Arbitrage Betting Explained (Sure Bets)

You may hear many things about betting, such as whether it is a lottery or an investment, but you should know there is a guaranteed way to win, and it is arbitrage betting.

Arbitrage betting is also known as sure bets. You get it right – betting is not gambling because it can be an investment with easily calculated returns.

In this arbitrage betting explained article, we will explore what arbitrage betting is, provide examples, offer a calculator, and highlight the potential risks associated with this strategy.

Key Highlights:

• What is it?: Arbitrage betting involves placing bets on all possible outcomes of a sporting event to guarantee a profit by taking advantage of differing odds between bookmakers.
• How It Works: You split your budget across different outcomes based on the odds, ensuring that regardless of the result, you earn more than you spent.
• Arbitrage Formula: The key calculation is 1 / X odds + 1 / Y odds (for two outcomes). If the result is less than 1, there’s an arbitrage opportunity.
• Challenges: Successful arbitrage betting requires a substantial budget, quick action, and multiple verified bookmaker accounts to seize opportunities before odds change.
• Risks: Bookmakers may limit accounts engaged in arbitrage, and even small changes in odds can turn a potential profit into a loss.

So what is the arbitrage betting? To put it in a simple way, it is a difference between odds that lets you always win. You buy every possible outcome (i.e., put bets on both X and Y teams).

Therefore, you are sure that thanks to the odds at that time, you will always make more money than you spent on covering all possible outcomes.

For example, if you have a 100 EUR budget and the match may only have two endings, you split the sum not equally to 50 EUR but according to the odds (do not worry; we will get to the formula soon enough).

It is essential to know that arbitrage is not always possible. Very often, there are no sure bets. You often must compare odds at different bookies and place your bets similarly.

Arbitrage formula:

Arbitrage size = 1 / X odds + 1 / Y odds (where X and Y are possible outcomes of the match).

Arbitrage betting example:

Tennis. Stefanos Tsitsipas versus Novak Djokovic.

1 / 3.75 + 1 / 1.36 = 0.266 + 0.735 = ~1.

1 you can consider as 100 percent (simply multiply the number you got by 100).

If the number is 100 or higher, we can say there is no arbitrage. To have an arbitrage, we need a number smaller than 100 (the smaller the number is, the better). Therefore, our example has no sure bet.

If there was a sure bet, we could count return on investment using this formula:

Expected return = budget (that you use for X + Y) / arbitrage size.

Since in the example we got 1, this means that further calculations would look like this:

Expected return = 100 EUR/1 = 100 EUR. Therefore, we could split our 100 EUR into two bets, which would give us 100 EUR back in return (no profit, no loss).

To know how much you should place on possible outcomes (for two outcome games), you should use these formulas:

• Bet on X = expected return/odds X wins;
• Bet on Y = expected return/odds Y wins.

Although these calculations are pretty simple and basic, it would be much easier for you to rely on our calculator. Formulas are ready here, so all you have to do is just write your numbers.

If you want to make your job even easier, there are more than online calculators. You may use some of the various services that pick arbitrage bets for you. Usually, these services are costly, so you have to decide whether your budget is big enough to cover both betting and service costs.

In the first part of the article, we explained what arbitrage betting is and how you can count sure bets. This time, we will discuss problems you usually face.

Despite all the obstacles, betting arbitrage is a legal way to bet and make money. Only a handful of crypto bookies have a negative approach toward arbitrage sports betting, while others even suggest using this type of betting.

The reason is pretty simple – bookmakers profit from that because the odds are balanced, and companies take their margins anyway.

We have already discussed how to count sure bets and other important aspects of it. However, we should not forget some risks that may disturb you:

• You have to have a reasonable budget for betting. Otherwise, sure bets will not really interest you because the return is usually pretty low. 100 EUR will not be enough. It is recommended to have at least 2 500 EUR.
• Verified accounts in a lot of online betting websites is a must! You never know where the opportunity occurs, so registration and verification of your account can take a lot of your time and make you late for that opportunity.
• You need to make bets in time. Although arbitrage gambling seems risk free, but there are some risks. If you want to get certain return, you have to make calculations and bets in time, while odds had not changed. Even small changes of odds can make your profit into loss.
• Elaborating on the third paragraph, you must remember that you must deposit money on many betting websites. Sometimes, arbitrage will require you to make bets at different bookies, so to save time, you must have enough money in your account. If you do not have money in your account, making the deposit will take some time, and the odds may change.
• Calculations take time. You cannot make mistakes if you want to make a guaranteed profit. Besides that, if you do your calculations manually, you will spend a decent amount of time analyzing various events and odds. You can choose software and internet services that find sports arbitrage bets and do all the necessary calculations. However, this usually is pricey. The budget needs to be big enough if you want to buy these services, have money for betting, and make a decent profit.
• Even if you have a big budget, you need to take into account that you must be able to place the required sums on certain events. This sounds simple, but when you need to use a few bookies, one might limit the amount you can bet significantly. Therefore, this would result in only minor profit, which is not worth the effort.
• Finally, some bookmakers want you to refrain from making arbitrage bets. These bookies might limit your opportunities to profit from this.

Even though this kind of betting is not new, and many players make money, this is not one of the top choices. Many players get fascinated by risky, quick possibilities and do not choose what is slower but has fewer risks.

If you ever decide to try betting arbitrage, we recommend using paid services to save you time and ensure error-free calculations.