Basic bet types explained
Understanding the different bet types is vital to making money with Matched Betting.
There are hundreds of different bet types and markets and bookmakers keep coming up with new ideas all the time.
This article will focus on the most basic bet types as these should be what you will focus on first.
Later on, you can always experiment with more advanced bet types.
The focus of this blog post will be on:
Match betting / 1×2
Handicaps
Over or under / totals
Before we dig into the details it is important to understand the terms “bet type” and “market” as they are often used interchangeably.
Bet type and market meaning
For Matched Bettors, bet type usually refers to either a qualifying bet, SNR free bet or SR free bet.
However, bet type can also mean the type of bet you are placing e.g. a single bet or an accumulator.
On the other hand, betting market means what you bet on, e.g. over/under or 1×2.
That being said, bet type is often used interchangeably with market.
Match Betting / 1×2
Match betting or 1×2 betting is the most straightforward and common of all the bet types and also the most popular with Matched Bettors.
It seems that every bookmaker, for some reason, has chosen to make up their own name for this bet type. Hence, you will sometimes see it referred to as match result, full time result, match betting or 1×2.
I personally don’t like when this bet type is called anything including the word result, as it can be confused with the correct score market.
You simply have to bet on either team A to win (1), team B to win (2) or that the game will end in a draw (x).
Note that when this bet type is referred to as 1×2, the number 1 is the home team or the team mentioned first, x is the draw and the number 2 is the away team or the team mentioned last.
Example
Let’s say the game is Real Madrid vs. Barcelona. Real Madrid is the home team. Let’s then assume the odds for Real Madrid to win are 2,50.
If you staked €10 on Real Madrid to win at odds of 2,50, you would win €25 (10 x 2,50). The €25 would include your stake, so your profit would be €15 (25 – 10).
If the game ended in a draw or if Barcelona won the game, you would lose your stake.
Handicaps
In the handicap market, one team will be given an artificial goal advantage before the game, which is then factored in when settling the bet.
This is often used by bookmakers when one team is a heavy favourite to even up the game.
The underdog will then be given a goal advantage at the start of the game, let’s say 2 goals. When the game starts, the underdog will have a 2-0 lead over the favourite. The favourite will then have to win the actual game with at least three goals to beat the handicap. Hence, if the favourite wins the game 0-3, the handicap result will be 2-3.
For punters, the handicap market is interesting as you can find situations where the bookmakers have gone over or under the strength of one team compared to the other.
Example 1
Let’s say the game is Bayern Munich vs. Karlsruhe. Bayern Munich is the heavy favourite.
As a heavy favourite, Bayern Munich has a handicap of -2 goals.
There are then 3 different bets you can place.
Bet on Bayern Munich to win the game. They will then have to win with more than 3 goals.
Bet on the draw. Bayern Munich will then have to win with exactly 2 goals.
Bet on Karlsruhe. As Karlsruhe has a 2-goal head start they can afford to lose with 1 goal and your bet will still win. If the game ends in a draw or if Karlsruhe win, your bet will also win.
Example 2
We use the same example as above. However, this time Bayern Munich has a handicap of -2,5.
There are then 2 different bets you can place as the handicap bet cannot be settled as a draw.
Bet on Bayern Munich to win the game. They will then have to win by at least 3 goals.
Bet on Karlsruhe to beat the handicap. As Karlsruhe has a 2,5-goal head start, they can afford to lose by 2 goals and your bet will still win. If the game ends in a draw or if Karlsruhe win, your bet will also win.
Over or under / totals
Totals, also sometimes referred to as over/under bets, are very popular and a great alternative to the 1×2 bets.
In this market, the aim is not to predict who will win the game but rather to predict the amount of e.g. goals in that particular game.
As the name indicates, you have to predict whether a game has more or fewer goals than the suggested number set by the bookmakers.
A particularly popular bet is over or under 2,5 goals.
Example
Let’s say the game is Borussia Dortmund vs Chelsea and the bet is over or under 2,5 goals.
If you bet on over 2,5 goals and the result is 2-2, then your bet will win. However, if the final result is 2-0, then your bet will have lost.
On the other hand, if you bet on under 2,5 goals and the result is 2-2, your bet will have lost but it will win if the final score is 2-0.
Basic Bet types and Matched Betting
About 90% of my Matched Bets are on these three basic bet types.
As they are the most common, it means you don’t raise any suspicion by placing bets on them, which is good when you try and avoid gubbings.
Once you get familiar with the basic bet types, you can place your qualifying bets very fast, which of course saves you a lot of time.
I have found that especially the over/under market is good for free live bets as you can get quite high odds compared to the 1×2 market. This can increase your profit from a free bet significantly.
Any questions, please ask in the Forum.
