In-Play Betting Strategy

You may be confused or thrown off by having an In-Play Betting Strategy, but we can assure you that it is much simpler than it seems.

In-Play betting, which is also referred to as live betting, allows players to place bets on a live sporting event.

One of the most important things to success for in-play betting is having a concise strategy and making sure you stick to it no matter what.

This article looks at some of the essential aspects of in-play betting, using advice and strategies from professional tipsters with a proven record.

You can also visit our full take on in-play betting tips, which continuously provides you with cutting-edge industry-proven advice.

Understanding Live Betting

In-play betting can involve making bets on something like a football match which is currently happening.

You can expect to see live markets and browse them to select options just as you would for pre-match betting bets.

The major difference between the two is of course timing, in-play betting involves reacting to what is happening during the game.

The odds for in-play outcomes will constantly fluctuate during the game based on what is happening and the time left on the clock for the current game.

Best Sports for In-Play Betting

In-Play betting markets are available for various sports, anything from football, rugby, golf and snooker.

Listed below are some sports that fit in play betting particularly well:

  • Football: Football can also be fast-paced, but there are sometimes periods between significant moments, such as a goal, a substitution or a red card. It is great for watching live markets. Football betting is incredibly popular, and the range of in-play markets is phenomenal, as you can expect the odds are primarily favourable. Check out our top football tipster awards for the best in the game.
  • Tennis: Tennis is another great sport that is perfect for in-play betting. There are breaks throughout the match, which allows you to read the flow of things and dive into markets like Next Game or Next Set winner options.
  • Cricket: The different formats of cricket can also be an excellent variety for in-play betting. There’s the slower pace of the Test matches compared to the rapid-fire, high-scoring thrills of Twenty20 action from the likes of the IPL. Then again, the natural breaks throughout the game and moments like a wicket’s fall can drastically change the market odds.

Research and Analysis

It is very common for punters to research statistics for pre-match betting, and the same should be done for in-play betting. The main goal is to set yourself in a position where you are ready to react to situations based on sound reasoning instead of impulse decision-making.

Through your analysis, you will be able to know what to do and when. The research you will do will also lead to strategies in-play like “lay the draw”, which allows you to combine pre-match and in-play markets.

During this strategy, a punter lays the draw before kick-off and then waits in play to back the draw when a team goes 1-0 up, as that is when the odds on a draw lengthen significantly.

Identify Favourable Betting Opportunities

Being able to identify the best in-play betting opportunities requires careful analysis. It also allows you to deeply understand the sport you are betting on, you will have a working knowledge of teams, players and current form.

The best in-play betting opportunities usually occur when a massive change in the games status, for example, a goal being scored. Those big moments typically shift the market odds, be sure to stay focused and be ready to react.

Who Decides the Odds?

When it comes to deciding the odds, reputable Bookmakers have large teams of individuals referred to as traders whose job it is to set, monitor, and adjust the odds that you, as a punter, will bet on.

The traders use a combination of historical data, stats, algorithms, and betting trends to determine the best odds possible. A lot of Bookmakers will trust their consistently sharp bettors to help them determine the best odds.

There is nothing more important than stats and trends, this is because they are a great indicator of potential outcomes when setting pre-match odds, but of course with football, anything can happen.

This is the main reason that odds can vary so widely when it comes to live betting, bettors have the ability to find great value bets when the odds fail to take into account factors that statistical thinking does not.

Best Strategies for In-Play Betting

When it comes to betting in-play, we recommend some of the following tips and advice.

Manage your Bankroll and Stakes

Part of an in-play strategy will require you to know how much you will bet and most importantly when. Being able to manage your bankroll is massively important for in-play betting. It’s an exciting form of wagering, and punters can get swept up into placing bets they hadn’t planned on making out of pure emotion.

Those are known in the industry as emotional bets, they typically don’t have sound reasoning and can oftentimes be very wasteful. Setting up your bankroll and budgeting beforehand helps you manage your money. Common practice is taking 2-5% of your overall bankroll for a stake.

Managing Emotions and Psychological Factors

Emotions are a massive part of in-play betting. Managing these emotions and psychological factors is absolutely crucial when carrying out your in-play betting strategy. Setting a budget can massively help you avoid chasing your losses and making bad impulsive bets based on emotions.

One of the most important things we would argue when in-play betting, is sticking to your strategy rather than making bets on gut feelings or emotional attachments to a specific team, like the one you support for example.

Be sure to give yourself a break, in-play betting can get intense so it is vital to give yourself space to recharge and refresh.

In Play Betting Timing and Execution

The timing of placing a bet is a massive part of being successful when in-play betting, you are looking to strike when the odds fluctuate in your favour. This goes back to the most important thing of having an in-play strategy.

An example would be if you can wait 25 minutes with the scoreline at 0-0 and then plan to bet Over 1.5 goals in-play; the odds will be much more favourable on the same option than if you placed the same bet pre-match.

When a team scores, the odds of the other team winning increases. If a match favourite has fallen behind in the game, it could provide an excellent opportunity to back them for the win at better than pre-match odds.

Utilising Live Streaming and Match Visualisation

Whether you are watching the game through a live stream or TV, try to make sure that you are watching the game you are betting on. This will help you identify opportunities better.

While watching the game, we would always suggest having a betting app to hand to keep track of the live odds related to the game you are watching. The Bookmaker will also have in-play pages of a football match on their site showcasing relevant statistics that can help you plot your next move.

Combining all of this information together could lead you to pick out great value bets, opportunities where the odds don’t quite reflect the game’s current status.

Hedging and Cash Out Options

The final thing to consider is hedging and your cash-out options. These tools can be worked into your in-play betting strategy. An example would be, when the cash-out option is available for a live bet, you have the ability to settle the wager before the event ends.

If you back a team to win and they score a goal early in the second half. If the score remains the same and the team you have back seems to be controlling the game. You could look to settle early with the bookie instead of facing a stressful last 20 minutes.

Hedging on the other hand is a little more complicated in regards to research time in finding the right odds. It’s an example of covering all match outcomes, for example with the lay the draw scenario.

Hedging can be done in many different ways, like backing a team to win during pre-match and taking a Draw No Bet in-play on the other options. There are many different strategies and tools that can drastically improve and help your in-play betting

strategy.

Finding Professional Tips

Rather than playing a guessing game – you can find the most trusted and profitable tipsters. We utilise the likes of top betting experts who offer Telegram betting tips and other strategies. They offer advice and tactics, but we only recommend verified tips that have a proven track record.

Rather than using a gut feeling, you can bank on knowledge-based picks.

Here are some of the tips on different types of competitions and bets:

Pros and Cons of Live Betting

In-Play Betting or Live betting provides punters with an enormous advantage who have exceptional knowledge of the sport. If you have the ability to read the game, live betting will let you flex your knowledge to make money.

Pros

  • Less stats based and much more reactive betting.
  • Easily convert a losing bet into a winning one.
  • The odds are in the punters favour rather than the bookmakers.
  • A lot more arbitrage betting opportunities.

Cons

  • The odds can swing quickly, you need to pay close attention to the game at all times.
  • Your live betting strategy won’t always line up with the game situation.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is in-play betting profitable?

In-play betting is a very popular and profitable way to wager on Champions League matches. Punters have the ability to maximise their profits and minimise losses by taking advantage of the constantly changing odds and markets.

Do In-play Markets Ever Get Suspended During, or Before the End of the Match?

Yes, when a significant action in the game happens that affects the outcome of the event, then markets can be suspended temporarily in order to update odds accordingly. This can happen before or during the event, this can also happen a number of times during the game depending on what is going on. Bookmakers always aim to update odds as quickly as possible in order to provide punters with the most accurate way to reflect the circumstances

Summary – Final Thoughts

In-Play Betting also known as Live Betting is gambling that takes place after the game has started. It allows punters to place their bets throughout the game rather than pre-match.

In-Play Betting has become increasingly popular in recent times, we would argue this is because as a punter the adrenaline runs much higher as anything can change on the spot which gives you an opportunity to place a value bet.

James Dooley avatar
James Dooley
James Dooley is an entrepreneur who founded Away Grounds as he loves travelling to watch football matches throughout the UK. James plays football and has a desire to share his passion with other like-minded footy fans. Find out more about James Dooley on the Away Grounds Meet The Team page.