a betting exchange and bet that the event that you’d previously bet on wouldn’t happen. You would do this in a way that balanced the odds and betting stakes to ensure that you wouldn’t incur any losses regardless of what happened in the game.
Not only would you not lose any money, but you will have gained bonus credit as a result of having put down a qualifying bet or deposit. Now you can use this bonus credit to repeat the whole process without having to put down any more of your own cash. Easy!
So let’s have a look at a concrete example of how matched betting could work for a game of football. We’ll take a random game in the NFL such as one being played between the Denver Broncos and Detroit Lions.
To start with, you’d have to find an online sportsbook who had a welcome bonus that gave you bonus credit either for putting down a qualifying deposit or a qualifying bet. Once you’d signed up to this sportsbook, you could bet on the Broncos to win which would unlock the bonus credit.
Next, you’ll have to go to a betting exchange and bet that the Broncos wouldn’t win. You’d have to do this in a way that used the correct odds and stakes to balance out the bets to ensure that you wouldn’t lose anything regardless of whether the Broncos win, the Lions win or the game is tied.
Now that the NFL game is over, you will be left with the bonus credit that you can use to either continue matched betting or try a more regular bet on football. Simple!
Why matched betting won’t work in the US
While it’s good to know how matched betting works, it’s important to note that this isn’t a betting strategy you can use in the US. This is because there are no betting exchanges in the nation and betting exchanges are an integral part of matched betting.
After all, betting exchanges are places where you can bet against other bettors rather than the sportsbook. This means that there’s more choice in terms of the odds that you can back or lay (lay means to bet that something won’t happen).
But betting exchanges don’t exist in the US as betting exchanges require a large enough customer base to generate all of the required odds for you to lay for matched betting. US states simply don’t have the required population sizes to make financial sense.
Plus the current federal law forbids you from betting over state lines and so we’re unlikely to see any kind of betting exchanges in the US anytime soon. All of which means that matched betting in the US is likely to remain a fairly abstract concept.
More important matched betting features
Matched betting is a betting strategy that may have some drawbacks depending on what kind of bettor you are. Here are some reasons why you should think carefully before giving matched betting a try.
Potential bans: Matched betting can’t really be classed as gambling as there is no risk involved, when it’s done properly. This puts you at a significant advantage to the sportsbook. As a result, the sportsbook would probably give you a temporary ban if they found out that you had been involved in matched betting.
Knowledge of math: Matched betting isn’t the simplest betting strategy and so it’s probably worth avoiding if you have any fear of math.
While matched betting in the US might not be possible, you can still give expected value (EV) betting a try. This is a great way of seeing when a sportsbook has got the odds wrong so that you can reap the benefits over the long-term. We’ve got a handy guide here that can show you how to use an
EV betting calculator.
EV betting again requires a fair amount of mathematical knowhow, but it remains an excellent option for anyone who’s looking to get serious about sports betting. Check out our guide that asks the question, ‘Is value betting profitable?’ and you’ll see what we mean!
So there you have it. While you can’t actually try
matched betting
in the US just yet, there are still plenty more ways that you can improve your football bets. We’ve shown you how you can find the expected value when betting on the NFL in a way that can help you beat the sportsbooks in style.
Remember that we’ll be keeping these betting guides updated to take account of all of the changes in sports betting in the US. All of which should ensure that you get the latest information to help you get more from your NFL bets. So forget about matched betting in the US for now and explore some great new ways to bet on football!
❓Is matched betting safe?
We couldn’t create the best guide to matched betting football fans can read unless we paid close attention to your online safety. After all, a
matched betting strategy
will always involve you making real money deposits as well as providing sportsbooks with some potentially sensitive personal information. So read our guide to see whether it is safe for you to do this.
👀Where are some good matched betting sites?
By reading our guide to matched betting football fans will instantly be able to see which betting sites allow them to try this interesting strategy. We’ll explain why you’ll only be able to try matched betting at certain kinds of sportsbooks and we’ll even outline some of the
matched betting risks
too. All of which should help you see what this kind of sports bet is right for you.
✨Will I need a matched betting calculator?
If you’ve ever had
matched betting explained, you will know that it involves using different odds at different sportsbooks. So we’ve made sure that we covered whether you have to use a matched betting calculator in our guide. So by reading our guide to matched betting football fans will quickly see whether they have to use any kind of calculator or whether they could do the math in their head.
We’ve created a guide to matched betting football fans can use to see all of the different bet options you can try with this strategy. So we simply had to include a short section covering accumulators as these kinds of bets can be great fun. Just bear in mind that you may have to use some kind of
matched betting calculator
to help you figure out the total odds and what your potential returns may be.
👤Is there a guide to matched betting for dummies?
If you know anything about matched betting, you will know that it isn’t the simplest concept. So this is why we’ve created a guide to matched betting football fans can read to see if this strategy is going to work for them. All of this will be done with concrete examples of how a matched bet would work for an NFL game. There’s never been an easier way to see what matched betting is all about!
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