Sports betting is a very popular type of betting, with the number of sports betting sites increasing and the number of people betting growing regularly. If you are new to sports betting or looking to change the type of bets you place, you may be interested in sports spread betting.
Sports spread betting is a more complex type of betting than standard fixed odds betting. So, if you are planning to move toward spread betting, it is best to ensure that you fully understand what this type of betting is.
We have gathered information below regarding what spread betting entails, what is important to look at when placing a spread bet, and which are the best spread betting sites to place your sports bets.
Find out more about the best sports spread betting sites:
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Spread betting is a fairly complicated form of betting where instead of seeing the fixed odds for the bet you are placing, you will see two different figures to bet on. You can only place a spread bet with certain companies and spread betting companies will offer you two prices.
The prices you will be offered when placing a spread bet are the bid and the ask price. In comparison to fixed odds betting, where you are betting on the result of the situation, with spread betting, you are trying to predict the accuracy of your bet instead.
Spread betting aims to predict whether the situation you are betting on will be higher than the ask price or lower than the bid price. The reason that the accuracy of your bid is so important is that; the closer you are to the price you have bet at, the more you will win.
There are several types of spread betting, but the two main types that are generally discussed are financial spread betting, and sports spread betting. Both of these will be outlined below, although we will mainly focus on sports spread betting throughout the majority of the information below.
Financial Spread Betting
Financial spread betting is exactly as it sounds; placing a spread bet on the financial markets. This is a very complex type of spread betting, and therefore financial spread bets are usually made only by those who are already working in the banking or financial sectors.
This is because the financial and banking markets are so difficult to predict if you do not work in this profession. As this type of betting involves risk and is only profitable if you can make a prediction close to the market value, having knowledge of the markets you are placing bets on is beneficial.
In comparison to traditional fixed odds betting, you can make a much bigger profit if you place a spread bet. However, the risk of making a spread bet is that you can lose more than your initial stake if you place a bad bet. This is another reason why most people who make financial spread bets are well-informed on the financial betting markets.
Sports Spread Betting
In comparison, sports spread betting is considerably more simple than financial spread betting, however, spread betting involves risk. You will still be betting on the outcome of an aspect of the sport in sports spread betting, however, generally you will be given a fixed spread that you will bet on.
In this type of spread bet, the spread is a range that the bet will be based on. So, if you think that the outcome will be below the spread given you will sell, and if you think it will be above the spread, you would buy.
The benefit of sports spread betting rather than financial spread betting is that you can look at a wide range of sporting statistics to help you to make your bet. You can also gather some information from the odds being offered for fixed odds betting.
Fixed odds betting odds will give you an idea of what sports betting companies are expecting to happen or what they think is likely to happen throughout the match. You can also find sports spread betting tips to help you decide which is the best way to bet.
The benefit of sports spread betting is that you can place multiple bets on the same game. Spread betting is similar to the stock market, so you place a bet on the opening and closing value of each event throughout the match.
Different Types of Spread Betting Football Markets
There are several markets of spread betting available on a football match, and this means that there is something in the betting markets for everyone. It also means you can combine bets over the course of the football season or just one match to try to make as much profit as possible.
Some of the spread betting markets available on football will be very specific, match-related bets. However, there are also non-match-related markets that you can bet on before the football match begins.
With such a wide range of betting markets available, we have gathered details on four of the spread betting options to give you some more information.
Time of First Goal
This market will have the betting company setting a time range for when they think the first goal will be scored. So, they may give the first goal time range as 20-24 minutes, which is what you can then bet on. If you think the first goal will be after that time, you would buy.
If you bought for £10 per point and the first goal was not scored until the 50th minute, you would receive £260, however, if the goal was scored at 18 minutes, you would lose £20.
Supremacy Bets
A Supremacy bet is one where you predict how much better one team will be than the other. Usually, this bet will be based on the number of goals that will be scored by full-time. The spread betting company will, this time, give the spread based on the number of goals that the winning team will beat the other team by.
As an example, if the spread is 0 – 0.5 and you think the team will win, you will buy 0.5 at £100. If the team wins by 3 goals, your supremacy amount will be 2.5 above the spread, and you will win £250. If, however, the team loses by 1 goal, you will lose £50.
Total Corners
This betting market is different from the others we have looked at so far, as it is the total number for both teams across the entire match rather than the result of one team over the other. The betting company will give you a spread of how many corners they think there will be between both teams during the entire match.
If the spread is 18-19 and you look at the stats for both teams and think there are likely to be 23, you can buy at £100 per point. If the match has a total of 28 corners between both teams, you would win £900. However, if there were only 8 corners in the match, you would lose £1,000.
Goal Scorer Shirt Numbers
This is another very different sports spread bet to place, and this is again across both teams rather than one team. At the end of the match, the shirt number of every goal scorer is added together to get a total. Your bet is to decide if the total of all of the shirts will be higher or lower than the spread given by the betting company.
So, if the spread is given as 30 – 32, you should begin by looking at the teams being put out by both sides and who you think could possibly score for each side. This will give you the shirt numbers of the likely goal scorers. You can then look at the starting lineups and begin making your predictions from this list.
If the top goal scorers for both teams have shirt numbers over 20 and you think it likely they will both score, then you should buy on the spread bet offered. If you buy at £100 per point and the total number of the shirts at the end of the match is 80, you will win £4,800.
However, this market of spread betting involves risk that is often higher than in other markets. If the match ends with no goals for either team and you have bought at £100 per point, you will lose £3,000.
How Do Sports Spread Betting Work?
Sports spread betting is based on a value given to each event between 0 and 100. The sports spread betting companies will give you a closing value on an event, and you buy or sell based on what you predict the outcome to be.
If a bookmaker gives a spread bet on the number of points a team will have at the close of the Premier League, you will be given the range, for example, Sell 78.5 and Buy 80. If you think the team will end the football season with 90 points, you would buy on that range.
You can choose the value of your bet, but it will be a fixed amount of £1, £10, £100, etc. So, if the team ends the season with 100 points and you have bought at 80 for £100 per point, you would win the difference between the 80 you bought at and the final number of points of 100.
Continuing this example, you would win £2,000 if you bought on 80 for £100 per point. For the same example, at £1 per point, you would win £20 and at £10 per point, it would be £200. So the bigger stake is the best option if you are certain of the outcome.
Now, we will look at if the bet was a loss. So, if you buy on 80 at £100 per point and the team ends the season on 60 points, you would lose money, the same amount as you would have won £2,000.
There is a positive to this type of betting in that if you buy and then realise the team is not performing as well, you can, throughout the season, sell what you have bought to recoup some of your losses.
The price range may change throughout the season, allowing you to potentially buy more at a lower price or sell what you have bought for a lower or higher amount. If you sell for less than what you paid, you will obviously lose some of your money; however, this is better than not trying to sell and losing everything.
Difference Between Sports Spread Betting and Traditional Betting markets
There are several differences between sports spread betting and fixed odds betting, and we will only cover the main differences in this section. With sports spread betting, you are placing a bet based on the spread that the betting company gives you. So, you will be deciding if you think the outcome will be above or below the spread.
In comparison to fixed odds bets, you can close out a spread bet if you see that the market will be more profitable if you close early. Fixed odds bets are, by definition, going to give you a fixed amount if you win your bet. However, the amount you can win when placing a spread bet is considerably more depending on your accuracy.
Difference Between Sports Spread Betting UK and The Point Spread
In American football or other American sports betting, there is the point spread betting market. However, unlike sports spread betting in the UK, the point spread is a way of evening the odds between the two teams on the field.
To make the match more even, a handicap is applied to both teams, which establishes the margin that each team has to meet for the bet to be won. The point spread is then used as the wager for the bets that are placed. If the team you have bet on then wins after the handicaps have been applied, then you win the point spread.
The point spread is then given fixed odds to show you how much you would win if you choose the correct result of the point spread. The fixed odds that are shown in brackets after the point spread shows the amount you need to bet to win $100.
So, if you see point spread betting sites showing usual American fixed odds such as +140 or -140, these are the odds, not the point spread. A positive amount is the amount of profit you would win from a $100 bet, so +140, you would win $140 if you bet $100. If the amount is a negative figure, that is how much you would need to bet to win $100, so -140 means you would need to bet $140 to win $100.
The main difference between British spread point betting and American point spread betting is the way in which the point spread is calculated, and the odds applied. British betting sites do not offer fixed odds on a spread bet, whereas the American point spread has fixed odds attached.
What is Sports Spread Betting Maximum Return?
The maximum return for the bet you are placing will be listed on the spread betting sites you are using if the betting companies operate a maximum. If they do not, then the maximum amount you can win will depend on which sports you are betting on and the amount you are willing to wager.
The best thing about spread sports betting is that you are able to win more than anticipated depending on the outcome of your bet. If you buy on 4 overall goals for £100 per point, your loss is capped. However, for every goal scored over 4, you will win an additional £100. So, if the match ends up being a highly-scored game, your winnings will increase.
It is best that you read the information of whichever spread betting platform or betting options you are placing bets with to check if there are any maximum return limits on the site.
What Can You Bet on?
Betting businesses offer sports spread betting on most sports, although football and horse racing are the most popular spread betting markets. You can check the bets that you can make on sites such as Sporting Index or Spreadex.
Both Spreadex and Sporting Index show the markets available for spread betting, and you can set up a spread betting account with both of these sites. Both Spreadex and Sporting Index will also provide information on fixed odds bets.
Is there a sport you are knowledgeable about and feel confident about spread betting on? If there is a sport you are interested in, the best thing to do is go to the Sporting Index website to see which markets are available for spread betting sports you are interested in.
Lay Sports Spread Bets and Winning When You Lose
Sports spread betting is so popular because even if you do not think the bet being offered by the spread betting sites or betting firm will happen, you can still win money. If Sporting Index is showing that a particular team will score a certain number of corners, and you are certain that will not happen, you can still win.
In this situation, you would sell instead of buy, which means that if the result goes the way you think it will be, instead of how the betting firm thinks, you will still win money.
In-Play Sports Spread Betting
The bets that are offered by Sporting Index and other betting firms are live bets, so you can take part in in-play betting. Spread betting on sports is a fluctuating market. In-play betting on sporting events is the best way for sports bettors to protect their winnings or cut their losses.
If punters bet before a match begins and realise that the bet they have placed is not going to materialise, they can begin to hedge their bets. If there is an in-play option to lessen some of the losses you will have from buying before the match; you can sell with an in-play bet to make a profit there instead.
Who Regulates Sports Spread Betting?
Sports spread betting is classified as financial trading and therefore is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority in the UK rather than the UK Gambling Commission. This is due to it being possible to lose more during the course of spread betting than your initial bet. You can also, at times, be given a credit limit to place your bets.
Credit limits are not always available with betting exchanges, but they are available with some betting companies. You should ensure that you always bet responsibly and that you only place bets with reputable betting businesses or websites. The two most reliable sites to place a qualifying bet are Spreadex and Sporting Index.
You can join Sporting Index to place bets on sports spreads, view information across the sports markets, and place a qualifying bet on sports from ice hockey to rugby league.
Risks and rewards of sports spread betting
Sports spread betting is a high-risk form of betting, considered higher risk than fixed odds betting or point spread betting on American Football. However, sports spread betting also has extremely high rewards if you win and are using a reputable betting operator.
If you are new to both sports spread betting and fixed odds betting, you may choose fixed odds to begin with when placing sports bets. When you begin to bet on the spread markets or when you begin your account, opening with small bets is the best thing to do. This will allow you to learn while betting with lower amounts of money; minimising your losses.
Pros
Due to the nature of spread betting and in-play bets, you can win a much higher amount than when placing a fixed odds bet.
There is a wider range of bets available if you are making a spread sports bet, as a spread betting exchange will offer more bets than any other in the betting world.
You can place long-term bets over the course of a match, season, or competition, which can reduce cumulative net losses.
Cons
Spread betting is broader than the betting markets you will be offered with fixed odds betting. In fixed odds betting, you would bet on the total number of corners that would be awarded in a match. However, in spread betting, you would be betting on the spread of minutes the first corner is awarded.
The main risk of sports spread betting is the speed at which you can lose high volumes of money. If you buy at £100 per point and you are wrong, you could lose hundreds or thousands of pounds in the space of minutes. As you can lose more than your initial bet, there is no cap on how much you can lose.
Understanding spread betting prices
Unlike a fixed odds bet, when betting on sports spreads, you will not place a bet based on the odds that the bookmaker is offering and either win based on the odds plus your initial stake or lose the amount you have bet.
With sports spread betting, you can choose the value you are willing to pay for every point above or below the spread value. If you choose to sell at below the spread amount, you choose how much to sell for, and for each point below the spread, the match ends on you will win your value multiplied by the points.
This is the same if you buy for above the points spread amount; you will win the amount of your bet per point multiplied by the number of points above the spread that the match ends on.
Difference Between Spread Bets and CFDs
There are a lot of similarities between spread bets and CFDs, and both are popular with those who work in the financial markets. However, the main difference is that when you place spread bets, these are not taxed, whereas CFDs are liable to Capital Gains Tax.
This means that as you will need to pay tax on profits from CFDs, you will need to earn a higher profit to take home the same amount as you would from spread betting.
Spread Betting FAQs
Below we answer some of your most common questions relating to sports spread betting.
What is sports spread betting?
Sports spread betting is a form of betting similar to financial trading. You will be given a spread value from the betting company for an event that could or will happen during a sports match. You will then evaluate whether or not you think the outcome of the match will be higher or lower than the spread offered.
If you think the match will end higher than the spread, you will buy at a value chosen by you, or if you think it will be below the spread, you will sell again at a value of your choosing. For each point above or below the spread, you will win that number multiplied by the amount of your bet.
Is spread betting on sports legal in the UK?
Spread betting on sports is legal in the UK, providing any bets are placed through a licensed betting company that is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Due to the way sports spread betting works, making it possible to lose more than you have bet, it is important to ensure that you are using a reputable betting company.
Is spread betting profitable?
Spread betting can be extremely profitable if the right bets are placed, as you can win very high amounts from a single bet. With in-play betting, you can also hedge your bets if the outcome looks to be going against your bet.
Spread betting companies such as Sporting Index will offer incentives periodically, such as a free bet, a bet builder, or the opportunity to get cashback on your cumulative net losses if you place further bets within a fixed period after your loss.
Options such as a free bet or bet builder allow you to place bets with low risk for your money. However, it is unlikely you will be able to reverse closed bets.
Is spread betting allowed?
Spread betting is allowed as long as the bets are correctly operated and licensed. You can check out spread betting blog posts or websites to check which are the best sports spread betting sites to use.
If you are interested in sports spread betting, UK spread betting markets for all sports, including horse racing, are shown on the Sporting Index website. The Sporting Index website gives you a place to view details of qualifying spread bets and see which football or horse racing bets you want to place.
How do I open a sports spread betting account?
If you wish to open an account with any of the trusted sports spread betting firms, the easiest way to do this is directly through the chosen company’s website. We recommend that you look at several different sports spread betting firms, as some companies will give you free bets on certain spread betting markets.
If, on account opening, the company you choose offers free bets; you may be able to place any free bets you wish. Or, you may be limited to specific qualifying spread bets, such as limited to horse racing or with a maximum payout.
Opening a Sporting Index website is an extremely easy process, and in addition to betting Sporting Index is a great place to have sports spread betting explained. Even if you are not planning to open an account with Sporting Index, you can still access a wealth of information from the Sporting Index website without logging in.
Spread Betting Summary
Sports spread betting is a high-risk alternative to traditional fixed odds betting, which is more comparable to financial trading than fixed odds betting. In sports spread betting, you will view the spread that is offered by the betting company and decide whether you think the result will be higher or lower than the spread.
Depending on what you think the outcome will be, you will buy points above the spread or sell points below it. You can choose how much you buy or sell each point for and can pay via bank transfer or other methods depending on which company you are betting with.
Some of the best sports spread betting sites will give periodic offers, such as the option to reverse closed bets or free bets. Similar to the offer of a free fixed odds bet, there will usually be conditions attached to offers, so as with a free fixed odds bet, we recommend that you review the terms and conditions before placing the bet.
You can view a free demo account on some websites before deciding if spread betting is for you. We recommend you look at popular and trusted spread betting companies such as Sporting Index or Spreadex for reputable sports spread betting tips.
Sports spread betting tips supplied by sports spread betting companies such as Sporting Index are based on historical and current sports statistics. Sports spread betting companies use this information to provide punters with the spread they can bet on.
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