Sports Betting Arbitrage can be a great way of making money but there are lots of pitfalls to be aware of.
- You make money without having to bet or guess a possible outcome
- It can help you gain VIP status and more
- It is risky. Odds can change, bet could be limited, different rules can apply and more
- It does require full understanding of what you're getting yourself into
Sports Betting Arbitrage can be a great way of making money. However there are lots of pitfalls you should be aware of. Read the following guide to learn more.
How do you do Sports Betting Arbitrage?
The way it works is simple. You bet on (usually) 2 possible outcomes. Regardless of the winning outcomes you will make money. For example, you bet over 188.5 points and under 188.5 in some basketball game. You risk $500 in total on these two bets. In the “worse” case you would get $507. In the good case you would get $508. Thus your profit is $7 or $8.
You can also do the same with 3 selections. For example 3 possible outcomes in a soccer match (aka Football). However the most popular form of sports betting arbitrage bets are with 2 possible outcomes.
How to take advantage of Sports Betting Arbitrage
One of the ways to do so would be by looking at odds providers. For example OddsPortal provides a “Sure Bets” page. You can also search on Google for “Sure Bets”. This page shows how much potential yield you can make by betting on different outcomes.
However, we suggest not to rely only on that. Websites like SportsBet.io pay you a nice bonus if you win or lose. In addition SportsBet.io has a Price Boost feature. That feature allows you to get paid more than what the current odds show. If you use a combination of SportsBet.io and Stake.com for example, you are likely to create a nice arbitrage. This will ensure you would get bonuses on top of your original bet. For example:

And on the other hand betting on Liverpool FC to win in Stake:

You can calculate the possibilities in a website like this:

As you can see by risking $1000 you would get back $50. However if you lose with SportsBet.io you are likely to get those $50 back and even more than that. And by losing with Stake you would get it back via VIP.
This is just an example from a main event in the UK Premier League, and you can hunt for better deals out there. For instance, you can look at the Sure bet we referred to above and look for deals there. Alternatively look for deals involving Over/Under in basketball. You can find lots of good deals there.
Pitfalls To Be Aware Of
If you try to use 2 different sites on a Tennis match then you should read the site rules. For instance, one site might void your bet if a player retires and one site might honor your bet. In that case you might lose your bet.
Another thing to consider is the max limit on a certain bet. If you bet on the NBA or on the UK Premier League then likely your max limit will be quite high. However if you bet on a local game in Tunisia then by all means do not try and bet $1000 on each side because one site might take your bet but other will reject it! Then you would find yourself in a trouble.
Other things to consider can be whether overtime is included or excluded (in basketball for example). Lastly, the withdrawal fees are a huge factor. Sometimes your profit might be only $20. Then you would pay $20 just in fees to withdraw the funds. That won’t make it profitable.
Also be aware odds can change when you place the bet, although it’s unlikely it could happen. So take all these factors into account before placing your bets.