Are you looking for the best sports spread betting sites in the UK? If so read our guide where we look at the best ones on the market today so you can make an informed decision before opening a sports spread betting account.
Spread betting on the sports markets has grown hugely over the last few years and many punters enjoy wagering bets on the spread markets as it can be both thrilling and return a good profit.
Sports spread betting is an exciting alternative to traditional fixed odds sports betting websites. Buying or selling bets “on the spread” is a betting technique loved by many sports bettors as your payout increases depending on how strong your prediction proves to be.
In our sports spread betting sites guide, we list the top-rated sports spread betting companies and the benefits of opening a spread betting account.
Sports spread betting with Spreadex is a fast-paced, exciting alternative to traditional fixed odds sports betting. Spread bettors love sports spread because with a spread bet, your payout increases depending on how strong your prediction proves to be.
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Sports Spread Betting is the most exciting form of sports betting and is important for spread bettors to understand the concept of the terms ‘Buying Spread Bets’ and ‘Selling Spread Bet’.
Read on to find out more about this type of betting and how it differs from fixed odds betting.
What is a Sporting Spread?
A ‘sporting spread bet’ is wagering money on a SELL-BUY range on what will happen in a specified betting event.
The bookmaker will provide a score (with a margin) where you can choose to “sell the spread” or “buy the spread”.
Buying the spread means you are predicting the event will end up higher than the range (i.e. odds).
Selling the spread means you are predicting the event will end up lower than the range (i.e. odds).
The main difference between Sports Spread Betting vs Traditional Fixed Odds Sports Betting are:
The more you are right, then the more you win
The more you’re wrong, then the more you lose
Wagering money on sports spread bets differs from regular fixed odds betting and if punters are confident in their selection the spread betting can pay dividends and reap big rewards. It is essentially a high-risk/high-reward type of sports betting.
How Does Sports Spread Betting Work?
Sports spread betting is where the online bookmaker sets a number of points (the spread) that determines the outcome of the bet.
Punters looking to place bets can determine whether the outcome of points will be higher (BUY) or lower (SELL) than the spread.
Sports spread betting allows bettors to win or lose based on the margin of victory or defeat, rather than simply the outcome of the sporting event.
Wagering bets on sports spread betting is considered to be a more high-risk form of betting than traditional fixed-odds betting, as the potential winnings or losses can be much larger.
Selling A Sports Betting Spread
When placing a bet on “SELL” your wager says it will be under the bracket or threshold specified on the spread betting bookmakers range.
You are selling a sports betting spread on the lowest number in the range and predicted to fall under this value.
Many spread betting punters prefer to wager money on something to happen (rather than not) and savvy bettors believe the value lies in selling a sports betting spread.
Buying Into Spread Sports Betting
When placing a bet on “BUY” your wager says it will be over the bracket or threshold specified on the spread betting bookmakers range.
You are buying a sports betting spread on the highest number in the range and predicted to be above this value.
Buying a sports betting spread is wanting an outcome to be better or higher than the bookmakers prediction.
Best Sports For Spread Betting
Here are the best sports for wagering bets on spread betting markets:
Horse Racing Spread Betting
Horse racing is one of the most popular sports in the UK for spread bets.
Horse racing spread betting offers you the chance to bet against (SELL) as well as a bet with horses (BUY) in a particular race.
The most popular spread bets on horse racing events are:
Where a horse will finish in a race (its finishing position)
Favourites performance
SP of winner
Buy or Sell the winners distance (the official winning distance)
Jockey’s performance
Football Spread Betting
The most popular spread-betting sporting events in the UK is football. This is not surprising as football is the most popular sport that people bet on in the United Kingdom – the amount of football bet types on the spread is amazing and covers different leagues and competitions.
Here are some of the most popular spread bets on football events:
Total Goals in a game
Shirt Numbers
Bookings
Corners
Match Performance
Goal Times
Player Minutes
Player Performance
If you strongly fancy a football team the more you are ‘correct’ in the bet you place, the more money you stand to win.
With a fixed odds bet, you are either right or wrong. But in spread betting, if you strongly fancy a team to win the more goals they score the more this can payout.
Cricket Spread Betting
The sport of cricket is one of the most popular and exciting spreads betting markets, especially in India!
Here are some of the most popular spread bets on cricket events:
Supremacy spread bet
Session runs
Cricket match win index
Fall of next wicket
Batsman runs
Total 4s in a cricket game
Total 6s in a cricket match
Team runs
Rugby Spread Betting
Rugby spread betting is a way of betting on a ‘spread’ or prediction of outcomes to happen. This applies to both rugby league and rugby union.
Here are some of the most popular spread bets on rugby games:
Total tries in a match
Buy or Sell Match Points
Supremacy bets
Player try minutes (the time of scoring)
Tryscorer shirts
Team tries
Team shirts
How Accurate are Sports Spreads?
The sports spread average variance is pretty accurate.
Bookmakers have specialist odd compilers who predict the outcome of football games, horse races or sports events and usually are close to the range.
BUT spread betting punters have a huge advantage to take on the spread range because are able to find out the following information after the odds are available:
Starting a lineup on football teams can hugely influence your opinion of a result
Ground conditions can massively influence the chances of a racehorse – read more about horse racing goings
The formation of a football team can change opinions on total goals in a match
The position a player is starting can affect the goalscorer spread bets
Non-runners can affect the spread bet ranges
Although sports spreads are accurate on many sporting events they are not always perfect and spread bettors can find some real value when studying the horse racing picks or football game selections.
Don’t forget to read our tipping pages where we offer sports spread betting tips as well for your sports spread bets.
Different Types of Spread Betting Football Markets
Here are the main football spread betting markets:
Goalscorer minutes
Goalscorer shirt Numbers
Time of 1st Goal Scored
Supremacy bets
Total corners
Total bookings
There are many more football spread betting markets available for football punters to wager money on.
In Play Spread Betting
In-play spread betting, also known as live spread betting, is a type of spread betting that allows you to place bets on sporting events while they are in progress.
Spread bet in play allows bettors to take advantage of changing circumstances and momentum during the game to make more informed betting decisions.
In-play spread betting works in the same way as traditional spread betting, with the bookmaker setting a spread and the bettor wagering on whether the actual score or result will be higher or lower than the spread.
In-play spread betting allows you to place bets after the event has started, with the spread and odds constantly being updated as the game progresses.
In-play spread betting can be a fast-paced and exciting way to bet, but it also requires quick decision-making and the ability to react to changing circumstances.
Who Regulates Sports Spread Betting?
Sports spread betting is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) as is seen as financial trading in the UK.
The spread betting market is seen as financial trading because you can lose more than your initial deposits and in some cases can bet on credit.
It is highly recommended to only wager bets with fully licensed spread betting companies, which are Spreadex and Sporting Index.
Spreadex Vs Sporting Index
Spreadex and Sporting Index are both companies that offer sports spread betting to UK punters.
Both Spreadex and Sporting Index allow customers to place bets on a wide range of sports events, including football, basketball, cricket, tennis and horse racing.
One key difference between the two companies is that Spreadex also offers traditional fixed-odds betting, as well as financial spread betting.
Sporting Index is exclusively a sports spread betting company.
This means that customers of Spreadex have more options regarding the types of bets they can place, while Sporting Index only offers spread betting.
Both companies offer online platforms for placing bets, as well as mobile apps for on-the-go betting. They also offer a range of other services, such as live in-play betting and cash-out options, which allow customers to cash in their bets early if the market moves in their favour.
Ultimately, which company is better for you will depend on your personal preferences and betting style. It may be worth considering both options and comparing their spreads, fees, and other terms and conditions to see which one is the best fit for you.
As you can spread betting options in the UK are rather limited at the moment but both these spread betting firms are excellent.
Facts about Spread Betting
Sports spread betting sites are online platforms where users can bet on the outcome of sporting events.
They offer a variety of different types of bets, including point spreads, moneylines, futures, and parlays.
The sites allow bettors to place bets on events from all over the world, including major sports leagues.
Sports spread betting sites use sophisticated algorithms to determine the odds of each bet.
Sports spread betting is a form of gambling that involves predicting the outcome of a sporting event and wagering on the result.
According to the UK Gambling Commission, the total gross gambling yield of sports spread betting sites in the UK was £1.2 billion in 2018.
In 2018, the number of active sports spread betting accounts in the UK was estimated to be around 350,000.
The most popular sports for spread betting in the UK are football, horse racing, and tennis. Other popular spread betting markets include rugby league, ice hockey, badminton and athletics.
Spread betting on sports is one of the fastest growing types of gambling.
Much financial trading works in a similar way.
Summary of Sports Spread Betting UK Options
We hope you have enjoyed our guide to spread betting, we have looked at how to place spread bets, the main UK spread betting companies, the differences with fixed odds betting and more so you have more information about this growing form of gambling which is taking the betting world by storm.
Wagering bets on the spread betting markets is not the faint-hearted and the more you are wrong on a bet, the more you can lose (above your stake).
Spread betting and betting on the betting exchanges is deemed to be high risk, but also seen by more punters as a high reward. Spread bets involve risks and so it is often only used by experienced punters.
The spread has two prices, a buy and a selling price. If you believe the online bookies have pitched a quote too low, spread bettors would buy at the higher price, anticipating that the make-up of the market will be bigger than that price. Likewise, if spread bettors think the buy price is too high then they would sell at the lower, believing the final make-up will be below the price they have sold at.
At British Racecourses, we recommend registering with both spread betting companies of Sporting Index and also Spreadex.
On top of the free bets you then have both spread betting accounts to compare the marginal ranges and wager bets on the bookmaker with the better prices.
James Dooley is a UK entrepreneur who founded British Racecourses because of his love for horse racing. James owns 14 racehorses through Dooley Thoroughbreds, so he understands all aspects of horse racing, from wagering bets, and booking jockeys to sourcing the best horse racing trainers. James Dooley’s connections give him inside information on horse racing tips and best chances of a winner.
Sports spread betting with Spreadex is a fast-paced, exciting alternative to traditional fixed odds sports betting. Spread bettors love sports spread because with a spread bet, your payout increases depending on how strong your prediction proves to be.
Sports Spread Betting is the most exciting form of sports betting and is important for spread bettors to understand the concept of the terms ‘Buying Spread Bets’ and ‘Selling Spread Bet’.
