FUTURE BET: MEANING, CALCULATION & EXAMPLES
- Future bet meaning: A future bet is an outright wager placed on the outcome of an event that concludes in the more distant future, such as the end of a specific sporting season.
- Future bet calculation: Future bets are simple to calculate as they follow the regular outright odds structure. If your future bet is priced at 6.00, you will win a total of €6 from a €1 stake.
- Future bet example: There are many examples of future bets, the most common of which is betting on the outright result of a league or cup competition. For instance, betting on the winner of Super Bowl LX before the new NFL season starts would be considered a future bet.
WHAT IS A FUTURE BET?
The key thing to understand before placing a future bet is simple: what is a future bet? A future bet is a straightforward concept that involves betting on the outcome of a competition that will be decided sometime in the distant future. Bets on specific match results that take place in the near future are not considered future bets due to the short amount of time between the bet being placed and the result being confirmed.
TYPES OF FUTURE BETS & EXAMPLES
There is technically only one type of future bet – a bet on the outright winner of a league, cup, or championship that is settled in the distant future. The variation lies in the competition itself rather than the type of bet, as you can place future bets across different sports and different competition formats. Here are some common examples of future bets:
- League future bets: Leagues are an example of a competition format in which future betting is an option. The most popular league in football is the Premier League and a future bet on this competition would involve betting on the outright winner of the league before the start of the season.
- Cup future bets: Cups are also an important part of many sports. These competitions often bring together teams from different leagues who compete in a knockout tournament. A good example of this is the Champions League, where you could place a future bet on multiple different clubs from around Europe, such as Liverpool, Real Madrid, or Bayern Munich, to win the competition before it starts.
- Championship future bets: Championships are a common feature of American sports and are often the pinnacle of any competition. The NBA Championship is the premier competition in basketball and an example of a future bet would be betting on the Los Angeles Lakers to win the 2024/25 NBA Championship before the season started.
- Individual future bets: Future betting is also popular in individual sports such as tennis and golf. For example, before the start of the PGA Tour season, you may choose to place a future bet on Scottie Scheffler to win the Open Championship, or you may place a future bet on Novak Djokovic to win the French Open in the months leading up to the tournament.
HOW TO PLACE A FUTURE BET AT EDGE
Finding the best site on which to place your future bet is a crucial part of making it both an enjoyable and profitable experience. Mad Market’s Edge platform makes this much easier by bringing a host of Asia’s top bookmakers and exchanges onto one platform, making it easy for you to find the most suitable future betting option.
Covering a range of sports from football to basketball to boxing, look no further than Edge when choosing where to place your future bets. What’s more, if you find future betting to be very profitable, Edge – unlike traditional sportsbooks or agents – won’t close your account or restrict your winnings.
PROS & CONS
One of the main pros and reasons as to why people place future bets is because of the increased value on offer. Betting on the outcome of an event long before the winner is settled almost always leads to bigger odds. For example, you would get much greater odds on a team to win the Premier League before the campaign starts, than when they soon become league leaders and favorites for the trophy.
However, this increased value comes with a risk. For example, if you back the favorites of a competition before it starts, hoping to sneak some extra value before they run away with things, you are basing your bet on past performances. These plans can quickly fall apart if their early odds were based on hype, rather than actual results.
Another benefit of placing a future bet however is that it can provide ongoing excitement throughout a season from just one outlay, rather than feeling the need to place regular separate bets to maintain your interest in a certain event. On the flip side, if it becomes apparent early on that your future bet is not going to win, it can become frustrating to see your bet still open and not settled as a loser until the result is confirmed, even when the odds are stacked heavily against your selection part way through the event.
There are many pros and cons to be considered before placing your future bets and it is important to feel confident that the pros outweigh the cons if you want to form a profitable future betting strategy.
A good option is to consult betting tips before placing a future bet. The Mystic Mac tipster on our Telegram channel provides tips for outright markets, which are useful to take a look at before you place your future bet.
CONCLUSION
It is clear to see why future betting is popular with bettors around the world, given the opportunities it offers for greater value while maintaining an easy-to-understand format.
Make sure you are well-informed and have a good understanding of the markets you choose to take on when placing your future bets to increase your chances of making a profit.