Betting on various sports events has been a favourite past time since time immemorial. No one can deny, it offers plenty of excitement and thrills, not to mention it can bring about substantial profits to those who place a winning bet. For some, betting on sports has even become a professional occupation as the so called “professional punters” employ numerous betting strategies to further increase their chances of winning. Naturally, in such cases skills and a good amount of knowledge are involved. Experience also plays a decisive role. Most of us, however, place bets on their favourite teams or athletes just for fun.
Nowadays, sports betting enjoys even greater popularity. Bets are still placed in land-based bookmakers but today technological progress allows for betting online without leaving the comfort of your home. In addition, web-based sports bookmakers offer a greater diversity as far as sports markets and odds are concerned. Many web-based betting operators even provide real-time streaming of sports events which further adds to punters’ convenience.
Enthusiastic punters can choose between a greater number of options. One of them is Live Betting, which currently enjoys a tremendous popularity among both beginners and experienced punters. Read on for further details on what Live Betting is and what advantages it has to offer.
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What is Live Betting?
It’s appropriate to begin with some background information and a more detailed explanation of what “Live Betting” is as some of you may be new to online betting and are probably unfamiliar with the term’s meaning. As you will see for yourselves, Live Betting is a popular feature which most web bookmakers have on offer. Keep in mind, you may come across several terms which basically refer to the same thing. In some instances, this feature goes by the name of “In-Play Betting”, in other cases bookmakers call it “In-Running Betting”.
When Live Betting was first introduced, it was available only for the most prestigious sports events, including football championships and tennis tournaments, such as the Stanley Cup Finals, which were broadcasted live on television. Things have taken a turn for the better since then as today the number of events and markets, available for live betting is shockingly high. In fact, since its introduction, live betting went on to become the punters’ favourite. The success it enjoys is completely justified.
So what exactly is Live Betting? In simple words, this is a feature which allows bets to be placed on games in progress. Usually, brick-and-mortar bookmakers don’t allow for wagers to be placed if a given sports event, e.g. a football match or a horse race, has already started. Typically, punters place their bets prior to the event’s kickoff. However, this is not the case with Live Betting. In this instance, bets are accepted from the very beginning of the game till its end. As you can imagine, this boosts your chances of placing a winning bet as you can watch the game in real time and are able to see how it unfolds. The best part is that you can place another bet, if you happen to experience a change of heart.
Punters who bet on games in progress have probably noticed that the odds tend to change as the game unfolds. The reason is that online bookmakers update the odds on multiple occasions throughout the course of a game. These updates are influenced by the game’s score in any given moment, as well as by the teams’ performance. Keeping track of the odds’ updates, along with watching the game in real time, allows for better assessment of who the possible winner will be.
Regular wagers are entered into the bookmaker’s system right after punters have placed them. This is not the case with live bets. There is a small delay before bets are entered into the database. The chief reason is to prevent punters from accepting bet offers which have suddenly become very appealing. This being said, odds are “laid” which basically means bookmakers (and sometimes even punters) adjust and offer their own odds. In a way, punters who lay odds act as bookmakers themselves.
How it Works?
Those of you, who lack experience and have never placed a bet online, are probably wondering how exactly Live Betting works? There’s no need to stress out as the whole process is relatively simple. Naturally, you’re required to first register with an account at a legitimate and fair bookmaker. In most cases, registration is exceptionally quick and simplified. Once you’ve created an account, you can proceed by depositing some money to bet with. Just make sure you’ve acquired a proper understanding of how the odds work before you place your bet.
So far, so good. Then, you should head to the Live Betting section (In-Play in some cases) of the bookmaker’s website. There you will see a list of all upcoming sports events that are available for Live Betting for the day. Select the event you wish to bet on but before you place your wager, you should take some time to assess the situation. If the game is currently in progress, you can watch it for a while online or on TV, just to get a proper idea on which team or athlete to bet on. Don’t rush out – biding your time in many instances is of crucial importance as when goals (or points) are scored, the odds on who will emerge as a winner will change (provided that you want to bet on who the winner will be, there are many other In-Play markets). Typically, when a goal is netted or a point is scored, betting is temporarily suspended. All bets punters have placed are cleared out.
When the time is right and you have already assessed the situation, you can proceed to place your bet (if you haven’t done so before the goal/point was scored). If you regret your initial decision and are under the impression the team you’ve bet on, is about to lose the game, you may always trade your position once betting resumes. Consider placing a second bet on the opponents – if they happen to win the game, the second bet may at least partially offset the losses you’ve incurred with the first one. Those of you who place a live bet for the very first time are recommended to start with a small stake.
Please note that there might be a slight delay in the broadcast’s transmission, especially if you are watching the game online, directly from the bookmaker’s website. In most cases, the delay reaches up to thirty seconds. You might deem it insignificant, but lots can happen in this time gap.
Live Betting Markets
There is an extensive selection of in-play markets, you can choose from. The example mentioned above the previous section was with a straight bet on who the winner will be, but this by no means is your only option. In fact, there’s a good chance you’d be overwhelmed by the variety of markets, available for Live Betting. Some are more appealing than others, and their outcome is easier to predict. Also, note that Live Betting markets may vary from one type of sport to another. In this section, we will cover markets, available for the most popular sports events.
First of all, the range of sports you can place live bets on has dramatically expanded in the last few years. Punters can make their pick between sports like soccer, basketball, American football, volleyball, cricket, snooker, and tennis, among many others. Live bets can be placed on horse and greyhounds races as well. As said above, markets vary, depending on whether you bet on team or individual sports. Whether or not a specific sport is based on scoring points (or goals) is also of some significance. In-play bets are predominantly placed on sports, based on scoring goals or points.
Live Betting allows you to wager on a number of additional markets, which don’t necessarily have to do with the final outcome of the game. For instance, in soccer, you may bet on the team which is to score the first goal for the first or the second halftime. Similarly, in-play bets can be placed on the player, who will score first or on which team will bag more goals in the first halftime. Another possible option is betting on the halftime result and on the number of cards or corners. The options are practically endless.
Other sports, like basketball, are centered around collecting points. In this case, you may choose between betting on the player or the team who is to score the greatest number of points. Over/Under bets are another alternative – punters can place a wager on whether or not a given team will score more or fewer points in the course of the game. For example, you can bet that the Chicago Bulls will score less than 26 points in the first half or quarter of the game.
American football is yet another example of a point-based sport. In-play markets include first touchdown scorer. Predictions can be made in regard to whether or not someone will score in the first ten minutes of the game, who will be the top touchdown scorer or which team will collect the greatest number of points. Again, many options are available.
The markets for baseball are just as diverse. You can predict whether or not the home team will bat after the away team has completed nine innings, whether there will be some extra innings or bet on the team, you think will win the first inning. Live bets can be placed on how many runs or hits a player or a team will accumulate in the course of the game. How many runs an inning will have is another Live Betting option. Wagers can be placed on the pitchers and strikers’ upcoming performances. Or yet another option – bet on your favourite pitcher’s ball-to-strike ratio. Live bets on a specific type of base hit are also accepted.
Tennis is a unique type of sport and this fact is without any doubt reflected in the available in-play markets. Many punters consider it a rather volatile sport to bet on, which probably results from the fact the game is exceptionally dynamic. Naturally, the first Live Betting option that comes to mind is backing one of the two competing players. Then again, you can place your bet on the player you believe will win the first or the next set.
With races, markets tend to be slightly more confusing, so if you’re new to horse racing, tread cautiously in the beginning. There are several types of in-play wagers which might prove to be a mean feat for inexperienced bettors. The first one is the “exacta” – punters are expected to select the two horses to finish in first and second place. Betting on the top three horses to finish at first, second and third place is called a “trifecta”. Keep in mind, you’re not expected to just guess the three horses to finish first – they’re supposed to finish the race in the exact order you’ve specified in your bet slip.
As this may prove to be a rather taxing endeavor, you can go for the “quinella”, in which case you’re still required to pick the two horses to finish first, but the order is not taken into consideration. Another option is picking only one horse and specifying whether it will finish first, third or second. It all depends on how many horses participate in the race.
The Advantages of Live Betting
Betting on sports events in progress has plenty of advantages to offer, especially after a while, when punters get used to its peculiarities. A great number of sports fans find live betting rather appealing as it offers lots of thrills and excitement. As was said above, one of the major advantages of placing a live bet is being able to pick from a much greater variety of markets. Some of those closely resemble proposition bets.
Then again, watching a game which is broadcasted or streamed live, allows for better assessment of the possible outcome. As placing your bet before the game has kicked off is not a requirement with Live Betting, you can spend some time watching as the game unfolds to get a clearer picture of the situation. Then, on the basis of what you’ve seen so far, you can decide on which team or player to bet on. A proper assessment of the game can significantly lower your risks of placing a losing bet.
For example, your mind is set on betting on your favourite team, but you decide to bide your time and see what turn the events will take. You wait for about twenty minutes and just before you place the bet, a key player from your team is benched or injured. This may tip the odds in the opponents’ favor. In such cases, it would be wise to stick to common sense. There’s no point in betting on your favourites to win if they appear to be losing before your very eyes. You might reconsider your initial decision and bet on the opponent, that is if you want to generate profits with your bet.
Live Betting can be beneficial for yet another reason – some bookmakers allow for bet exchange. You can trade your position any time you like to try and cut down on your losses or generate more substantial profits. Punters who manage to trade their positions successfully are sometimes granted the so called Green Book. The latter is especially helpful as it allows you to win on all possible outcomes or, at least, offsets your losses.
We’ll use an NFL example, to demonstrate it more clearly. Let’s imagine for a moment the New Orleans Saints are playing against the Denver Broncos. You’ve decided to back the Broncos but unfortunately, they’re not doing so well. You can opt to place another bet on the Saints winning or lay off your original stake on the Broncos at a lower price.
However, such tactics are not suitable for beginners, only more experienced punters can trade bets successfully. Besides, not all web-based bookmakers offer the bet exchange feature. If you register with an account at a bookmaker which doesn’t offer exchange, you can simply place another bet in favour of the opponents. If they win, you’d still manage to generate some profits to compensate for your initial wager’s loss.
Conclusion
The rise of online sports betting has greatly contributed for punters’ convenience. Not only you can bet without having to leave your home but you are faced with multiple options like Live Betting, which many bookmaking retailers don’t have on offer. Live Betting allows you to bet on many additional markets while the games are still in progress. Thanks to the Live Stream feature, you don’t even need a TV to watch your favourite game and place a bet. You can do so directly from your desktop computer or in many cases from mobile devices, such as smartphones, tablets and so on. This enables punters to never miss the opportunity to place a bet when the time is right.
Betting on games in progress can be beneficial as it allows for a much better assessment of sports events’ outcomes. The frequent odds’ updates are also very helpful and may assist you in placing a winning bet. If you’re a beginner, take your time and study the peculiarities of Live Betting in advance to further increase your chances of winning. Once you’ve tried it online, chances are you’d hardly think of going back to the retail shop for a bet.
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