What is No-risk Matched Betting?

by Big Al Staff

Sunday, Nov 01, 2020

What is no-risk matched betting?


Anyone who is fond of surfing around the internet probably knows there are tons of ways to earn some extra dollars.  You could start your own business, or find ways to sell your belongings, or teach your profession.  All of the above require lots of effort and might even take a pretty significant initial capital investment.  But what if there was a way to earn extra money which required very little time or investment?

That means we're aiming for free money, tax-free money, and a large amount of money.  We'll do so by using the matched betting method.  When you do a quick google search on finding ways to earn money online, you'll immediately stumble upon the no-risk matched betting method.  It might sound too good to be true, but with some smart techniques, you can start exploiting the sports betting industry's loopholes.

In this matched betting guide, we'll take you step-by-step what you need to get you started today!  Matched betting is widespread and, if done correctly, can generate some extra cash which goes far beyond your hourly rate at your current job.

How does matched betting work?

The first thing you should know is that matched betting is legal and not kind of scam.  Indeed, it's a way to take advantage of a loophole in the online sports betting industry due to its free bets and promotions.  As you know, there's strong competition among online bookies.  Thus, they all attempt to create generous promotions to bring in new bettors.  To them, they are new customers.

You probably have seen these promotions:

  • 150% bonus on your first deposit (sign-up offer or reload offer)
  • Free $50 wager when you deposit $100 or more (free bet offers)
  • 50% bonus on your first bet (sign-up offer or reload offer)

What if we told you that with some smart techniques, you can ensure a risk-free, guaranteed profit?  We'll show you exactly how.  First of all, let's distinguish between back bets and lay bets, both essential parts of the matched betting technique.

Back bets
The back bet is pretty simple.  It's the most traditional sense of betting where you pick the winner.  Thus, you're wagering on a team, player or horse you think will end up with the win.  One option could be the New England Patriots to defeat the Indianapolis Colts, or perhaps Nadal to win the Belmont Stakes.  Your bet is simply a win bet.

Lay bets
When online betting exchanges came into the sports betting industry, many new bet types started to gain popularity.  One of these is the lay bet.  Instead of betting on the outcome, you find most likely, you predict an outcome which will not happen.  In other words, which team, player or horse will lose.  And if you’re correct, your lay bet wins.

How to get started with matched betting?

Okay, so what we're doing here is essentially hedge betting, but in a different form.  Instead of wagering your precious dollars -- your real money -- you’re wagering the sportsbook’s promotional dollars, or free bets, from its sign-up offers.  There are a few steps you need to take to start placing your first risk-free bets.

Find the right bookmaker
The first thing to do is find the right bookmaker, betting exchange, or online sportsbook.  Search for the sportsbooks in the gambling industry that offer the best promotions and bonuses.  You don't have to be too picky, because if you find out how this method works, you can try your luck with multiple sportsbooks.  So find yourself a good promotion and sign up straightaway -- this is where you will place bets with a guaranteed profit!

Note: You want to place your back bet at a traditional bookmaker and your lay bet at a betting exchange.  The exchange is different from a traditional bookmaker since you're betting against other gamblers rather than a specific bookmaker.

Place your qualifying bet
When your account is all set up and you're ready to rumble, it's time to find the right sporting event.  Ask yourself which sport you prefer and look for some proper odds.  We want the lay odds and the back odds to be close to each other.  And the closer the odds are to each other, the more money we'll make from our matched betting offer.  

Remember, one method is to trigger a free bet with a qualifying bet.  That bonus could be something like bet $25 to get $50.  That means you need to wager at least $25 with your qualifying bet to trigger the free bets.

So, once your free bet is triggered, search your market for an event which meets the no-risk, matched betting criteria, and go ahead and place your bets at both the bookmaker and the betting exchange.

Time to take your free profits
When both your back bet and lay bet are in place, it's time to sit back and enjoy your game.  There are two possible outcomes in the game, but regardless of which occurs, you will profit.  You will lose one bet, but the overall profit will still be more than your initial stake.  As you can see, it doesn't require that much hard work or complicated math; all you need is some brains and understanding of the matched betting strategy.
 
One thing to be careful about is to make sure your bonus or the free bet has been activated.  There are always specific terms and conditions that you need to live up to before your bonus is activated.  So always double-check before you place your lay bet -- otherwise, you're not making any profits!

Matched betting example

To truly understand matched betting, we'll show you an example of a matched betting offer from start to finish.  We're not naming any sportsbook, in particular, so let's just use the term bookmaker X for the example.  We'll start with the promotion:

  • Bookmaker X offers $25 free if you deposit and bet $25 of real money

Then it's time to find the right match.  There are certain sites like oddsmatcher or oddsmonkey that let you scan through multiple markets to find the matches with odds you're looking for.  You want to search for your bookmaker in combination with the minimum odds required to place your qualifying bet.  Let's say the match that comes out is New England Patriots vs. New York Jets, with nearly identical odds.

Then it's time for you to start placing your lay bet and back bet.  You place your back bet at the bookmaker and your lay bet at your betting exchange.  This leaves you with the opportunity to hedge your bet and guarantee your profit.  You might wonder how much you need to wager with your lay bet, but there are some tools.  Some call it a lay betting calculator, or a matched betting calculator that helps you to decide how much you need to wager on both sides of the bet.

Don't forget there's always the vigorish, juice, or betting exchange commission that we shouldn't forget.  That requires you to stake a little more than you might think initially, but the calculator considers all that.  Now, when both our bets are in place, we'll have two possible outcomes:

  • Your back bet of $25 on the New England Patriots at bookmaker X wins, and your bet on the betting exchange loses
  • Your lay bet of $25 on the New York Jets wins at the betting exchange, and your back bet at bookmaker X loses.

In both cases, the most you could lose is a tiny amount, which represents the bookmaker’s or betting exchange’s commission.  However, if your back bet wins, you're also in for $25 in free bets.  So you are guaranteed not to lose any significant money.  But you have the real possibility to make a lot in free bets that you can, later on, turn into even more profits!

Matched betting FAQ

Before we leave you to it where you can start trying your luck, we want to make sure you have some questions answered that you might still have wandering around your head.  You might read this guide and think it's too good to be true.  Well, it isn't.

How much time do I need to spend on matched betting?
The beauty of matched betting is that you don't need to spend hours researching before you can place a bet.  With actual sports betting, you need to thoroughly research and make your choices based on statistics and facts, combined with your gut feeling.  In matched betting, you're only relying on the guarantee of making a profit.  The strategy is sound, and also doesn’t require much time to be successful.

All you need to do is take a couple of hours to set yourself up to get everything in place.  Once you do, you can spend as much time as you want.  And, the more time you spend, the more money you will make.

Is matched betting legal?
When something seems too good to be true, and people do not fully understand it, people start looking for a catch.  People do not trust something that's supposed to be a gamble, but you're making it work in a way where you're not taking any risks.  That's weird -- yet not impossible.  In fact, matched betting is entirely legal since you're not doing anything against the regulations.  A spokesman for one of the world's biggest bookies, William Hill, once said: "There's no illegal element to matched betting.  It's a free bet, and you can do what you like."

You could compare matched betting to hedge betting, although this is across multiple sportsbooks, and you're taking advantage of the system.  Bonuses and promotions are there for a reason, so why not use them in your favor?

How much money do you need to get started with matched betting?
It depends on how much money you want to make.  Just kidding, of course.  Anyway, you can first start with as little as $25.  But if you want to start with more, that’s fine, too.  Just understand that, as you take the maximum advantage of more bonuses and promotions, you need more capital.  And there’s no limit to how much money you can put into play.  It's simple as that.

If you’re just starting out, our recommendation is to start small and slowly work your way up.  When you start small, you can eventually start reeling in the big bucks and bet on multiple matched bets instead of just one.

With that being said, our matched betting guide is complete, and you're all set to give it a shot.  It's exciting if you do it the right way since you're earning easy money!  Have fun, and know that all you need is some capital and an internet connection to start earning some extra cash on the side!

All photographic images used for editorial content have been licensed from the Associated Press.

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