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Betting on an exchange, like Smarkets, may seem daunting at first. However, it couldn’t be easier once you know how.
Betting exchanges work by providing a platform that pairs customers together to bet against each other. This means that you can either place a regular ‘back’ bet, where you want an outcome to happen, or you can place a ‘lay’ bet, where you want an outcome not to happen.
The six boxes containing odds on Smarkets show both the ‘back’ and the ‘lay’ odds. The three leftmost boxes show the trio of best back odds available on the exchange, with the green box showing the very best. Likewise, on the right, the blue box shows the best lay odds, with the two grey boxes to the right of that showing the next best lay odds.
For simplicity, you may find it easier to cut out the noise and ignore the odds in the grey boxes entirely. If you’re used to betting with a sportsbook, the only odds you may be interested in are the best available back odds. In that case, check the green box for those and disregard all other boxes.
SMARKETS GAMEWEEK 2
Let’s take a look at an example from Smarkets for the upcoming Fantasy Premier League (FPL) Gameweek 2 markets.
You can see that Smarkets have a market on Erling Haaland to score over/under 8.5 FPL points. The odds in the green box for over 8.5 show 5. If you want to back Haaland to exceed 8.5 points, you should use these odds. Betting £10 at odds of 5 would give you a £40 profit.
You may be asking what is the purpose of the odds in the grey boxes to the left? The answer is that these show market depth or the next best price available. If you take a look under the odds, there is a monetary value.
For the aforementioned bet on Haaland to get over 8.5 points, this figure shows £25. This means that currently there’s £25 available to be placed at the odds of 5. Once that £25 is used up, the odds in the grey box to the left of 4.8 would move into the green box. 4.8 would then be the best available odds in the market. Regular bookmakers work in a similar way, it’s just hidden from the view of the customer.
A LAY BET
Were you to place a lay bet, you’d be betting against an outcome – so if you were to lay over 8.5 points, you win the bet if he does not get over 8.5 points. A lay bet works in the opposite way to a back bet – you type in the amount you want to win as the ‘stake’, and the odds are used to calculate your ‘liability’, which is the amount you have to risk in order to try to win the stake amount. If you are to win a lay bet, you would be winning another customer’s losing stake for their back bet.
Gameweek 2 shifts the focus to Liverpool, who won 9-0 in last season’s corresponding home game to Bournemouth. Mohamed Salah and Trent Alexander Arnold are the pick of their players – and Smarkets are offering markets on both.
All Fantasy Football markets are located under the Football Outrights section in Smarkets.
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