Gambling is a multibillion-dollar industry and has been for years. With the advent of smart devices, accessing popular casino games and online sports betting is possible from just about anywhere through a credible online casino. However, betting does not come without its risks; it’s for this reason that many bookmakers carry a warning and disclaimer that you may win or lose.
With so much at stake, many bettors try out new strategies in the hopes of securing a big win. One strategy in particular that’s rather unconventional and that could help you win even when “there’s no such thing as a sure bet” is arbitrage betting.
What Is Arbitrage Betting & How Does It Work?
Arbitrage betting, or “arbing,” is sometimes called a “sure bet.” Arbitrage betting is when a player bets on all possible outcomes of a single event and wins no matter the outcome. For the purpose of this article, soccer is used to illustrate arbitrage betting. A single soccer game may have tens of markets to choose from, but, for the purpose of illustrating arbing in soccer, the best example is what is generally called ”straights” or base markets. Straights refer to three possible outcomes: a home-team win, a draw or an away-team win. In this example, using arbitrage betting means that a player would bet on all these three outcomes. This means they could secure a win regardless of the results because of the arbitrage bets placed.
Is It a Useful Betting Strategy?
The short and simple answer to this question is yes. It can be useful for those who understand it and know how to implement it effectively. Arbitrage betting can help you achieve risk-free profits and help you diversify your bets across bookmakers, markets and sports. Another benefit of a sports betting arbitrage approach is that it can help you leverage market inefficiencies and potentially gain the upper hand for a more favorable return.
Arbitrage Betting Tips
To maximize the benefits of arbitrage betting, a bettor must scout for arbitrage opportunities. This entails choosing bets with the right combination of odds of one or several bookmakers and relying on an arbitrage betting calculator can help you determine the potential income thereof. This is one of the key reasons why this form of betting isn’t for the average gambler. It requires a certain level of understanding of betting and how to find arbitrage betting opportunities.
Below are some tips to consider if you’re looking to use this type of betting strategy.
Take Time To Understand This Betting Strategy
Before diving head-first into this betting strategy, you need to have a comprehensive understanding of it, how it works and what it entails. For starters, you need to know the different types of arbitrage opportunities, such as traditional arbitrage and cross-market arbitrage. Having a good overview will help you immediately identify favorable opportunities, manage risks and maximize profits.
Do Your Research on Sportsbooks
It’s always recommended to explore your options and compare different sportsbooks to find the most suitable one for you and what you’re hoping to achieve. Doing the necessary research and comparisons will ensure that you don’t regret your decision later.
Diversify Bookmakers
Any investor worth their salt will tell you that it’s never a good idea to keep all your eggs in one basket — the same applies to arbing. Using different bookmakers will reduce the risk of potentially being suspended or having your account restricted because of arbing.
Understand the Odds
Avid gamblers know that odds indicate the potential of an outcome occurring, which can ultimately help you gauge your chances of success. In this case, understanding and knowing the odds can help you assess whether an arbing opportunity exists.
Make Use of Betting Calculators
This will help you determine the probabilities of each outcome that you wager. Ideally, you’ll want to prioritize the most promising and lucrative return.
Practice Navigating the Different Sportsbooks
This is a prime example of what it means to say, “time is money.” You need to act fast — and acting fast requires familiarity with online sportsbooks so you can navigate them quickly and wager timeously.
Be Patient
While some people might think of gambling as a promise of overnight success with one big win, that’s not always the case. Understand that through consistent effort and small wins, you could end up winning big.
Practice
Arbing requires skill, knowledge and an improvement of your gameplay. It’s often said that practice makes perfect, which is also true when using this betting strategy.
Never Stop Learning
Any strategy you turn to, including arbing, requires a certain level of commitment to improving. Studying past cases and identifying trends or patterns can help you improve.
Stick to Credible Online Betting Sites
Given how lucrative the industry is, it’s no wonder that several scrupulous platforms have come to the fore. That’s why it’s best to only bet on licensed and credible betting sites to avoid potentially becoming a victim of fraudulent sites.
Arbitrage Betting and The Law
Arbitrage betting may be illegal in some countries where gambling is legal. Even when it is legal, bookmakers consider it to be a risk to their businesses, so they may take active steps to detect and restrict it. This means a bookmaker may either not permit the bet, limit the wager, cancel the bet after placement or even shut down the account. These measures are usually contained in the bookmaker’s terms and conditions policy.
This means that utilizing arbitrage as a betting strategy requires research on which bookmakers permit single-event betting. The strategy may also be short-term in that it is dependent on whether bookmakers permit it on their system.
Put Your Knowledge to the Test at BetMGM
For arbers, this betting strategy is a case of “making hay while the sun shines” and can even be perceived as one of the secrets to winning esports bets (or whatever form of betting you enjoy.) With a combination of skills, practice and discipline, arbitrage betting can prove to be quite lucrative. If you’re looking to put your newfound knowledge to the test, register at BetMGM to try your hand at sports betting, casino table games and so much more.
