What Is The Betting Exchange?
Have you ever stopped making a bet because you do not like the bookies odds? Or maybe you do not want to analyze game statistics to find some betting odds miscalculated by a sportsbook? If this has happened to you, you should give cross betting or betting exchange a try. What if you could set your odds and not have to analyze an event better than a bookie? Indeed, you could do better than other bettors. All of this is possible with the betting exchange. It is a type of betting in which the bookie acts only as an intermediary between bettors. In this modality, bettors establish the bet, its odds and pay each other the bets. Just like when you make a bet with a friend. For its part, the sportsbook provides the platform for making exchanges and payments. Of course, the bookie charges a small commission in return.
How Does The Betting Exchange Work?
In the betting exchange, one of the bettors acts as if it were a sportsbook. He sets the condition and the odds at which the bet will be paid. He is known as a "layer" because he bets against an event happening. So, the layer pays the odd that he established if this event finally occurs. Another bettor will bet against what the layer bets and following his conditions. This other bettor is known as a "backer" since he bets in favor of the event.
The Betting Exchange In Action
Let's look at an example of a betting exchange. Suppose that Joe and Charles are bettors. Joe wants to act as a layer and choose between Everton and Liverpool for the betting exchange. Joe bets on Liverpool will not win the match. He offers odds equal to 2.00, accepting a maximum bet of $ 40. Charles, see Joe's odds of 2.00 and bet the maximum $ 40 Joe accepts on the Reds' win. By betting in favor, Charles acts as a backer. The bets would be resolved as follows depending on the match result:
- Liverpool victory: In this case, Charles would win his bet and receive $ 80 from Joe. This comes from multiplying the $ 40 he bet by the odds of 2.00 established by Joe.
- Everton victory: Joe, as a bookmaker, wins the $ 40 that Charles bet.
- Draw: In this case, Joe also wins the $ 40 that Charles bet since the Reds' victory did not occur.
Wrapping Up
Which is better, bet against another bettor (betting exchange) or bet against the bookmaker? Usually, bettors want to find the best odds and use them in conventional bookmakers. But, they can also get it in an exchange bookie through another bettor. Bettors who act like sportsbooks usually offer good odds as they want to compete against sportsbooks. That's why you also have to take them into account. The betting exchange gives the bettor freedom to choose and place odds. So you can have more control over betting defining betting trading strategies.