There are many types and forms of bets at the online bookmakers . And just then, when you think you already know everything, then you come across a completely new term. Back and lay bets could be meant. What this is about, why you won't find these terms here with traditional bookmakers such as Tipico , Betway  and Co, and how back and lay bets work can be read in the following. There is also an explanation of why providers like Betfair , who otherwise offer such bets, shy away from the German market.

Back and lay bets - not found at regular bookmakers

Searching for the terms back and lay bets at regular bookmakers such as Mobilebet or Bet3000 should be a rather hopeless undertaking at the moment . Because these types of bets are not found with the regular bookmakers because they basically represent an instrument to bypass them.

The regular sports bet on the Internet , or the online bet In general, basically always represents a game between the customer and the bookmaker. If the customer wins a bet, the bookmaker has to pay him more, sometimes significantly more, than was originally wagered. Converted to this one customer, the bookmaker makes a clear loss in this case. It is clear that the bookmaker has an interest in directing the customer in such a way that he is more likely to lose. Or, alternatively, to set the odds for the more likely tip rather low. On a broad average, it can be assumed that profits and losses from the bookmaker's point of view, if you include all of the players' work, keep yourself in balance and the bookmaker always gets the few percent of the odds key as profit that is missing for it, that the stakes are completely paid out again. Nevertheless, some players see this quite critically and would like to have these few percentages as well. This is also what we talk about when we write about the so-called quota key. In the best case, this is up to 92 percent, in the worse case it is significantly lower. If the bookmaker does its homework well when it comes to calculating odds and reacts to the betting slips accepted and the latest news with appropriate adjustments, then one can assume that the bookmaker will have the 8 percent remaining as profit from all sales of a bet. And this is, as it has to be mentioned again, the most favorable case from the perspective of the players. Profits are often well beyond 10 percent. If you had made the last won bets directly with other players, you could expect up to 10 percent additional profit with a odds key of 100 percent, although 3.33 percent would be more realistic with a three-way bet (1 x 2). since the additional percent would probably be spread over all tips. Nevertheless, this is quickly noticeable. A profit of just 500 euros would result in 50 euros more with an additional 10 percent.

Back and lay bets - to be found at betting exchanges

These basic ideas once also allowed so-called betting exchanges to grow. The best known, although not usable as such for German customers, is Betfair . Alternatively, Matchbook to call. There is no bookmaker here, instead there are plenty of back and lay bets. Players play directly against each other and the winnings are paid out in much larger parts. The betting exchange no longer takes the usual 10 or more percent. In principle, fixed amounts of, for example, 5 percent, which are incurred for using the portal, are charged to the winner of a bet only. This means that the profits at betting exchanges with back and lay bets are normally significantly higher than with online bookmakers. There are basically two ways to play. One is not that different from playing at a bookmaker. This is the back bet. The other, the lay bet, is done by the player who plays the part of the bookmaker.

Lay bets - this is how it works

A lay bet describes the offering of a bet. To do this, you have to rethink and put yourself in the shoes of a bookmaker. You lay, so make a bet, just like a bookmaker would.

If, for example, Bayern and Dortmund play against each other in the first Bundesliga and you are of the opinion that Dortmund will defeat Bayern, then you offer a lay bet in which you can bet on Bayern. Here you have to specify a quota and a maximum bet. In the example, I take an odds of 2.00, which should be significantly higher than what bookmakers would offer on this tip, and a maximum stake of 10 euros. There is a player who wants to bet on Bayern and Dortmund at the specified ratewins, then you have practically earned the first 10 euros in your career as a small bookmaker. The lay bet is won. If the other player wins, then you have to pay him 20 euros, i.e. stake times odds, just like a regular bookmaker would have to.

The trick here is not just to find a bet that finds a prospect. Especially the formation of quotas is often difficult for beginners. Because on the one hand the lay bet has to have a rate that is so low that you can live with a loss yourself, on the other hand it has to arouse the interest of the other players, i.e. at least higher than with regular bookmakers. Otherwise betting fans could just place their bets there. To make matters worse, you are not necessarily alone with your lay bet. Surely other users will also offer a bet on Bavaria. If these offer the better odds, then a player will probably choose this bet first. Here it takes, with all this complicated sound,

Back bet - this is how it works

A back bet describes it as a lay bet to "bake". What literally can be translated as "give back" is a bit wooden means to symbolically accept the bet of the other player. In the example given above, one is convinced that Bavaria will surely win against BVB. The odds of 2.00 are far better than odds of, for example, 1.60 that a bookmaker would offer for this tip. You want to put as much effort into it as possible. Since the maximum bet is set at 10 euros, the player puts in this 10 euros. If he is right, he will be paid 20 euros, so he can look forward to a net profit of 10 euros. At the bookmaker it would only have been 6 euros. A back bet is the part of the back and lay bets that comes closest to the well-known sports betting at bookmakers. To get to know the portal of a betting exchange, it is, in my opinion, best suited for the beginning.

Of course, the odds of winning at betting exchanges do not have to be as linear as in this example. Even a slight change in odds, away from 2.00, changes the opportunities and risks. If the player who places a bet offers odds of 2.50, for example, he can still only win 10 euros, while the backer can make up to 15 euros in net profit.

Betting exchanges in Germany - a difficult story

Back and lay bets can only be found by nature at betting exchanges that are more of a marketplace than a bookmaker. The bigger and better the visitors, the better the offer there is of course. It doesn't matter whether you want to offer or accept a bet. Therefore, the supremacy of the clear market leader in the field will not change in the foreseeable future. This is called Betfair. In this country, Betfair only offers that part of its services that makes a regular bookmaker. The actual Betfair betting exchange is closed to German customers. So there are no back and lay bets here at Betfair . But why?

On the one hand, the betting tax represents an obstacle to the business principle of a betting exchange. If some of the big bookmakers take over the betting tax in Germany for their customers and others only give it as a side note on the betting slip, so that it is only really noticeable when calculating the winnings exactly, Betfair would have to In addition to your own around 5 percent commission, also specify 5 percent betting tax. That would be around 10 percent and, at least on paper, no better than the regular bookmakers. In addition, the online betting business in Germany is being watched very closely and will later also be heavily regulated. In general, only bookmakers with a betting license will be allowed to offer their services in this country in the future. Betfair is not the host of the individual bets in the betting exchange, but only a contact platform. Strictly speaking, the organizer is the one who offers the lay bet. And he will never be able to own a license. The step into legality is likely to be denied to betting exchanges in their form even after the restart of sports betting licenses in Germany. So it is understandable that Betfair and certainly some others will not offer this service in Germany in the future.

Conclusion on back and lay bets

Overall, back and lay bets are great. Community-controlled odds, the bets you are looking for, and a service provider that has no self-interest in the bets getting lost. It all sounds great. And it is certainly worth some training period before you can place lay bets correctly. For back bets there is hardly any difference to the bookmaker anyway.

Nevertheless, the German sports bettor has to live with severe restrictions. Since, if at all, only alternative providers to the clear market leader Betfair come into question, you have to think twice about whether there is enough interest in back and lay bets to give it a try. Even if I would personally say yes to this, I assume that some casual gamblers are better off with regular bookmakers.

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