Guest post written by Brian from U Can’t Lose
Hi all
I hope the past month has been a profitable one.
In this post I’m going to talk you through the four most common arb types that we send to our customers.
Before I get into my examples I feel I should explain the odds type I’m going to use. I believe that the decimal style of odds is the easiest style to understand. Basically the odds quoted include the return of your stake so you simply multiply your stake by the odds to get your winnings. For example if you bet £1000 at 2.3 you win £1000 x 2.3 = £2300.
To convert fractional odds to decimal odds you need to divide the fractional odds and add 1
E.g.
2/1 = 3.00 (2 / 1 = 2 + 1 = 3)
5/7 = 1.71 (5 / 7 = 0.71 + 1 = 1.71)
11/4 = 3.75 (11 / 4 = 2.75 + 1 = 3.75)
Ok, now onto the four basic arbs we send.
12 (two way arb)
A 12 arb (that’s one-two, not twelve) is probably the most simple of the arb types so this strikes me as a good place to start. We call it a 12 because 1 represents the home team (or first player listed) and 2 represents the away team (or second player listed). 12 arbs are most common in tennis, snooker and some forms of darts.
12 arbs are a good place to start as newbie because you only have to bet on two outcomes. This means that you only have to visit two bookies, make two deposits and place two bets.
An example of how a 12 arb works can be found below.
Allister Carter v Dave Harold
Snooker – Shanghai Masters – 08/09/10 – 07:30 BST
1 – 1.50 – Unibet
2 – 3.25 – 888sport or BlueSquare
Approximate Return – 2.63%
The 1 means Allister Carter to win and the 2 means Dave Harold to win.
Assuming you had £1,000 to bet on this arb you would have placed £684 on Allister Carter at Unibet and £316 on Dave Harold at 888sport or BlueSquare. These calculation are done instantly using the returns calculator we give away to all new customers.
If Allister Carter won the match you would have won £1,026 (1.50 x £684), giving you a profit of £26, and if Dave Harold won you would have won £1,027 (3.25 x £316), giving you a profit of £27.
1X2 (three way arb)
A 1X2 arb is similar to a 12 arb but with an extra outcome. X in this case represents the draw. 1X2 arbs are very common in football.
An example of how a 1X2 arb works can be found below.
FK Linkoping v BK Kenty
Football – Sweden – Division Two – Ostra Gotaland – 03/09/10 – 17:00 BST
1 – 3.00 – BetAtHome
X – 3.90 – Unibet
2 – 3.00 – BetAtHome
Approximate Return – 8.33%
Assuming you had £1,000 to bet on this arb you would have placed £361 on FK Linkoping to win (with BetAtHome), £278 on the draw (with Unibet) and £361 on BK Kenty to win (with BetAtHome).
If FK Linkoping had won you would have won £1,083 (3.00 x £361), giving you a profit of £83, the match had ended as a draw you would have won £1,084.20 (3.90 x £278), giving you a profit of £84.20 and if BK Kenty had won you would have won £1,083 (3.00 x £361), giving you a profit of £83.
Draw No Bet
Draw no bet is a special market where the bookies ignore the draw and just offer odds on the Home Win and Away Win. You should always make sure you are betting on the market that does not include the draw. If the match ends as a draw both bookies will return your stake.
An example of how a draw no bet arb works can be found below.
Greenock Morton v Cowdenbeath FC
Football – Scotland – Division 1 – Draw No Bet – 11/09/10 – 15:00 BST
1 – 1.57 – Coral
2 – 3.25 – Bet365
Approximate Return – 5.86%
Assuming you had £1,000 to bet on this arb you would have placed £674 on Greenock at Coral and £326 on Cowdenbeath at Bet365.
If Greenock won the match you would have won £1,058.18 (1.57 x £674), giving you a profit of £58.18, and if Cowdenbeath won you would have won £1,059.50 (3.25 x £326), giving you a profit of £59.50.
If the match had ended as a draw both bookies would have returned your full stake and you would have broken even.
Total Goals
A total goals arb uses the under / over markets available at most bookies. For the under / over markets the bookies state a total number of goals that might be scored during the game and you have to bet if you think the actual total will be under or over the total stated. The most common total used by the bookies is 2.5. Meaning if 0, 1 or 2 goals are scored the under 2.5 bet is a winner and if 3 or more goals are scored the over 2.5 bet is the winner.
An example of how a total goals arb works can be found below.
Aalborg v Horsens
Football – Denmark – Superligaen – Total Goals – 12/09/10 – 13:00 BST
Under 2.5 – 2.00 – BetAtHome
Over 2.5 – 2.20 – Bet365
Approximate Return – 4.76%
Assuming you had £1,000 to bet on this arb you would have placed £524 on Under 2.5 at BetAtHome and £476 on Over 2.5 at Bet365.
If under 2.5 goals were scored in the match (ie 0, 1 or 2) the under 2.5 bet would have won you £1,048 (2.00 x £524), giving you a profit of £48. If over 2.5 goals were scored (ie 3, 4, 5 etc) the over 2.5 bet would have won you £1,047.20 (2.20 x £476), giving you a profit of £47.20.
Well that’s just about it from me for this month. Next month I will talk you though some of the more ‘exotic’ arb type…such as double chance, handicaps, partial handicaps, long terms.
As always, if you have any comments or questions please post them below.
Happy arbing
Brian
Brian Edwards has been making profitable arbs for many years now. His website U Can’t Lose provides an Arbitrage Sports Betting and Trading Service that has been designed to provide arbitrage opportunities to newcomers to the world of arbing, teaching you how to build up a bankroll using a stress-free and low risk method.
