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BETFAIR MULTIPLES - AN EXPLANATION

Betfair Multiples at Betfair

Betfair Betting Exchange was without doubt a great concept and a great boon to all sports bettors.

Just one problem of not being able to bet in multiples - doubles,trebles and accumulators etc - until quite recently - you can now get those multiple bets on through the exchange.

Multiples at Betfair - An Explanation.

Its quite simple.

Just click the "Multiples" link on site and this will take you to those multiple markets.

Select your sport and click the coupon for that sporting event - it may be that days horseracing fixture,saturdays football matches or a tennis tournament.

You have to restrict your bets to one market at a time - by that I mean you can only bet within the football coupon or the horseracing coupon(or any other multiple coupons available)and you cannot mix those bets,you must place all football bets or tennis bets but not a combination of the two.

A multiple bet at Betfair betting Exchange is from 2 selections up to 8 selections maximum - with full betting in between from doubles,trebles,etc.up to 8 timer..

You can even perm selections within each multiple coupon.

For example,you may want to do 2 selections in one race or sporting event and 2 selections in another.

No problem,Betfair Multiples can handle those bets.

The only problem is how they display your bets before confirming.

As we can see 2 bets in 2 races is 2 times 2 = 4 bets.

But for some reason Betfair display this as one bet not 4,which is how they view it - the combined odds for either selection winning each race.

All you need to do is put in the total for your total investment not your unit stake.

That is,if you want say 2 times 2 = 4 at £1 per double you need to enter £4 not £1 which is what you actually intended.

Same applies to a permed treble of again 2 in each event,which is 2 times 2 times 2 = 8 bets,so again you enter £8 for the treble which is 8 separate trebles of £1 each.

It gets a little trickier when you do a perm for doubles within 3 selections and above.

Say you again select 2 in each race and want to do doubles for those 3 races.

The bet is 2 times 2 times for each double and then times 3 for the number of doubles which = 12 doubles.

Again Betfair Multiples combine odds for each race and they display 3 doubles at the confirm stage when actually the punter views it as 12 bets.

All you need to do is calculate what you actually want to stake for your bet.

So,again say you want to invest £12 in those permed doubles(3 bets of 4 £1 doubles).

You need to enter how much each permed double is i.e £4(4 doubles at £1 each)and enter that £4 amount which will then register £12 at bet confirm stage which is the bet you want.

Not sure why Betfair insist on doing it this way and if they showed the perm combinations at confirm stage the punter would understand more clearly.

What prices do you get ?

I assumed,and am sure that most other punters thought they would get the last price on the exchange as their sp - not so !.

You take a price when you place the bet,or if it is a weak market or you are too early for any odds to be confirmed you get the TBC warning - to be calculated.

So,for the first time that i am aware,Betfair Exchange is acting as a normal bookmaker - giving odds and taking normal bookmaking procedures of risk and control.

This raises the question of Betfair laying you one price and then backing the selection within the exchange at a higher price if they get the opportunity as they seem to have full control of when your price is taken.

Also,should your bet cover several days and you hit the jackpot with lets say 7 correct selections and one to go next day - is your sp already locked in,or will your own avalanche of money dramatically shorten your own odds ?

It is not so important if say,betting on football matches where price changes are tiny and large amounts are bet - but horseracing is volatile and quick changes of odds leave the punter at the mercy of Betfair regards the price they get.

Having said that,I have taken quite a few multiple bets on horseracing and compared to the sp returns i have been delighted with the returns paid - much better that bookmakers normal odds..

Can I lay as well as bet multiples ?

Yes - you can bet selections in multiples,you can lay bets in multiples and you can also have a combination of betting and laying within your multiple coupon.

Again the only restriction is you have to do it within each coupon wether football,horseracing,tennis,or any other coupon that is active within multiples at that time.

What are the Deductions from winnings ?

Betfair will deduct 5% from your winnings exactly as they do for most punters bets who bet through the Betting Exchange.

Conclusion

Just a slight worry about when your odds are taken by Betfair and their ability to lay at one price and use your money to bet at higher price.

Also the possibility of your own money shrinking the odds you get for last legs of that once in a lifetime accumulator you always dreamed about.

Remember this is the first time Betfair have acted as a normal bookmaker - before they did not care wether you won or lost as they just collected their commission for bets you won on - now they will on many occasions desperately want you to lose as they are laying those bets directly.

In some ways it will indoubtedly change Betfairs attitude towards their customers which is to be regretted in some ways.

However,as a regular visitor to Betfair Betting Exchange,the options now available to me and other clients - all the tote jackpot bets,great sports coverage and betting markets,plus now the option to get on multiple bets which make gambling much more exciting is to be welcomed and am sure Betfair have built in all the safeguards needed to give their players a fair deal.