Arbitrage, or arbs as they are sometimes known has grown popular due to the increasing amount of bookmakers present online now. When placing arb bets, the return from each outcome must cover the stakes placed as well as giving you a profit. Free bets are often used to make arbs more profitable in something called match betting, but we will not talk about that here.
The profit margins on arb betting are small, but because they are sure bets, you can put bigger stakes on without the risk of losing.
Lets use a quick example using two theoretical players in a tennis match. Player A and Player B.
At Bookie 1, Player A is offered at 2.50 and Player B is offered at 1.50
At Bookie 2, Player A is offered at 2.00 and Player B is offered at 1.727
To work out how much you need to bet to get a certain amount back, you divide the amount you want to get back by the odds. Say we want to get £100 back...
100 / Player A at Bookie 1 >> 2.5 = £40 100/ Player B at 1.727 at Bookie 2 >> = £57.91
If you then add up the total you have to bet to get £100 back it only comes to £97.91 >> £40 + 57.91 = £97.91.
Now if either of these outcomes occurs you have got £100 back for only betting £97.91, so you have made a 2.09 profit. This doesn't look much, but because it is a sure bet you can use bigger stakes and make multiple bets per day and the profits will add up.
Try using some free bets to test out arb betting!
