As sports betting starts becoming increasingly more acceptable through its wide legalisation in established and emerging markets, players start wondering about the optimal way of making money. Betting on sports may be a way of testing your knowledge of a sport, but it’s also an endeavour that is truly enjoyable when correct bets become payouts.
However, some have identified that specific strategies yield profit more than other circumstances akin to regular bets. These strategies are the result of a fantastic mixture of odd-defiance, analytics, and technological aids. There are several reasons for these opportunities, following divergent principles and showcasing different results.
Since the market of sports betting continues to shift in unexpected directions, a bit of continuity in how you treat this pastime can be invaluable.
This process will try to showcase both arbitrage and value betting within the same contextual framework. We will present them comparatively and state if there are any convergent elements, but also if they have wildly differing characteristics. Our only wish is to give you the resources to succeed in your sports betting endeavours!
Definitions
Let’s begin with arbitrage betting, otherwise known as sure betting. As a sports betting strategy, it’s a method of covering all the event outcomes with a bet. If a match can end with team A, team B winning, or a draw, you’d have to place a bet for each outcome to ensure that you have a winning stake regardless of the outcome.
The profit stems from betting on the most favourable odds for each event by staking at different casinos. The margin between the odds provided by one bookmaker and the rest of the bookie market will be your margin of profit. This means that you’ll have to constantly know the odds across the market and be ready to bet at the most favourable bookmaker for a specific event.
Value betting is truly gambling, unlike arbitrage. This one revolves around identifying exceedingly favourable odds for an event. If the odds are unfavourable to a specific competitor, but that competitor has higher chances of success in reality, a successful bet on that underdog would yield more value than usual, hence the denomination.
Legal Status
Before delving into the comparative analysis and showcasing the differences, we should mention their legal status. In short, both arbitrage and value betting are perfectly legal because they do not contravene any legislative requirement.
Naturally, this would mean that you are an eligible player (of legal age) who does not bet as a form of money laundering. Our recommendation would be to ensure that you’re up to date with any terms and conditions of a bookmaker. It’s very easy to do so when you have all this documentation on the bookie’s webpage.
Degree of Risk
In the interest of full disclosure on our part, we need to mention that both of these strategies have their own share of risk. This is the only principle that binds them as a similarity. Their types of risk and the reasons behind them are very different in nature.
Let’s begin with value betting because the type of risk is very straightforward. Quite obviously, the risk is all about the scenario in which the bet doesn’t hit. Oftentimes, the underdogs have lower odds for very understandable reasons. These can range from injuries to lower talent levels and general instabilities. It doesn’t matter if the odds are favourable as long as you bet on the incorrect outcome.
Arbitrage betting eliminates this type of risk but comes with others. Firstly, the sudden cancellation of an event would render your bets irrelevant, and the refund policy of different sportsbooks can be synonymous with lost money.
Secondly, the truth is that bookies frown upon arbitrage betting because it’s against the spirit of competition, not to mention bad for their business. Risk-and-effect scenarios of arbitrage betting can range from cancelled bets to account restrictions but can also lead to account closures (especially for ‘repeated offenders’). Moreover, depending on a bookmaker’s terms and conditions, it can even lead to a lost account balance.
Style Fitment
We call this category as such because each category works best according to your ambitions. We will pivot to how to make each category work best according to your preferred style, and we will do so in the next section of our article. This section will focus on how each betting type fits a certain staking profile.
Arbitrage betting works best for players who have the time and financial capabilities to cover multiple staking scenarios. Sure bets require a steady level of analysing the odds market, operating multiple accounts, and keeping within reasonable levels of financial investment. Consequently, it is a fine match for the players who are willing to dedicate their resources over the long run.
Value betting is a viable option for those who have a good level of knowledge about the sports they’re wagering on. You can evaluate a bookie’s odds as being overly ambitious only if you know the real chances of the (theoretical) underdog. As such, you’d have to be constantly up to date with the sports disciplines you’re betting on. Naturally, this is less about analytical odds calculations and more about passion, insight, and the pleasure of gambling.
Best Practices of Maximum Output
Let’s return to our advice about maximising the upside of each betting style. As discussed in the section above, this potential is highly dependent on your own resources and willingness to adapt to each style.
If you opt for arbitrage betting:
● Make accounts at as many bookmakers as possible. Try to use different account credentials, including emails, if you have more than one. This will minimise the risk of pattern identification for a single identity.
● Use arbitrage betting software that will help you in several ways. Several websites have integrated odds comparison services, arbitrage calculators, and built-in guides for efficient arbitrage betting.
If you opt for value betting:
● Stay in touch with the state of each competitor that you know you may be betting on.
● Use prior experiences to see if a bookmaker has a pattern for providing mismatched odds for specific events or sports, thus helping you know where to look.
Conclusion
Now that you know the differences that create the context for each main type of sports betting strategy, you can assess your style and available resources. Regardless of the chosen path, we kindly advise you to play responsibly!
