Sports Arbitrage Blog
- Sports Arbitrage (surebet) is a mathematically calculated arbitrage situation which allows placing bets on all the opposing outcomes of the competition with different bookmakers. You earn in spite of the outcome! Therefore, sports.
- Arbitrage sports betting is a practice of placing bets, based on accurate mathematical calculations, across various bookmaker websites and win whatever the game results are. Betting sites are.
Arbitrage is an advanced sports betting strategy that comes from the financial world. This strategy involves multiple wagers on the same game in order to guarantee a profit. An opportunity to arbitrage for a game is more about making money than betting and rooting on a particular team.
To be clear, arbitrage is a sports betting strategy that guarantees a profit. This isn’t a get rich quick scheme and isn’t illegal. It takes effort to find an arbitrage opportunity. This kind of gambling isn’t for everyone, but all sports bettors could use this tool as part of their wagering plans.
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This might sound too good to be true but it isn’t. The most difficult part about arbitrage is actually finding the opportunity.
What is arbitrage?
In the financial world, arbitrage is considered “the simultaneous purchase and sale of an asset to profit from an imbalance in the price. It is a trade that profits by exploiting the price differences of identical or similar financial instruments on different markets or in different forms.”
Arbitrage is similar for sports bettors. This betting strategy involves placing a wager on all possible outcomes of an individual game or event so that that there’s a guaranteed profit regardless of the winner. The name might sound complicated but the idea of arbitrage is actually quite simple.
How to arbitrage in sports betting
The goal of arbitrage betting is to find inefficiencies in the sports betting market in order to guarantee a profit. Sportsbooks often set odds so that they have even (or close to even) money wagered on both sides. There are times when sportsbooks have different odds from one another and this results in an opportunity to arbitrage a game.
Arbitrage betting is done by placing multiple wagers on different outcomes of a single sports event. One of the wagers will win while the other wager will lose. If done correctly, the result will be a small win for the bettor regardless of which side wins.
Arbitrage math and results
An example should help explain how to arbitrage a game.
New York Yankees vs. Houston Astros
- Sportsbook 1 odds: Yankees +110
- Sportsbook 2 odds: Astros +110
In this example, a bettor will wager $100 on each team. The total amount of wagers for this game will be $200. Regardless of which team wins the game, the bettor will be paid $110 for a winning wager plus the original $100 for a total of $210.
Altogether there was $200 wagered on this baseball game. There is a guaranteed return of $210 no matter who wins the game. The total profit of this investment was $10. This is a guaranteed 5% return; that’s solid for a short-term investment.
The return will remain the same if a bettor can risk more than $200. Grinding out small wins over time can help a bettor grow their bankroll. In the example above, the rate of return will be 5% no matter how much money is wagered.
If the bettor can find a larger moneyline spread, they will profit greater. For example, if there is a moneyline available for +120 on both sides of the game above, the profit for the bettor will be $20 for the same $200 wager. That’s a 10% return on the investment. Again, not too shabby for having money in play for three to five hours of a baseball game.
An arbitrage opportunity can be useful for any sized bankroll. A larger bettor might be able to risk $2,000 on the same game. The 5% return, in this case, would give the bettor a profit of $100 while the 10% return would return $200.
Having a large bankroll helps grow profits quicker but isn’t necessary. Anyone can use arbitrage to supplement their sports betting bankroll.
Lastly, the odds don’t have to be the same for both wagers. The example above is just keeping the math simple.
Line shopping
Line shopping is important for all sports bettors but especially when looking for an arbitrage opportunity. Finding the best odds for a game will take place at multiple sportsbooks. Unfortunately arbitraging a game isn’t a get rich quick scheme. Finding the right odds takes time and effort. Having said that, this extra work also helps a bettor become profitable.
Even if this isn’t a particularly fun strategy, the underlying approach can be helpful for all sports bettors. Line shopping is one way to be a more profitable sports bettor – and it isn’t difficult in most states that have multiple legal sportsbooks.
The process of line shopping isn’t difficult but it does take a time switching between apps and websites to compare the information. Visiting different sportsbooks to find the best lines and odds will help a bettor in multiple ways.
An arbitrage opportunity will always be profitable. Finding the best moneyline for an event will obviously pay more money. Finding the best point spread for a game increases the chance that a team will cover and the bettor will win the wager.
There’s always an upside to placing bets with the best odds available.
Arbitrage isn’t for everyone
Sports betting arbitrage is an advanced strategy and it’s not for everyone. All sports bettors want to win but they have different motivations. Recreational sports bettors often seek to have some action on the game they’re watching or the team they’re rooting for.
Sure all bettors want to win but sometimes the goal is to have fun watching the game and to win money based on predicting the outcome correctly.
Professional sports bettors are strictly gambling to make a profit. These bettors appreciate being able to find arbitrage opportunities. Pro sports bettors are always looking for ways to make money when wagering on sports and are typically the type of bettor most open to arbitrage.
There’s a large number of sports bettors that fall in between these two extremes. These bettors will put in the work to find the best information and odds for games they’d like to wager. Many will do the extra work to find an arbitrage situation because generating a profit is the most fun part of gambling. However, arbitrage betting takes time and even an advanced recreational bettor may not have time to always seek out opportunities.
There are pros and cons to all kinds of sports wagers. Arbitrage is a great opportunity to generate small guaranteed profits on a game. This is another great tool available to sports bettors.
Sports betting is supposed to be extremely hard to beat. In fact, only a small percentage of bettors win long-term profits through this type of gambling.
Arbitrage betting (arbing) offers you a shortcut toward making money.
You can be the world’s worst handicapper and still win through arbing.
This method involves wagering on all outcomes of a match in a way that guarantees profit. To do this, you must find two or more bookmakers that differ enough on the odds to lock in your win.
Here’s an example:
- Cincinnati Bengals +200
- Baltimore Ravens -175
- You bet $150 on the Bengals
- You should wager $78.55 on the Ravens to maximize your arb
- Your profit will be $7.10
The trouble with arbing is that it doesn’t offer a very big profit margin. Nevertheless, you can still win a decent amount of money if your wagers are large enough.
Of course, you have to find good arbs before counting your winnings. That said, I’ll discuss more on this subject, including software that can help you spot profitable opportunities.
The Main Challenge Is Finding Arbs
The sportsbook and online sportsbooks aren’t any help themselves aren’t any help with arbitrage betting; they actually despise arbers. Therefore, you’ll be on your own when trying to find these opportunities. Assuming you can regularly spot arbs, then you can make profits again and again.
The good news is that plenty of arbs exist on a daily basis.
After all, the sports betting world is filled with different markets.
The trouble, though, is that you need to both find arbs and bet on each leg in time. Assuming you mess up just one of the legs, then your guaranteed profit will likely be gone.
Here’s an example:
- Tampa Bay Rays +185
- New York Yankees -160
- You wager $200 on the Rays
- The bookmaker shifts the Yankees’ odds to -200
- You’re guaranteed to lose if you still wager on the Yankees
- You’ve basically placed a regular $200 bet on Tampa Bay
Arbitrage betting is a combination of making profitable wagers and capitalizing on opportunities in time. If you’re able to master these skills, then you can look forward to consistent winnings.
You Can’t Rely on Finding Arbs by Yourself
Your first inclination regarding arbitrage gambling may be to try and find opportunities yourself. Doing so requires monitoring a variety of sportsbooks and looking for potential arbs.
You can theoretically still find winning opportunities this way. But your chances of doing so with any consistency are next to nothing.
Again, bookmakers hate arbers.
They normally remain close to each other in terms of odds to avoid giving up arbs.
Of course, sportsbooks do differ enough on the odds sometimes to create winning opportunities. But they often close these gaps before too many gamblers can take advantage.
If you’ve got 10 sportsbooks open on your phone and keep refreshing them, then you’ll be terrible at timing arbs. Long story short, you can’t do it on your own.
You Must Use Arb Software
The only sensible way to arbitrage bet is to use software. You need a program that specifically seeks out arbitrage betting opportunities.
Some programs are designed solely for finding arbs and alerting you to them.
These “arb finders” are even available for free in some cases (covered later).
General sports betting software programs can do the same trick in some cases. You can also use these programs for other purposes, such as finding steam moves, public betting percentages, and updated odds.
The key is for you to find a program that tracks this information so you don’t have to.
Free Arbitrage Betting Software Exists
You’ll be pleased to know that you don’t have to spend anything on arbitrage gambling software. Instead, plenty of free programs exist across the internet.
The obvious advantage of free software is that you don’t need to pay for anything. Instead, you can just fire up these programs and begin looking for arbs.
The downside is that freebies don’t work extremely well.
They suffer from the following problems:
- They don’t cover many markets
- They don’t refresh quickly
- Odds often come in on a delay
- It’s hard to bet each leg in time when relying on these programs
You may ultimately decide to invest in software when considering free programs’ limitations. But if you’re still interested in the latter, then you’ll be happy to know that they’re easy to use.
Many companies offer a free version of their software that includes an arb-finding option.
You can continue using this version until deciding to upgrade to the premium service.
The arb-finding feature is self-explanatory in most cases. You just need to apply the relevant filter to figure out where you can take advantage of arbs.
You May Want to Buy Software
Whether or not you decide to pay for arbing software depends upon how serious you are about the matter.
You might begin by using a free service and placing low-stakes wagers.
This route gives you a chance to decide how serious you are about the matter.
Assuming you do become a serious arber, then you should consider upgrading.
Doing so provides you with the following advantages:
- Odds refresh faster and give you a stronger chance to bet every leg in time.
- Your get extra features, such as alerts, arbing calculator, and more-detailed filters.
- More markets are covered.
Of these benefits, speed is of the utmost importance. Arbs don’t hang around forever, making free programs risky.
You can cut down on this risk by paying for software. You’ll receive refreshed odds at a faster rate with more in-depth programs.
Concerns With Arbing and Paying for Software
The other side of the equation is that you might not find arbing enjoyable or worth your time. You’ll especially feel this way if you have a small bankroll and are only making a few dollars per arb.
Even with the best software, arbitrage betting can be a time-consuming process.
You’ll likely question the hours you pour into the matter with the slim profit margins involved.
Another downside is that your account may be limited or even banned.
Conclusion
Arbitrage betting is a promising way to make money through sports gambling. When arbitrage betting is done right, it can deliver guaranteed profits.
You just need to find situations where bookmakers differ enough on odds for a given match to win. Of course, this process is easier said than done.
Technically, you can find arbs by yourself. You can constantly refresh online sportsbooks on your phone and monitor the odds. But you’ll be putting yourself through hell with this method.
Instead, you should use either free or paid arb finders.
These programs are designed to monitor lines and alert you to arbs. This scenario cuts out a lot of the work involved with arbitrage gambling.
The good news is that you can use free programs if you don’t feel like investing in software.
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The drawback, though, is that free arb finders don’t refresh odds quickly or cover as many markets.
Buying software comes with the obvious downside of having to spend money. But the benefit is that you’ll get updated odds faster and find arbs across more markets.
In the end, you need to decide how serious you are about arbitrage betting.
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Assuming you’re really serious about making money from the matter, then you should pay for software.
If you just want to get your feet wet with arbing, then the free programs should suffice. You may even be able to make a little money with this software.
I suggest arbing with a large bankroll. The more you’re able to wager, the higher profit margins you’ll earn.
Sports Arbitrage Software
Of course, nothing is stopping you from arbing with a smaller bankroll. But the profits you earn will essentially amount to pennies or dollars per arb.