Beginner’s Guide to Sports Betting
Beginner’s Guide to Sports Betting
Sports matches, you can watch them for hours. One minute you’re glued to the TV screen for the decisive football match for the national championship, and the next you’re watching Formula 1 drivers or cyclists chasing down the road at full speed. Every sport has its charm, especially if you bet on it. With a bet you can use your sports knowledge to earn money. In addition, such a bet creates extra tension during the entire match. Even sports competitions that few people are interested in suddenly provide you with nail-biting moments. Can the San Pablo Burgos win the basketball game or will Bilbao Basket hold onto that narrow lead? If you are going to bet on sports, you need to know what you are doing.
So many sports, so many different betting options
Football and horse racing are really those sports that traditionally attract many gamblers. Are you not into football or equestrian sports? Don’t worry, because the offer has increased considerably in recent years. Tennis fans can bet money on the many ATP tournaments or on the chic Wimbledon. If you prefer to watch cycling, then immerse yourself in the Tour de France or the classic Liège-Bastogne-Liège. Or bet on that exciting game in NBA basketball or that one decisive match during the World Snooker World Cup, European Handball Championship or the PDC World Grand Prix darts.
In all these sports competitions you can choose from numerous bets. Predict the winner of the football match with a 1×2 bet or pit two Formula 1 drivers against each other in a head-to-head. And does that tennis match actually result in more or less than 21.5 games? As a gambler you can focus on a single match, but you can also bet on the outcome of a tournament. For example, it is interesting to predict who will become world champion or which club will win the Eredivisie this year. So there are plenty of options if you place your bets online.
Are you going to bet live or pre-match?
Bookmakers divide the many sports betting into two categories: live and pre-match betting. Both have their pros and cons. With a pre-match bet you have plenty of time to prepare and make a thorough analysis of the match. The bets often come online days in advance and you have until the start to make your prediction. The disadvantage? Once the match starts, you lose control. If tennis star Kiki Bertens loses the first set and makes a mistake after a mistake, the chance is small that she can turn the tide. You soon see that you will lose the bet, but unfortunately… there is nothing more you can do.
With a live bet you create plenty of tension while the match is in progress. You watch, analyze and wait until the right moment presents itself. Perhaps PSV will keep increasing the pressure and that goal will simply hang in the air. Or perhaps Max Verstappen will keep pushing for the lead and it is very real that he will eventually win that Grand Prix. A live bet gives you the opportunity to react directly to what happens during the match. Good timing is essential in this regard. If you wait too long, the odds will fall and you will make less profit than hoped.
This is how it is with odds, odds or odds
The word ‘quotation’ has already been mentioned. When betting on sports, odds (also known as ‘odds’ or ‘odds’) are one of the most important things to consider. These numbers show exactly how much money you can earn with a bet.
At odds of 2.65, each euro wagered equals an amount of 2.65 euros. A bet of 20 euros is therefore immediately (2.65 * 20) worth 53 euros. After deduction of the original investment, a profit of 33 euros remains. Quotations also reveal some additional information. Because the higher the number, the less the bookmaker believes in a result. Successful gamblers always carefully weigh the risk of the bet against the potential winning amount. The trick is to find a good balance here.
Start the search for the perfect bookmaker
Now that you know what is expected of you, you are ready to start looking for a bookmaker. A bookmaker is nothing more than a company where you can go for your (online) sports betting. Everything is also arranged for you. For example, the bookmaker ensures that the odds are online, that your betting slip is processed and that you receive the winnings automatically. All you have to do is pass on your prediction. And hopefully that prediction is good for the win.
The number of online betting shops has increased significantly in recent years. So you have a lot of choice, but that also makes it easy for you to choose the wrong platform. With all its consequences. You may come across a bookmaker who is not very reliable and simply does not pay out the winnings. Or maybe you find out after a few days that the chosen platform does not suit you at all. You quickly reach the maximum limits and customer service turns out to be unreachable during the night. And that while the best time to concentrate on your bets is at night. The conclusion is clear: you are with a bookmaker that simply does not suit your way of betting. It is therefore essential that you take a good look at what you expect from a betting platform. Then take a look at different online bookmakers in peace and start comparing. Do not be guided by the well-known name, but do look at the licenses. If the bookmaker has a license from the NigerianGaming Commission, you can be sure that you can bet on sports safely.
You have to arrange this before you start betting
In principle, anyone aged 18 or older can go to a bookmaker. There is, however, one additional requirement. You must create a player account before you start betting. You only need a few minutes to create a player account. As soon as you have entered some personal details (such as name, address, date of birth and bank account number), you are already registered as a player.
After your registration it is time to top up your balance. We are talking about the balance of your digital wallet, which is automatically linked to your player account. From that wallet you pay all bets you make on the platform. So you don’t have to grab your bank app every time. Do you have insufficient playing balance? You can quickly complete this via, for example, Paystack, Flutterwave, iDEAL, credit card, Paysafecard, PayPal or well-known e-wallets such as Skrill and Neteller. It also differs per bookmaker which payment options are available. Note: online bookmakers always have a minimum deposit amount. Usually it concerns an amount of 10 or 20 euros.
Grab that nice welcome bonus right away!
Bookmakers are eager to expand their customer base. They therefore do everything they can to tempt you to create an account.
There is a proven strategy that many online bookmakers use. They lure you with a nice welcome bonus. If you do plan to bet on sports matches, then you’d better take advantage of such a perk. The online gambling world works with different types of welcome bonuses. Known is the 100% deposit bonus, where the amount of your first deposit is doubled. A no deposit bonus is also interesting. You don’t have to deposit money yet, but you just receive a small amount with which you can try out the platform without obligation. Are you sensitive to these kinds of bonus promotions? Then take a good look at what the different bookmakers have to offer. Do not forget to read the bonus conditions.
Take a look at bankroll management
You have found a bookmaker, the account has been created and you have also activated that nice welcome bonus. So you’re all set for your first bet…or are you? Actually, you have to arrange something else before you start betting. You would do well to delve into bankroll management.
Bankroll management has everything to do with your gambling budget and the amount of your bet. If you randomly withdraw money from your account, you quickly lose the overview. It is much wiser to set a daily, weekly or monthly budget for yourself. If the money is gone, it will stop with your bets for the rest of the day, week or month. That’s a shame, of course, but this way you prevent yourself from getting into financial problems. In addition to the fixed budget, commitment is also important. Most successful gamblers have developed a system by which they determine the stake per bet. For example, you can choose a fixed percentage of the bankroll. Or just split your betting budget into small portions and determine how many portions the bet is worth at a time. It is important that you put down on paper the maximum you bet per bet. This way you stay in control and don’t let yourself be tempted into emotional decisions. There is nothing more unwise than wagering all your money at once, just because your gut tells you that this bet is going to make you rich. The chance of losing everything is simply too great.
The betting slip: an important guideline for your bets
Once the preparatory work is done, you can delve into the many competitions and betting options. You rely on your own sports knowledge and on the (match) statistics. Have you ever found a good bet? From that moment on, your betting slip is the most important point of reference.
When you select a bet, it will immediately appear on your bet slip. This form is prominently displayed at every bookmaker. That’s a good thing, because it contains useful information. For example, you can immediately see how much profit you make if you win the bet. If you add more bets as part of a combination bet, you will see the potential winning amount increase rapidly. The bookmaker rewards such a multiple bet with extra high odds. In fact, the odds of all bets on the bet slip are multiplied together. But be careful, because you only win the money if every added prediction comes true.
By the way, keep in mind that you still have to submit your bet slip before the bet is official. Only as soon as you have pressed ‘place bet’ (or one of the many variants thereof), the bet slip will be sent to the bookmaker.
Sports stats are the basis of your bet
You naturally rely on your sports knowledge when you fill out the bet slip. However, you should also not forget to view the statistics. You do not have to search for data about the current position in the ranking or about the percentage of possession of that one football club. Bookmakers simply have the statistics on their platform. Especially for the most popular sports competitions, the statistics are quite extensive. Use this to your advantage. If you know that a tennis player has lost the last four mutual encounters, you can draw your conclusions. Apparently the opponent’s game doesn’t suit him. With that information in mind, you increase the chances of winning your bet.
Keep that money coming!
Combine your sports knowledge with a good analysis of the statistics and you have all the ingredients to win your bets. The winnings that you make are automatically credited to your player account. After that, it is up to you to determine when you will have that money paid out.
Requesting a payment is thus arranged. Keep in mind that bookmakers have a minimum payout amount as standard. You really don’t have to save hundreds of euros to meet that minimum. With most bookmakers it is an amount between 10 and 25 euros. Has your application been submitted once? Within 48 hours the bookmaker will transfer the amount to you and you can finally spend the won!