Bet €x and get a free bet of €x if it loses is another common offer type.
The bookmaker will give you a free bet if your first bet loses which means you have a risk-free bet.
Occasionally the offer will say bet €x and get a free bet if your first bet loses. This is the same offer as explained below. This means that if you were to place 2 bets, only the first bet would qualify for the offer i.e. if your first bet wins and your second bet loses, then you will not get a free bet.
Below is an example of such an offer.
To qualify you must place a bet on the Bayern Munich vs Benfica game. Let’s say you bet on a draw. If either Bayern Munich or Benfica win the game your bet will lose but you will then get a free bet.
How to profit from this offer?
There are several strategies you can use to profit from this offer.
Whichever strategy you choose should depend on the specific offer and your risk appetite.
Here are a couple of “rule of thumb” guidelines.
You should aim for a maximum qualifying loss of 7% or €0,70 per €10 staked in a qualifying bet. You should be able to retain between 70%-80% of the value of the free bet. This is a profit of €7-8 per €10 free bet. You should ideally find matches with higher odds as this will mean higher profit. Try and play around with the numbers in the calculator to see the difference.In the examples below, I will use the offer for the following: “Bet €10 and get €10 if the bet loses”.
There are four suggested strategies (in no particular order)
1Risk free equal profit (risk free)
Spread the guaranteed profit over 2 bets.
2Bet without a lay bet (not risk free)
Highest risk but potentially also the highest profit.
3Hope the bookmaker bet loses to qualify for a free bet (not risk free)
Works best if there is a high chance that your first bet will lose.
4Use the SNR strategy (Risk free)
Works best with higher odds (over 5,0).
Strategy 1 – Risk free equal profit (risk free)
In this strategy you need to use the DoppelWetten Risk-Free Equal Profit Calculator.
You can find it under Tools.
A calculator (as shown below) opens.
To enter the correct information in the calculator you need to a) know the terms of the offer you are looking to profit from and b) find a good match in the Oddsmatcher.
Below is a run-through of each line in the calculator.
1Back Stake: Enter your stake. I put €10 as this is the stake in the example we’re looking at here ( “Bet €10 get €10 free bet if it loses”)
2Back odds: The odds at the bookmaker
3Lay odds: The odds at the betting exchange
4Lay commission: For example 1,7% for Matchbook
5Free bet award: What is the amount of the free bet if your first bet loses? In this “Bet €10 get €10 free bet if it loses” example, the amount of the free bet is €10
6Free Bet Retention: Here we put in how much value we expect to retain from the free bet. As mentioned above, the rule of thumb is that you can retain between 70% and 80% of the free bet value. In the screenshot, I have entered 75% (if the money is returned as cash, enter 100%)
7Ideal Lay: This shows you what you should lay at the exchange and what your liability is. In the example the back bet is portrayed as the €10
8Profit breakdown: This shows us the breakdown of where our profit will come from based on the first bet winning or losing. If the first bet wins we are in profit straight away and we will not get a free bet. However, if the first bet loses, we will receive a free bet. And this is where we get our profit from.
Step 1
Use the Oddsmatcher to find the best game to bet on and put all the information in the calculator.
When the offer is for a specific game like the example with the Bayern Munich vs Benfica game, you should filter the Oddsmatcher so you only see odds for this game.
Step 2
Place your Matched Bet.
Step 3
Scenario 1: The back bet (bookmaker bet) won. Great news. You are in profit and do not need to place any further bets.
Scenario 2: The lay bet (betting exchange bet) won which means the bet at the bookmaker lost. No worries. You now have a free bet, given to you by the bookmaker. Go to step 4 to use your free bet.
Step 4
Use the Oddsmatcher to find the best match to bet on and remember to use ‘Freiwette (SNR)’ in the Oddsmatcher calculator.
Strategy 2 – Bet without a lay bet (not risk free)
In this strategy, you place a normal back bet but you do not place a lay bet. If the back bet (bookmaker bet) wins, you have secured a profit.
Step 1
Place a normal back bet but do not place a lay bet.
Step 2
Scenario 1: The bet won. Great! You are in profit and no further action is required.
Scenario 2: The bet lost and you will receive a free bet.
You can now either reduce your loss by placing a Matched Bet with the free bet. This way you will lose around 70%-80% of the initial bet value. In the “Bet €10 get €10 if it loses” example you will have an overall loss of €2-3.
You can also choose to place another back bet without a lay bet. However, as you often do not get your stake back for free bets you will need to place a bet on odds over 2,0 to break even, which increases your risk of losing the entire initial stake. If the free bet also loses your total loss is €10.
Strategy 3 – Hope the bookmaker bet loses to qualify for a free bet (not risk free)
In this strategy you first place a normal Matched Bet with a minimal loss (roughly €0,50 – €0,70 per €10 staked) and hope the bookmaker bet loses so you get a free bet.
Step 1
Use the Oddsmatcher to find a good match and place the Matched Bet. The aim is to find a bet that you think will lose. Just remember there is no such thing as a sure win or loss in sports. Underdogs sometimes win and favourites sometimes lose.
Step 2
Scenario 1: The back bet (bookmaker bet) loses. This is great as you have now qualified for a free bet. Move on to step 3.
Scenario 2: The back bet (bookmaker bet) wins. In this scenario you do not get a free bet. So, you have made a small loss of roughly €0,50 – €0,70.
Step 3
Use the Oddsmatcher to find the best match and place the free bet as a free bet (SNR).
Remember to use ‘Freiwette (SNR)’ in the Oddsmatcher calculator.
Strategy 4 – Use the SNR strategy (Risk free)
In this strategy, you should look for high odds and place your bet as if it were a free bet. The reasoning behind this is that if your first bet loses you will get a free bet which you are certain to extract between 70% and 80% profit from.
Using the “Bet €10 get €10 if it loses” as an example:
If your back bet (bookmaker bet) wins you will have secured a profit of €7-€8 (70-80% of the €10 free bet). If your back bet (bookmaker bet) loses, you will have lost around 20-30% from the qualifying bet, which is the difference between your profit of 70-80% and 100%. However, you now have a free bet, which you can make a €7-€8 profit from. If your back bet loses the total calculation looks like this: Loss from first bet: -€3 Win from free bet: €7 Total profit: €7-€3=€4This strategy is quite mathematical. But do now worry if you do not fully understand the math behind it. Just pick one of the other strategies until you become more familiar with Matched Betting and then you may wish to use this strategy.
Step 1
Use the Oddsmatcher to find a good match with odds above 5,0 and place the Matched Bet as a free bet, ‘Freiwette (SNR)’.
Step 2
Scenario 1: The back bet (bookmaker bet) wins. Great. You are now in profit and no further action is required
Scenario 2: The back bet (bookmaker bet) loses. You now have to place the free bet. Move on to step 3.
Step 3
Use the Oddsmatcher to find the best match and place the free bet.
Remember to use ‘Freiwette (SNR)’ in the Oddsmatcher calculator.
Which strategy should I use?
I cannot answer this question for you as it is entirely up to you.
My recommendation is to familiarise yourself with the different strategies and decide if you prefer a risk-free strategy or if you want to go for a larger profit.
However, if you are new to Matched Betting or have a small bank roll, I would advise using strategy 1 – risk free equal profit. It is always nice to make risk-free profit.
Please ask in the Forum if you have any questions.
