Can you bet on both teams and win? Proven methods

I’ve been successfully betting since 2013. A big part of my activity was focused on strategies that included betting on each outcome of a market or both teams.

The basic rule behind covering every possible outcome and still generating profits is to have some level of odds difference between bookies.

The size of the odds discrepancy also determines the approach you can use to make profits, no matter who wins.

Can I bet on each outcome of a sports market?

Betting on both teams in sports and making guaranteed profit is possible.

There are two types of betting strategies that will easily allow you to make money by betting on both outcomes: arbitrage betting and matched betting.

Many bettors made, even a living (including myself) by excluding the luck factor from sports betting and decided to cover each outcome.

Strategies to place a bet on both teams and win

1. Finding sure bets

Betting on both teams no matter what the odds are is a simple way to make sure you will win at least one bet. But there is a little trick to making this method even more profitable.

To make a guaranteed profit on these kinds of bets, also called sure bets, you need to find odds discrepancies between bookies.

For example, at the first bookie, tennis player A has an odd of 2 (I’m from Europe, so I use decimal odds), and player B at the other bookmaker has 2.10.

These odds differences appear at almost every sports event and at each betting site.

The bookies receive different information about the events or sometimes they are slow in processing them.

These cases create odds differences between bookies.

• You place a stake at the first bookie with 100 euros on odds of 2 and at the other bookmaker on the second player, you place a stake of 95 euros on an the odds of 2.10.

No matter who wins, you will end up with a profit of approximately 4.5 euros and this is a guaranteed win because you placed bets on both teams.

This mathematical betting technique of simultaneously covering each outcome with a guaranteed profit is called arbitrage betting or sure betting.

Sounds interesting? Check my relevant articles:

• How to find arbitrage opportunities in sports betting?
• Complete list of Arbitrage finder apps

2. Exploit bonus offers

Matched betting was and still is the easiest and simplest to learn betting strategy to place bets on both teams/outcomes and still make a guaranteed profit.

This betting technique comes down to two factors if you want to be profitable:

• You need to find slightly overpriced odds
• Betting offers are essential

Matched betting is focused on taking advantage of the bonus offers by excluding risks when placing bets on each outcome and completing the bonus roll-over requirements without losing money.

Many odds-matching software/services, such as OddsMonkey, have excellent beginner guides on how to practice this strategy.

What happens if you bet on both teams?

Betting on both teams or every possible outcome of sports events will guarantee you, no matter who wins, winning at least one outcome.

If you are watching several bookmakers, you can notice that in almost every market, they have some kinds of discrepancies.

These odds differences are offering us, smart bettors, the opportunity to take advantage of them.

Placing a bet on odds that are higher than at other bookmakers will give us an advantage against the bookies.

If you cover the other team or player somewhere else, you will make a guaranteed profit. This technique is called arbitrage betting.

You can place a bet on both teams without wrong odds and still win. Matched betting is the technique that allows this. You can easily take advantage of bonuses offered by bookies.

A lot of people (like me) made good profits from this strategy.

But keep in mind that betting on both outcomes is a viable option if you are placing the bets at different bookmakers.

Betting on both teams at the same bookie will cause you unpleasant surprises, like stake limitations or even your account getting banned.

The only way of placing bets at both outcomes and not being punished for that is using betting exchanges like Betfair or sharp bookmakers like Pinnacle or some Asian ones.

How to properly cover each outcome of a betting market?

Before mentioning the practical steps of this betting technique, I have to warn you that this way of making money is not liked by bookies.

Betting on the wrong odds will make them vulnerable. You are decreasing their profits in the long run.

But betting on both sides using these overpriced lines will make you a guaranteed profit without taking risks.

Before stepping on the road of arbing, value betting, or any kind of professional bettor technique, I advise you to learn more about the risks and downsides of this great opportunity.

The more knowledge you get before really starting it, the more profits you can make and the more sustainable your income can be from sports betting.

Important steps for long-term success

• Open accounts at more than one bookmaker available in your country
• Find overpriced outcomes that are good enough for an arbitrage opportunity
• Calculate the stakes for both of the outcomes (arbitrage calculators)
• Open the markets at both of the bookmakers
• Place the bets with calculated stakes for this arbitrage bet
• Enjoy the profits!

What are the advantages of covering each outcome while betting?

After several years of following strategies that allowed me to bet on each outcome of a market, here are some advantages I noticed:

• The risk of variance (losing for a longer period) does not exist
• Guaranteed profits all the time
• You can control the amount of money you make
• The possible profits from these strategies are directly proportional to the time you are willing to invest in working
• Sure bets finders and Odds matcher sites make your workflow easier
• Less stress when working (the risk involved is almost non-existent if you do things right)
• You can bet on both teams as a side income source
• You will always find new betting opportunities due to competition between bookies

What are the downsides?

Besides having many advantages, betting on each outcome has some downsides as well:

• You need to spot overpriced markets to generate profits
• Bookies don’t like smart betting activities
• Sooner or later, each of your betting accounts will have limited stakes
• Most bookies won’t offer new bonus offers to you
• You can face a stricter verification process when getting caught for sure betting
• Mistakes can have big costs (covering only one outcome by mistake and losing the bet)
• Odds change fast, so you have to be fast when betting on both teams
• The betting balance can grow too fast on one side, and you get a premature limitation on stakes when asking for a withdrawal

Can you generate profits from betting on both teams?

Both arbitrage and matched betting are still very profitable betting techniques. Even beginner bettors report a monthly 400-500 euros in the first month of starting one of these strategies.

The amount of money you can make by betting on both teams can change depending on the time and money invested, and the bookies available in your country.

I always advise bettors to treat these strategies only as a great side income source.

Bookies will limit your betting accounts in 6-7 months at the top, so quitting your job for arbing is not a wise idea these days.

Are you allowed to bet on both teams in a sports event?

Generally speaking, the majority of bookmakers don’t like it when a client bets on both teams on the same market or using cross-market sure bets.

Many betting sites will limit your maximum stakes if you cover both outcomes/teams, or it can flag your account for unusual activity.

Betting on both teams on the same platform is allowed only at betting exchanges, betting brokers, and some sharp betting sites such as Pinnacle.

Usual bookmakers such as Bet365 or DraftKings will limit your maximum stakes if they figure out that you are making guaranteed profits by covering each outcome on their platforms.

Generally speaking, betting on both teams at different betting sites is not allowed, but the bookies will spot this activity harder if you don’t place bets on obviously big mistakes.

Strategies based on guaranteed winning bets, such as sure betting or matched betting, can exist because players use different betting sites to cover the outcomes of an event.

This way, you don’t need the bookie to allow you to bet on both teams. Only a few betting sites share info about their clients. This way, your betting activity remains anonymous and successful.