Matched betting explained?
A
matched betting strategy
involves placing a back bet (i.e. betting on a selection to win) with a bookmaker and then using a betting exchange to lay that bet (i.e. betting against that outcome). This means that the result of the market is irrelevant - you will have a winning bet in one place and a losing bet in another.
The purpose of matched betting is to guarantee profits from online betting site offers and promotions. In most cases, these offers require you to meet specified qualifying requirements in order to trigger the promotion. Once you have met these requirements you can claim free bets, bonus funds and/or boosted odds.
How can you find the best matched betting bets?
Finding the most advantageous
no risk matched betting
bets is a difficult task. It involves a complex mathematical formula and requires looking at every possible betting market. This is so you can keep your qualifying losses low and your free bet profits high.
The good news is that there are specialist
matched betting
companies that find the very best matched betting opportunities and provide calculators that find the most advantageous bets.
An example of matched betting
- An online sports betting site is offering a $30 free bet if you bet $10 or more on any sport.
- Using a matched betting site you discover that the bookmaker has a Moneyline of +300 on the Dallas Mavericks beating the Utah Jazz. Whilst at a betting exchange you can lay this bet at odds of +308.
- Next, place a $10 bet with the bookmaker and lay it at the exchange with a stake of $9.80.
- If the Mavericks win, you will win $30 with the bookmaker, but be $30.20 down at the exchange. If Utah wins you will lose your $10 at the bookmaker's but be $9.80 up at the exchange. Essentially, the outcome is irrelevant as you will be $.20 down overall, but will have met the requirements to trigger the $20 free bet.
- The matched betting site tells you to use the free bet on the New York Knicks versus the Boston Celtics. Place the $20 free bet on the Celtics at 600 and lay it at 650 at an exchange using a stake of $16.
- If the Celtics win you will make a profit of $120 at the bookmakers and a $104 loss at the exchange. If the Knicks win you will lose your free bet, but make a profit of $16 at the exchange. Again, your profit amount is the same, regardless of what happens in the game.
This lack of reliance on the result is why matched betting is not regarded as gambling. It also means that matched betting can be done by people who have no real interest in sport. And that is
matched betting explained.
Matched betting USA: is it possible?
The Federal Wire Act of 1961 makes it illegal for betting to take place across state lines. This means that there is a limited pool of potential players in each market, so in turn, this leads to low liquidity. As a result, a betting exchange (which would have to operate within a single state) would not have enough funds to be able to cover all winning bets.
It is for this reason that there are currently no legal betting exchanges operating in the United States. This means that matched betting in the US is not currently possible.
At the time of writing, the Federal Wire Act of 1961 is still in full effect and there are no plans for it to be amended or overturned. With this in mind, matched betting in the US is extremely unlikely to be a viable option in the next several years. However, should that situation change at any point we will update our guides accordingly.
What is EV sports betting?
Although matched betting USA is not possible due to legal restrictions, there is a viable alternative that can help you benefit from online betting offers.
EV sports betting
is a strategy that looks for the best value bets and uses them to maximize profits from promotions. In this section we will look at EV betting and ask the question,
is value betting profitable?
Expected value (EV) is the average expected winnings from placing the same bet an infinite number of times at exactly the same odds. Whilst most conventional betting strategies look at individual outcomes, EV betting weighs up the long term value of a bet. In other words, given exactly the same circumstances how often would the bet win if the event happened ad infinitum?
A bet with a positive EV means will make a profit in the long term, whilst a bet with a negative EV will lose in the long term. Clearly, this does not mean that the bets with positive EV will always win (or vice versa), it just means that over time they will prove to be correct decisions.
The principle can be most easily applied to casino games where EV is fixed. If you are dealt a hand of 12 in a game of blackjack, the positive EV can always be found by hitting, in other words, asking for another card. But in a one-off game, you will sometimes win with a hand of 12 as the dealer could go bust. The positive EV is because, over time, hitting will be the most profitable option.
How to profit from EV betting?
EV sports betting is a complex process, but thanks to specialist sites it is possible to use the strategy as an excellent and highly profitable alternative to matched betting in the USA.
When putting together betting markets, oddsmakers consider a variety of key factors such as form, injuries, tactics and conditions. In addition, they also apply a small commission called a ‘vig’ (also known as juice) to the odds. This vig is what allows betting sites to make an overall profit, as it puts the odds in favor of the bookmakers. The problem is that this vig makes finding positive EV more difficult. This is why an EV betting strategy focuses on promotional offers.
In order to find positive EV sports bets, you need to study the markets and research events. This requires plenty of knowledge and a lot of time, so it is best to stick to sports and events that you have excellent knowledge of.
When you have found bets with positive EV you need to work out the optimum stake. This requires you to consider the odds, the likelihood of the selection winning, plus any stake restrictions that apply to the promotion. Remember, because you are using free bets or enhanced odds, the EV is skewed in your favor.
You are probably thinking that this sounds like an awfully difficult strategy to use. Luckily, there are specialist EV betting sites available that find the best promotions for EV betting. These sites also tell you the best positive EV bets and calculate the optimum stakes to use. If you do want to try EV betting, then using one of these sites is highly recommended.
Matched betting USA - Conclusion
The bad news is that matched betting USA is not currently a viable option. But the good news is that EV betting represents a great alternative and can lead to some excellent returns.
The key to successful EV betting is thoroughness. You need to be very careful when placing bets to ensure that you are doing everything correctly in order to qualify for promotions, whilst also making sure you place the correct bets on the correct markets.
Implementing an EV betting strategy is not easy and the calculations can be complex, but if you use a specialist site, the experts can do the hard work for you. Good luck!
Matched Betting USA FAQ
Matched betting football
offers are typically found on major leagues such as the NFL and CFB. They come in the form of free bets, cashback offers and enhanced odds. To make the most out of these offers, there are a number of different strategies you can adopt. To find out if matched betting is a viable strategy for these offers, it is recommended that you regularly check CaptainGambling.com for the latest football promotions.
💳 Is there a risk element to EV betting?
Betting strategies carry varying degrees of risk. Some are high risk and should only be completed by players with large bankrolls, whereas other low risk strategies are ideal for players on a budget. You can read more about EV betting and other gambling strategies at CaptainGambling.com./faq-item]
The answer to this will regularly change. Betting sites regularly change their offers for both new and existing customers. CaptainGambling.com provides detailed reviews of the latest and best sports betting welcome offers. We weigh up the pros and cons of each offer and tell you which ones can be the most profitable.
