WHAT IS SPREAD BETTING AND HOW DOES IT WORK ?
Spread betting is a great way of betting,particularly for sports
fans and bettors - no matter how unequal a sporting contest is
you can still enjoy a bet - with the opportunity betting from
the first minute right through to the very end.Not only can you
bet right through any sporting event you can change your
mind,and adjust your bets at any time !.
The best way to explain the principle is firstly to use whole
number examples(many punters are baffled when they see fractions
of goals or similar when first looking at spread betting - how
can there be 2.3 goals?(we will explain later).
Lets choose cricket,or any sport where runs are made.The spread
betting companies may decide that a batsman should make about 30
runs.They would therefore offer a spread of say 29 - 31.If you
think that batsman would score more than that you would BUY,if
you did not rate the batsman and thought he would score less you
would SELL.(You would keep your stakes low in this market due to
volatility.)
IN THIS EXAMPLE THE BATSMAN SCORES 51 If you BUY for $1 - you
will win $20 (you bought at 31,result was 51 - the batsman
scored 20 more runs than buy offer) if you SELL for $1 - you
will lose $22(you sold at 29,result was 51 - the batsman scored
22 runs more than sell offer)
The beauty of spread betting is the odds change all the time,so
you can close a bet at any time and take your profit,or cut your
losses,or alternatively sit back and watch your profits grow(or
losses)right through till the end.
Now to look at fractions in spread betting - this can be,and can
remain baffling to many players- lets look at a soccer match -
TOTAL GOALS.- that is the number of goals in a football match.
The spread betting firms are offering total goals spread of 3.5
- 3.8 goals.Obviously you can not have 3.5 goals.What the odds
imply is the estimate is between 3 and 4 goals,with a slight
prefernce for 4 goals(the spread is closer to 4 than 3).Your
stakes in this market will be higher as there is less volatility.
IN THIS EXAMPLE THE SCORE IS 2 - 0 - TOTAL GOALS = 2 If you BUY
for $100 you will LOSE $180 (you bought at 3.8,result was 2 -
the total goals were 1.8 less buy offer- $100 times 1.8 = $180)
if you SELL for $100 you will WIN $150(you sold at3.5,result was
2 - the total goals were 1.5 less than sell offer - $100 times
1.5 = $150.
The spread betting firms make their profits from the gaps
between the buy and sell figures - if they get it spot on,they
get a small profit from BOTH the buyers and seller.
Something to bear in mind when spread betting - human nature
means most players have an inclination to BUY - they do that
because there is no upper limit for profits,unlike selling,when
you know your maximum win.Buyers are always hoping for that
freak high scoring game for that elusive big hit. Of course the
spread betting companies know this and always pitch there
spreads a little higher than they want them to be(they cannot go
too high as the big hitters would step in and sell
aggresively),so always approach a market with a view to SELL
,and only consider buying after selling has been discounted
after careful thought.
As alway there is a particular warning for punters before they
start spread betting - be very careful.It is an extremely
volatile form of betting,and you should always be aware of your
liabilities at all times,also play one market at a time and
closing before opening another.
However spread betting is great fun with ingenious betting
opportunities on offer - with such a vast range of bets try to
find a niche where you can become experienced and
knowledgable.with an edge over the market makers who have to
cover thousands of different markets.