There is a saying that goes something along the lines of; the only time you should take up betting is when you see a bookmaker going to work on a bicycle! Whilst it is true that being a punter is always something of a battle, with you having to use your knowledge, skill and judgement to pick the correct outcome of any sporting event, there is a new and more potentially rewarding way for you to place wagers online.
This is by utilizing an online betting exchange, this is where the savviest of punters have turned their attention in recent years, as unlike standard betting sites where you are hoping to pick just the winning outcome of any sporting fixture, instead you can for all intents and purposes become a bookmaker yourself, by offering your own odds on sporting events.
A betting exchange is simply a peer-to-peer betting site where you can place your wagers in the standard way, that being by you simply picking the winning outcome of a sporting event, however, you can also additionally offer odds on any sporting event and have other punters take your odds, and quite simply put, if their wagers lose, you get to keep their stakes.
Betting exchanges have revolutionized the way people look at betting, as by using them, you are going to find the actual odds on offer often far outstrip any odds offered by standard betting sites, and as you can back selections to win whilst also laying them to lose you could find yourself guaranteeing a profit on your wagers.
One of the biggest and most populated online betting exchanges is one of the offers at the BetFair site, with millions of wagers placed each day you are never going to go short on betting opportunities, and if you have a passion for any particular sport, and want to use your knowledge to profit from betting, then you really ought to be joining up to this top-rated betting exchange.
Below is an overview of the many different types of wagers you can place at the BetFair betting exchange, if you have never come across such a site before and want a more in-depth guide on how to place any kind of wager they offer, then do visit their website which comes packed with information and step by step guides on how you can utilize their betting platform.
Laying a Bet – When you are convinced that something is not going to happen in any sporting event, then you can offer your own odds on that event, this is known as Laying a Bet. So for example let us say two soccer teams are playing against each other, Manchester United and Liverpool, and you are convinced that Liverpool will not win that match, then at BetFair, you can offer any odds you want on Liverpool.
Should a user of the BetFair betting site have the opposite opinion than yourself, and be interested in taking you up on your odds than they simply place their wager and should Liverpool lose that match, as you predicted then you get to keep their stake money.
However, if Liverpool wins that match then you have to pay out that punter at the odds you offered, based on the stake amount that punter placed. How much of your own money you put up is of course up to you on any type of Lay wager, so if you offered odds of 2 to 1 on Liverpool winning and have put up 100.00, then a punter can place a maximum of 50.00 on your wager, and if Liverpool loses you will then keep their 50.00 stake money if Liverpool wins you must pay that punter the 100.00 in winnings.
The system used by BetFair removes both your maximum liability, in our example 100.00, from your account and the other person’s stake money, in our example 50.00, from that customer’s account as the soccer match gets underway, and once the match has finished and the result declared they will then payout the winner of the bet, either 50.00 to you or 100.00 to the punter, less a small house commission.
You can place a Lay wager on any of hundreds of different sporting events and fixtures and you can put up any amount and at whatever odds you like, obviously the more attractive your odds the more likely you are to find someone interested in taking them!
Backing a Selection – You can of course use the BetFair betting exchange much like you would a standard betting site, and as such you can place a wager on any selection to win, this is known as backing a selection.
However what makes a betting exchange such as BetFair so very unique, is that you can ask for the odds you want, and as such anyone Laying a Bet can then opt to give you those odds you are hoping for, which means you can get tremendous value from all of your wagering opportunities, by asking for higher odds than standard betting sites are offering!
Live In-Pay Wagering – One additional feature of the BetFair betting exchange that you may find interesting, is that once a sporting event has started, a brand new market is brought into force. This is known as a Live In-Play Market, and as such the odds on the outcome of the sporting event or fixture will fluctuate, often wildly as certain things happen during the event.
This means that if a football team scores or a player gets sent off as the match is underway, you can still lay a wager or back a wager on the outcome of the match. This is where many punters will hedge their bets placed before the game got underway, and an experienced BetFair customer can time and time again guarantee a winning profit by betting both before the game has started and during the game.
Betfair is an online gambling company that offers betting on various sports and events. It is one of the largest online gambling companies in the world, with over four million customers.
Betfair allows customers to bet against each other rather than against the bookmaker. This means the customers set the odds, and Betfair makes its money by charging a commission on winning bets.
To place a bet on Betfair, you must sign up for an account. Once you do this, you can log in and navigate to the event or market you wish to bet on. You can enter your stake and select your desired bet type.
To withdraw money from your Betfair account, you must log in and navigate to the My Account section. From here, you can select the amount of money you wish to withdraw and choose your preferred payment method. Once you have done this, your withdrawal will be processed, and the funds should reach you within a few days.
To use Betfair’s Exchange, you must log in and navigate to the relevant market. From here, you can place your bet and choose whether you want to ‘back’ or ‘lay’ the selection. If you are backing a selection, you predict it will win. If you are laying a selection, you predict it will lose.
Betfair’s commission is the percentage of your winnings you will be charged when you place a successful bet. The commission rate varies depending on the market and bet type but is typically between two and five percent.
Betfair Points are loyalty points you can earn by placing bets on the Betfair Exchange. These points can then be redeemed for various benefits, such as free bets and cashback.
The minimum deposit amount is £/€/$20. The minimum withdrawal amount is £/€/$30.
If you have made a mistake or changed your mind about a bet, you can cancel it as long as the bet is still ‘open.’ To do this, go to your account’s ‘Open Bets’ section and click on the ‘Cancel Bet’ button next to the relevant bet.
Each way bet is a type of bet that gives you two chances to win. With each-way bet, you will win if your selection finishes first OR second. The odds for each way bet are usually lower than for a winning bet because you have two chances to win.