While being in some ways similar to outright betting, in-play betting has its own set of rules and guidelines that need to be followed if one wants to start making money from this type of betting.
With the live betting market being now predominant in the gambling industry, the bookmakers have taken extra care to remain one step ahead of the bettors so you’ll need to bring your A-game if you want to beat the bookies in their own game.
In this article, I will give you some insights on how to position yourself better when you are placing in-play soccer bets. If you are not very familiar with what is in-play betting and how it works check out our detailed and easy-to-understand tutorial.
How to use live betting markets to your advantage
Find the best online bookmakers that feature top-notch in-play markets with Live Stream sections, but besides checking the coverage of live events, you should also see what kind of welcome bonuses they have in place for new players prior to opening your account.
Go here for Free Bets the bookmakers give away to their customers.
Before starting to bet on live events, it would be a good thing to familiarize yourself with the market itself and see how it moves, that is, learn how the odds fluctuate.
With odds changing almost every few seconds, you’ll need to act and think very quickly, so knowing how the odds usually move will allow you more time to make important decisions.
The best way to use live betting markets to your advantage is to understand the variables that can influence the outcome of an event.
If you like to bet on the goals market you need to understand why some teams score a lot of goals and some struggle to find the back of the net. The more valuable and in form the team is the more chances are they will score goals in every match.
Let’s use Barcelona as our example.
The La Liga behemoths started this season (2023/24) on full throttle, averaging an impressive 2.87 goals scored per game.
Every punter knows the likes of Barcelona, Bayern Munich, and Manchester City will score a lot of goals this season.
The bookies know as well, that is why they will always price short these giants of soccer. Bookmakers are the ones who make the offer, they are the ‘sellers’ and we punters are the ‘buyers’. So how can you turn this unfair trade?
The answer is that you leverage time to your advantage to find value and beat the odds.
- The most important variable we have full control of against the bookies is the time of placing the bet.
Wagering money on Barcelona to score 2 goals or win the match in the 80th minute will beat the bookmaker whose price will increase significantly for those events to happen compared to what they offer pre-match.
This example keeps repeating with all major soccer teams that are dominating their domestic competition.
How to set up a winning strategy for in-play betting
In-play betting is unique in a way that it gives you the best opportunity to cash in on your understanding of a certain sport.
Therefore, in order to increase your chances of winning you need to only bet on the sporting events you follow closely. Obviously, there is no point in wasting your money on sporting events you know nothing about.
To set up a winning strategy and win more at live soccer betting you need to have a very detailed pre-match analysis and the latest news about the game.
Let’s continue with the same example I used above.
If we look at the 1st screenshot we can notice Barcelona’s form trend. After a disappointing stalemate at Getafe in the opening round, Barca found their rhythm and scored in every single match.
The addition of Portugal international duo Joao Felix and Cancelo had a significant impact on the team’s performance and results. The above screenshot is the perfect example of how fast and well the players settled being involved in all 3 goals Barcelona scored.
A good pre-match analysis in this case will predict Barcelona to score at least 2 goals against Celta Vigo. The testimony to this statement is the 10 goals Barcelona scored in the previous 2 games. The match against Celta shows a dip in the form of Xavi’s players which continued at Mallorca where they were 2-1 down before scoring the 2nd and final goal of the game.
Successful live betting strategies
Do you want to bet on corners, or is betting on cards your favorite market?
I will break down 2 of the most common scenarios where you can find value in betting and make money.
Backing a losing favorite
On 16 September Liverpool traveled to Molineux Stadium where they faced Wolverhampton. Before the game kicked off, Jurgen Klopp’s team was priced at 1.67 to win.
Wolves saw themselves 1-0 up at half time bringing a lot of value betting for the 2nd half. The odds for Liverpool to bag 3 points jumped from 1.67 to 2.75, the visitors managing to turn the tie winning 3-1.
Wolves lost 3 of the 4 Premier League games welcoming a strong and undefeated Liverpool. The final result score was not a surprise to anybody.
Betting on an in-form underdog
We get many surprise results today in football, but are they all really unexpected?
Let’s have a look.
Manchester United, one of the most valuable soccer clubs in the world, got hammered at Old Trafford by Brighton (1-3) catching off guard the bookies who priced the visitors @ 3.45 to get all 3 points. The bookmakers made a mistake when they set up the odds disregarding crucial factors like team result and form.
Looking at the above screenshot we can notice that United lost their away matches and struggled home against weak sides, winning eventually at a small margin.
On the other hand, Brighton won 3 of the 4 Premier League matches played averaging 3 goals per game.
How to manage your money and avoid losing your bankroll when betting live on soccer?
Money management is essential in all aspects of life, even more so in high-risk activities like gambling where you can drop from top to bottom in a matter of hours if you don’t control your emotions.
This is something all bettors should pay attention to regardless of their betting strategy and it applies to in-play betting as well. Setting the bankroll or the amount of money you plan to use for this purpose is one of the first things a bettor needs to do.
Top 10 rules to increase your betting bankroll and never go broke
- Only bet the money you can afford to lose
- Increase gradually your bankroll and see betting as an investment on a medium to long-term
- Never go all-in
- Take a break when you lose a bet and give yourself feedback on why you lost
- Never base your bets on live statistics which are very deceiving
- Always take your time to do pre-match analysis before using in-play betting
- Keep an Excel sheet with all your bets that will include all the details (date, market, stake, result). Constantly check the sheet and find ways to improve your mistakes
- When you lose a bet, you made a mistake somewhere. Take responsibility and don’t blame misfortune, other people or the bookies.
- Use live streaming to have a better feel in predicting the outcome of an event
- Increase your wagers gradually as your bankroll increases
Other factors to consider when betting live on soccer
Consider the following:
Watch the games when possible
The great thing about this betting type is that you can watch a part of a game before placing your money, which can often prove to be the difference between winning and losing a bet.
You can check the teams’ line-ups, tactics and style of play before betting on the game, so you should by no means pass on this excellent opportunity.
If the match you are betting on is not broadcast live on TV, you can be sure that one of the online bookies will Live Stream it on their site.
Don’t chase your losses
One of the things bettors love about in-play betting is that it offers countless opportunities with new markets opening almost every minute.
Nobody likes to wait for a couple of hours to find out about the outcome of their bet, so the live betting market is perfect for those impatient bettors with bets being settled within minutes.
However, this is something that can be counterproductive as well, since you can be tempted into chasing your losses and making bets without thinking things through, which can be a fatal mistake.
How To Bet In-Play Successfully – Summary
- Use betting markets to your advantage
- Set up a winning in-play betting strategy
- Manage your bankroll
- Watch the live streams when you bet
- Don’t chase your losses
- Soccer News Like
- Be the first of your friends!
