The Real-Time Process Flow of Placing an Arb (Two Tabs, Confirming Odds and Wager Amounts)

We’re going to take a deep dive here to show how the placement of an arbitrage bet plays out, and to show you just how profitable it can be.  If you’re not familiar yet with what an arbitrage bet is, take a minute to read this article Common Concerns and Confusion with Arbitrage Betting.

Starting Out

In the screenshot below is a snippet of the OddsJam arbitrage betting screen.  This is where we start for the placement of every one of our arbitrage bets, when OddsJam identifies the opportunity.  You can see here that Fanduel is offering the Blue Jays moneyline at -215, and Sporttrade is offering the Athletics moneyline at +218.  Since the (+) odds are greater than the (-) odds, we have an arbitrage opportunity.

Placing the Bets

In the arbitrage tool, there is a link (the green button) to Fanduel.  When I click this button, OddsJam automatically opens Fanduel in a new tab with the bet in my betslip.  While this tab is opening, I’m navigating on my phone (Sporttrade is only available in an app) to the Athletics moneyline.  Within a couple of seconds, I have both bets selected and am ready to place them.

I start by making sure that the odds that I was expecting are still available on both books.  In this case they are, so I enter $9999 on Fanduel, that way I can see what the maximum I’ll be allowed to wager is. Fanduel tells me I can bet up to $2,150 on this, which at -215 will win $1,000.  I adjust the bet size to $2,150 on Fanduel, and put in $990 on Sporttrade, and check to be sure that it will payout more than the $2,150 that I’m going to bet on Fanduel.  The amount to win on Sporttrade is $2,159.47, so I place that bet for $990.  As soon as it submits, I click submit on Fanduel as well, and viola!  I’ve placed my arb.

The profits

Let’s start with the actual profits from the bets.  In this arb, I’ve wagered a total of $3,140.  If the Athletics win, I’ll get a payout of $3,149.47, and if the Blue Jays win, I’ll get a payout of $3,150.  $3,149.47 – $3,140 = $9.47, so I’ve guaranteed myself a profit of at least $9.47 from the result of this bet.

Not bad for about 30 seconds of work!  Time to find my next arb to place.