How to Bet on Live Games – Guide and Tips for Beginners

What is live betting, and how does it work?
More importantly, can we win some real money with it?
Strap in – we’ll answer all of these questions in our beginner-friendly guide, complete with some handy live betting tips.
The world of sports betting has changed a lot in recent years. But no innovation has been quite as big or important as live betting. By allowing players to wager as the action unfolds, online bookmakers have opened up a whole new way to enjoy the sports we love.
These days, many players end up preferring live bets to classic pre-match fixtures. And if you know how it all works, you’ll know why.

What Is Live Betting?

Live betting, otherwise known as in-play betting, is a form of sports betting that allows you to place wagers after the event had already started.
In contrast, classic fixed-odds bets must be made before the event kicks off. That’s what makes live betting so special – you get to wager right as the magic happens.
Of course, this also means that you don’t have the same options as with standard wagers. The odds don’t work the same way, and you don’t have access to the same markets. Moreover, you can’t use the same systems and strategies.

How to Place a Bet Live

The process of making a live bet is not very different from what you’re probably used to with online bookmakers.
If you understand the basics of sports betting, you won’t have much trouble with in-play betting either.

If you’re not sure what to do, though, just follow these simple steps.

  1. Log into your chosen betting site and make sure you have money deposited.
  2. Navigate to the live betting section. You can usually find it at the top of the site.
  3. Use the menu on the side to look through different sports, competitions, and events.
  4. Find a match you’re interested in and click on it. You will then be able to see a live score from the event.
  5. Find a market or specific offer you’re interested in and click on it to add it to your betting slip. You can add as many selections to your slip as you want.
  6. Note that every second matters in live betting. Odds could change at any moment, and new offers or markets may become available.
  7. Once you’re satisfied with your betting slip, type in the amount you wish to stake and click the ‘confirm’ button to place the wager.
  8. Wait for the result. Some types of live bets can be resolved before the match ends while others have to wait until the end.

How Live Odds Work

Betting odds in any sport depend on many factors.

Most important element behind betting odds are:

  1. Team histories,
  2. Statistics,
  3. Form,
  4. Head to Head results,
  5. Current injuries, suspensions.

The same factors are taken into consideration for live betting, but live betting odds are a rough estimation of how likely a certain outcome is once the game starts.
That said, live betting odds can change at any second because the situation in the game changes all the time.
We can explain this through an example.
Let’s say you’re betting on a football game in which the two teams are more or less equal. Both have a good chance to win, and the odds for a Match Result bet are roughly the same for either team.
However, Team A scores at minute 30. Suddenly, they seem much more likely to win than Team B. This means that the live betting odds for Team A winning will be much lower than for Team B.
But it doesn’t end there.
At first, Team B will have more than 60 minutes to score and catch up with Team A. As time goes on, however, their chances of catching up or winning will diminish. Again, the odds will change to reflect this fact.
The same principle applies to any bet made while the game is still ongoing.

How to Win Live Betting

Your live wager wins if the outcome you predicted comes true. The info we covered above is enough for you to start making your live bet prediction today.
However, there are a few other things we should point out.
Most in-play betting markets are simply variants of classic pre-match markets. For example, you can bet on a simple Match Result, Over/Under markets, Goals Scored, and so on. The only real difference is that the odds change as the scores are updated live.
However, some types of bets are unique to live betting. Typically, they are resolved before the match ends.
Here are some examples found in football.

  1. Corner/Penalty bets predict the outcome of a corner or penalty kick. They become available as soon as the referee calls the kick, and are resolved immediately after the kick itself.
  2. Next Team to Score predicts which side will score the first goal after the moment the bet is placed. It doesn’t matter whether the goal is the first or fifteenth in the game.
  3. The Rest of the Match market works a bit like a handicap bet. Essentially, it’s like you’re pretending that the score so far is 0:0 whether that’s true or not.

Of course, there are many other live betting markets out there across all kinds of sports and games.

Live Sports Betting Tips

Before we wrap up, we’ll provide you with some live betting tips that will have you winning live bets in no time.

  • Follow the match closely. The odds, opportunities, and betting value of live wagers depend entirely on how the match is progressing. Ideally, you want to be tuned in live and keep tabs on everything that’s going on.
  • Take advantage of odds changes. The way odds change with in-play betting can work for you or against you. If the odds for a bet you want to make are increasing, try to hold off on confirming the wager for as long as possible. Conversely, avoid taking bets after the odds have decreased.
  • Combine live and pre-match bets. It’s theoretically possible to guarantee profits if you time a live bet correctly. For example, you can bet on one team and then hedge your wager by betting on their opponents during the match. In some circumstances, this could mean that you win more than you staked no matter the outcome.
  • Don’t rush into anything. In-play betting can get quite hectic at times, and some opportunities only last seconds. This can lead to hasty, poor decisions if you’re not careful.

    • This guide should provide you with everything you need to bet on live games.
    That said, we should note that this form of sports wagers is in many ways harder than standard pre-match offers. Beginners should be very cautious.
    However, once you figure it out, betting live can be incredibly exciting and lucrative.