The world of sports betting often seems like a parallel world to newbies. There are so many different expressions that the player feels lost at first.
Fortunately, this is only a momentary sensation, and as the player begins to learn a little more about this fabulous world, he quickly feels welcome and part of the community.
One of the terms that can be scary at first is what is known as lay, a very specific type of bet that is part of the daily vocabulary of sports trading fans, and that you can find in the sports betting glossary.
What really is the lay in sports betting?
Lay is a term that comes directly from sports trading. And, in simple terms, we can say that it refers to making a bet against a certain event. Who bets on lay is believing that this option will not be fulfilled.
Do you know the “Both Teams Score” market? It happens basically the same way, when you choose the option “no”, you bet that both teams will not score goals in that match.
In a lay bet you bet against the option, entering against a position within any market. By betting on a team, for example, you are saying that that team will not win the match: the other team will win or the match will end in a draw.
The lay concept is complemented by the back, which consists of betting in favor of a position within any market. Both the lay and the back are basic terms to understand what sports trading consists of.
The difference between sports betting and sports trading
This is a fairly common question among those who are beginning to study a little more about sports betting. In short, they may seem synonymous to those who still see this situation from the outside.
But the truth is that traditional sports betting, also called punter betting, and sports trading are two activities that are quite different from each other.
Starting with the place where they are made: a sports bet is made on a sports betting site, while sports trading can only be done on Betting Exchanges.
In traditional sports betting, the player bets against the site, which determines an odd that will be chosen by the player. If that bet is favorable, the player will receive at the end the amount bet multiplied by the chosen odds.
In the Betting Exchanges, the player will bet against other players, being the latter solely responsible for mediating between the two bettors.
The difference between back and lay
Now you will be thinking: but, how is it possible to bet against other players and not against the betting site? And to understand it you need to master the concept of both back and lay.
The back is the traditional bet that is made in any sports betting site, in favor of some event. In other words, you believe that this is really going to happen.
In a match between Manchester United and Liverpool, if you bet on Liverpool, you think they will win the match. If you bet on Manchester United, you think they will win, and if you bet on a draw, you think the game will end in a draw.
Lay bets are the other way around. If you lay a bet on Liverpool, you think they will not win the game. In other words, do you think Manchester United will win or will there be a draw at the end of the match? And so on, for all the options.
In simpler terms, making a back bet is betting in favor of an event, while a lay bet is the exact opposite; that is, betting against an event.
What does a lay bet look like in practice?
If betting on lay means going against the bet itself, imagine a match between Real Madrid and Barcelona valid for La Liga, the first division of the Spanish Championship.
A Barcelona lay bet means that you don’t think that Barcelona is capable of winning the match. Therefore, you will win if Real Madrid is the winner or if the match ends in a draw.
The opposite would be a back bet. If the same bet were a Barcelona back, it would mean that you really believe that Barcelona can win the match in question, without Real Madrid being able to win or ending in a draw.
Advantages and disadvantages of lay bets
It is always good to remember: all sports betting markets bring with them advantages and disadvantages, which will always suit the profile of one player better and not suit the profile of others.
The advantages of the lay are quite clear: it is a market in which the odds can be slightly higher than those of a normal bet. In addition, you have a good chance of winning, since you can count on two results in favor and only one against.
The disadvantage is that it is a more complex bet than the traditional ones, which requires much more study time on the part of the bettor.
In addition, liquidity can be a problem, since for you to bet against an event there must necessarily be someone to make the counterpart and bet on sports in favor of that same event with the proposed odds.