Betfair Betting Guide

Betfair (Exchange) Bookmaker Education

Betfair allows you to have a choice of either backing or laying a particular outcome. Backing is similar to betting at a conventional bookie (i.e. you believe an event will happen) whilst laying means you are backing the event NOT to happen. This new opportunity can generate competitive odds but has its drawbacks regarding any potential liability you could face.

On betfair, the Back section is in blue and the Lay section is in pink. You want to back as high as possible and lay as low as possible to be most successful.

Backing on betfair

To back on betfair, you click the blue button next to the selection you are interested in. This produces a pop up box in which you can enter your stake (minimum £2) and select your odds. Your total profit is then calculated and when you are happy, you click “Verify Bet”.

However, for a bet to be accepted, it must be ‘matched’ by another customer. This means the other customer has to put the same amount of money on the exact opposite opinion to yours. When selecting a bet, it can be either ‘Matched’, ‘Unmatched’ or ‘Partially Matched’. If you are taking the odds in the blue box then it almost certainly will be ‘Matched’. However, check the betting slip to make sure. The status of your bets is written under the ‘My Bets’ tab.

If your bet is matched, you cannot alter it. If your bet is unmatched or partially matched and remains so until the market closes then you get your money back. However, as the event gets closer, you can change the odds you offer and your stake value to ensure that you do get a matched bet.

Laying on betfair

Lay betting is betting against something happening. This means on betfair you can back Arsenal to win the Premier League or you can back them NOT to win the Premier League (i.e. you are backing any other side to win the Premier League). So when you lay an outcome, you are effectively acting like a bookmaker and suffer the same liability.

This can be lucrative but if Arsenal do win the Premier League, you could be facing a liability that is greater than your stake. This is because you have to pay the backer their winnings.

To lay on betfair, you click the pink button next to the selection you are interested in. This produces a pop up box in which you can enter your stake (minimum £2) and select your odds. If you are laying Arsenal to win the league at 9 with a stake of £10 then your maximum liability is £80. This is shown within the pop-up box. The payout to the backer would be £90 but £10 of this is the backer’s stake, hence why the worst-case scenario is an £80 liability. Effectively, if this bet was matched, there would be a £90 pot for someone to collect – the backer’s £10 stake, and the layer’s £80 liability.

If Arsenal won the league, you would have to pay £80 to a winning customer. If any other team wins, you win £10 less commission. It is important to note that when laying a bet, you can only win the other person’s stake.

Lay betting explained

The best way to explain lay betting is using an example of a dice. You and a friend agree that every time a dice lands on the number 6, he will pay you. With each roll of a dice, your chances of winning are 1 and his chances of winning are 5 out of the 6 possible outcomes. This means the true odds of you winning are 5/1 or 6 in decimal form.

Your friend agrees to pay you the true price if you roll a 6. So, if you put down £1 he is risking £5 should a 6 be rolled. Conversely, the odds for you are 5/1 so the odds for him winning are 1/5 (1.2 in decimal odds) as he has five chances of success and only one chance of failure.

So, odds of you winning = 6. Odds of your friend winning = 1.2.

Betting is all about risk, reward and the balance between the two. If you back at 2 rather than 6 you will get less money as 2 is more likely to happen. Because 2 is more likely to happen, laying 2 will win you more if you are correct. Backing 6 will give you more money as it’s less likely to happen but because this is the case, laying 6 will cost you more if it does.