Odds
Odds for different outcomes in a single bet are presented either in European format (decimal odds), UK format (fractional odds), or American format (moneyline odds). European format (decimal odds) are favoured in continental Europe, Canada, and Australia. They are the ratio of the full payout to the stake, in a decimal format. Decimal odds of 2.00 are an even bet. UK format (fractional odds) are favoured by British bookmakers. They are the ratio of the amount won to the stake. Fractional odds of 1/1 are an even bet. US format odds are favoured in the United States. They are the amount won on a 100 stake when positive and the stake needed to win 100 when negative. US odds of 100 are an even bet.
| Decimal | Fractional | US |
| 1.50 | 1/2 | -200 |
| 2.00 | 1/1 | +100 |
| 2.50 | 3/2 | +150 |
| 3.00 | 2/1 | +200 |
| x | To | Do this |
|---|---|---|
| Decimal | Fractional | x-1 , then convert to fraction |
| Decimal | US | 100*(x-1) if x>=2; -100/(x-1) if x<2 |
| Fractional | Decimal | divide fraction, then x+1 |
| Fractional | US | divide fraction, then 100*x if x>=1; -100/x if x<1 |
| US | Decimal | (x/100)+1 if x>0; (-100/x)+1 if x<0 |
| US | Fractional | x/100, then convert to fraction if x>0; -100/x, then convert to fraction if x<0 |
In Asia betting markets, other frequently used formats for expressing odds include Hong Kong, Malay, and Indonesian-style odds formats. Odds are also quite often expressed in terms of implied probability, which corresponds to the probability with which the event in question would need to occur for the bet to be a breakeven proposition (on the average).
Many online tools also exist for automated conversion between these odds formats.
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
Arbitrage betting
Betting arbitrage, miraclebets, surebets, sports arbitraging is a particular case of arbitrage arising on betting markets due to either bookmakers' different opinions on event outcomes or plain errors. By placing one bet per each outcome with different betting companies, the bettor can make a profit. As long as different Bookmakers are used for arbitrage betting the Bookmakers do not have a problem with this. Each Bookmaker will still make profit due to their calculations.
In the bettors' slang an arbitrage is often referred to as an arb; people who use arbitrage are called arbers. A typical arb is around 2%, often less, however 4%-5% are also normal and during some special events they might reach 20%.
Arbitrage Betting involves relatively large sums of money (stakes are bigger than in normal betting) while another variety, betting investment, means placing relatively small bets systematically on overvalued odds most of which will lose but some win thus making a profit.
The best way of generating profit, which has been established in Britain via sports arbitrage, consists of 'key men' employing others to place bets on their behalf, so as to avoid detection and increase accessibility to bookmakers. This allows the financiers or key arbers to stay at a computer to keep track of market movement.
This guide is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
