In the perpetual, attritional contest between bookmakers and punters, value betting is one way for the latter to give themselves some edge. Value betting is among a myriad of betting strategies employed by gamblers today. Day after day, there are new tactics, and fine-tuning existing ones improves their efficacy. Few can give a punter the advantage, and profit potential value betting brings.
What’s Value Betting?
A value bet is a situation where a bookmaker offers betting odds much higher than the actual probability of an event occurring. That means the bookmaker, for whatever reason, doesn’t see that event happening. The punter, conversely, doesn’t share the bookie’s viewpoint. In this situation, the punter realizes that the event can happen and can catch the unwitting bookie out with a bet that potentially lands a considerable profit.
When you think about it, value betting is the very essence of successful and profitable sports gambling. In any gambling situation, unlikely outcomes have higher prices. Identifying a product with high odds yet still correctly predictable is the ultimate way to rake in the profits in sports betting. It’s how you beat the bookies and leave them licking your dust. Here are a few proven ways that value betting can work for you.
Know Your Sport
Being very knowledgeable about your sport has a natural edge when it comes to value betting. Punters who can spot value betting opportunities are often fans of that particular sport. Essentially, punters like those end up knowing more than the bookmaker! That way, detecting a situation where your bookie has overpriced an outcome becomes easier. Let’s use a soccer example. For instance, Chelsea is playing in the Premier League against Leeds United at home. In a match like that, Chelsea, based on reputation, are clear favorites while Leeds is the underdog. The sportsbook might offer the following Double Chance prices.
Chelsea or Draw
1.45
Leeds or Draw
6.50
But say Chelsea is missing 3 or 4 vital players due to injury, something a “soft” bookmaker might be oblivious of. Due to Chelsea’s missing players, the punter realizes it’s probable that Leeds wins or draws the game. The 6.50 odds, in this case, represent the chance for a value bet! Predicting it allows a punter to nail a considerable profit. The punter grants themselves an edge over their bookie because they are more knowledgeable about soccer and this particular match.
Stay Switched ON
Staying switched on in this context involves being more reactive to events than the bookmaker. Betting prices rarely remain stagnant during sporting events and huge matches. Bookmakers, especially sharp ones, are forever adjusting them. They do this based on new tidbits of information and their estimations of how such information might affect match outcomes.
Bookmakers keep very abreast of happenings around a sporting event. As if that’s not enough, they have algorithms and prediction software to help get them as close as possible to defining true odds. That said, bookmakers are not always on their game.
Sometimes they’re not able to make odds adjustments quickly enough. Let’s take the Chelsea-Leeds example above. Sharp bookies would promptly adjust their prices to reflect Chelsea’s declining prospects as soon as the info streamed in. But before they do, and even sharper, eagle-eyed punter might discern the situation, placing their wager based on the higher, more lucrative odds.
Live Betting
Some sports gamblers bet live exclusively, and it’s easy to see their reasoning. Live betting is the easiest way to catch sight of value bets. Also called in-play betting, live betting makes wagers during a contest. Modern bookmakers like SBOTOP allow punters to make bets during play, reacting to events on the field. A fantastic example of a very profitable value betting opportunity occurred on the final day of the Barclays Premier League 2021/22 season.
Manchester City, needing a win over Aston Villa to secure the title, fell two goals behind by the 70th minute. At that point, the in-play odds changed commensurately to favor Aston Villa and expected to take advantage and see them win. However, based on the game’s tide, a few punters still believed in Man City turning the contest around, which they eventually did with a late winner. Those punters went home smiling that day! Live betting lets punters feel how a game panes out in real-time. It then becomes easier to make correct predictions and place highly profitable value bets.
