Matched Betting Explanation
Matched Betting Explained:
Believe it or not there's actually a way to ensure that you Make Money from Free Bets. As Online Bookies compete for each others share of punters there's a never ending supply of Free Bets for new sign ups. You know the sort of thing 'bet £25, receive a free £25 bet' as a bonus when you open a new account. This is great news as, using a technique called 'Matched Betting', it is possible to back and lay the same event in order to win regardless of the outcome. Simply by using one of the Free Bets as your stake money you're able to then lay these bets off to make a risk free profit.
How much money could I make from Matched Betting?
Well from £500 to £3000 is the typical amount of "Easy" money. Overall it all depends on the amount of time taken to match the bets and bonus amounts. There are not just freebets for signing up there are also "reload" offers and various ongoing "If" bets which can also lock in a profit. There is not an upper limit to the amount you can make, the sky is the limit, but like everything in life you will get more out of it the more you put in.
Can anyone make money from Matched Betting?
Yes. As long as you are over the age of 18 and can prove it, own a debit or credit card, £100 as a starting "bankroll" and a basic grasp of Key Stage 3 maths, then you are good to go.
Are there any risks in Matched Betting?
Yes there are. However the main risk is human error, as long as you take your time when placing bets and double check the bets you place then you should be OK. It is still essential that you never ever deposit or have in any bookmaker more than you can afford to lose.
Is it legal?
Yes. You are simply taking advantage of introductory offers made by Bookies. If they dont want to offer the freebets they dont have to. As long as you adhere to all the T&Cs you are doing nothing wrong.
What's the difference between a "deposit bonus" and a stake not returned "free bet"?
A deposit bonus is the same as placing a bet with your own money, it is just you will have a certain % more to play with. The stake (the bet amount) is returned with any winnings. A stake not returned "free bet" means that the stake money (the bet amount) is not returned with any winning.
What does "laying" mean?
Laying a bet is when you become the Online Bookie, this happens at a betting exchange and is explained in more details in the Betfair guide section of this site.
Why do we have to lay the bets?
Because it is possible bets lose! Laying bets means that you ALWAYS win. You might think that you can avoid losing by betting on things which are certain to happen, like maybe Chelsea at home, the Aussie cricketers against Zimbabwe or Federer against ... well almost anyone really. You could do this except for two things, firstly not every "certainty" happens, afterall Burnley beat Manchester Utd recently! Also the bookmakers have thought of this and the majority have in the T&Cs that the qualifying bet you place must be at odds over 2, which is Evens. Always chack the T&Cs!
Instead of just guessing who will win, you can use a betting exchange to lay the same selection and hedge your risk, in effect cancelling out the first bet and ensuring it is impossible for you to lose. Betfair is the main betting exchange and how to use it is covered in depth in another section , but for now lets just accept they exist and they allow us to lay bets.
What is the best sport to use when Matched Betting?
Football is an easy sport to use, mainly because the rules are very simple and clear and standard accross all sites. There is also the added advantage of football being a very popular sport for betting which means there are many games to choose from. Sports with only two outcomes are my next choice, such as Baseball, however some of the bookmakers have different rules which may make things more difficult. If you stick to Soccer match odds (Win/Lose/Draw) when you want a low odds match and the correct score markets (but not anything with 4+ goals) when you want long odds you wont go far wrong.
Where can I find bookmakers to join?
We would recommend that you only join sites we have reviewed and have been given a rating of 6* or higher, that way you can be sure your money is safe and there is unlikely to be any problems. At last count there was over £3000 of free money available to a New User of those sites.
Bookmaker Reviews
Is there a limit to how much you can make?
It is possible to make a regular "income" using offers for the existing accounts you have, this forum thread provides some ideas for what new and existing users can achieve, some people netting £2k+ a month each and every month:
£400+ a month Forum thread
This all sounds very exciting, Where can I see exactly how it is done?
There are several things you will need to know, the first is exactly how to use Betfair.
You can then see exactly how to use a "Freebet" offer and make a profit from it.
There are several other types of promotional offers you can profit from such as "Deposit Bonuses" and "If" bet offers.
