At Sporting Index we make predictions on various aspects of sporting or topical events. You then decide whether that prediction has been pitched too high or too low. What you then win or lose depends on the stake you choose and how right or wrong you are.


You'll notice that our predictions are presented in the form of two prices. This range is known as the 'spread' and you bet low (also known as a 'sell') at the first named price and if you wish to bet high (known as a 'buy') you would do so at the second price.

For example, if someone asked you to guess their age, you might say: 'somewhere between 35 and 40'. In the same way, when we make a prediction, we allow a range. If you were placing a spread bet on this prediction you would bet low at 35 years or bet high at 40 years.


With sports spread betting you are betting on the outcome of an event but the pay-out is based on the accuracy of the wager, rather than a simple 'win or lose' scenario, which is offered in fixed-odds sports betting. A spread is a range of outcomes, and a spread bet is whether the result will be above or below the spread.

In fixed-odds your potential winnings (and the amount you may lose) is fixed and known at the time the bet is struck. In spread betting, the amount you may win or lose will vary according to how right or wrong you are compared to our prediction. So unlike fixed-odds, the more right you are the more you win (and the more wrong the more you can lose).


Spread betting can be very rewarding and produce large returns on small stakes. Basically the more you're right, the more you win. However, the opposite can also be true - so the more you're wrong, the more you potentially lose. The profit or loss is determined by the difference between the final result and the price you originally bought or sold at.

For example, Sporting Index might predict that the first goal in a match between Chelsea and Manchester United will be scored in the 36th minute and consequently set a spread of 35-37 minutes.

One client who believes there is bound to be an early goal goes low (sells) at 35 minutes while another who thinks that both defences will be at their best goes high (buys) at 37 minutes. If the 1st goal is scored in the 25th minute, the client who went low at 35 minutes wins 10 times his stake (35 minutes take away 25 minutes = 10) while the client who went high at 37 minutes loses 12 times his stake. 


Spread betting with Sporting Index brings more exhilaration to live sport than any other form of sports betting. Here are just a few reasons why:

The majority of sports spread bets offer the attraction of potential big wins (but also potential losses) based on a multiple of your stake. No other form of sports betting comes close to offering this level of excitement.

Spread betting has a stigma of being risky, however this is misplaced. Like all forms of betting, it's only as risky as you want it to be. By controlling the size of your stake, you are controlling how much risk you are willing to take on. It's exactly like one bettor having a £2,000 fixed-odds bet on a team to win versus one who has £20 - it's all down to what you feel comfortable with.

Additionally, a Stop Loss account is a good way of controlling the perceived risk of spread betting. With this type of account, every bet you place has a maximum win and loss limit applied but again, it correlates directly with the stake you choose. That's the important thing to remember, it all comes back to the stake size. And as Sporting Index accepts stakes as low as £0.05 on some markets, we cater for all sizes of bet.

Unlike a fixed-odds bet where you have to wait for an event to reach its conclusion before receiving a payout, you have the power to take a profit on any spread bet as soon as it becomes available (or cut your losses).

While betting exchanges allow punters to hedge their positions by laying back their selections at skinnier odds, many exchange markets are not fast moving enough for this to happen, or lack the liquidity to allow you to do it in the levels you might require. There are no such limitations with us!

And of course with the ability to trade a bet in-play, if you see a bet is starting to go against you and you are no longer comfortable with your position, you can close out of your bet and take a small loss ' something you simply cannot do with a fixed-odds bet where you are stuck with the loss in its entirety.

Although many bookmakers are now offering more markets, it is spread betting that really provides the variety in modern-day sports betting. Here are just two examples of interesting bets in different sports which simply aren-t available through any other betting medium:

Football: Multi-Corners. This market is determined by multiplying the total number of corners in the first half by those in the second half (e.g. first-half corners - 5, second-half corners - 7 = 35). Punters who feel there will be very few corners in the first half with many more in the second will normally sell the predicted figure for multi-corners. This is a completely different alternative to any other corner bet available.

Horse Racing: Jockey Performances. If you fancy a jockey to have a good day then you can buy his/her performance, and vice versa if you think he/she will have a poor day in the saddle.

Spread betting was first to give the opportunity to bet on things not to happen, as well as individuals and teams performing well or badly. Where else can you bet on how well or badly Cristiano Ronaldo will play in a particular game? Or oppose favourites without nominating who will beat them?

By using our unique 'Multiples' feature, you can build your own customised bets. So you can pick two teams/players to take each other on in a mythical match bet regardless of whether they are actually playing each other. 


Some spread betting markets are more volatile than others. In football, a market such as total goals for a match rarely makes-up above 7 goals (in fact approximately 95% of such games have less than 8 goals). This is an example of a market which exhibits low volatility. At the other end of the scale, in a market such as cricket runs, your profit or loss can escalate very rapidly.

A high staking punter may bet £10 per run, which has a potential loss or win of about £2,000, depending on the eventual make-up. Yes, this appears a big bet but remember, the bettor knows it's a big bet and will be placing it because they are comfortable with this level of risk and the potential financial outcome. If you are not comfortable betting with this sort of stake you can bet on the same market for just 10p per run. At 10p your likely maximum loss or win is only £20.

So careful control is vital and we recommend four basic guidelines:

• Always remember that you may lose more than your original stake. By choosing a smaller stake size, you reduce your potential losses (and winnings).
• Recognise that some sports betting markets are more volatile than others (i.e. the final result could be a long way off from the original quote).
• Always work out what the realistic worst case scenario of the bet could be and relate it to the amount that you are prepared to stake. Also remember to check whether there is a maximum result that the bet can make-up (the 'maximum make-up'). You can do this on any market by rolling your mouse over the
  'i'
  icon alongside the market which gives you more information on each market.
• Where possible, keep a careful eye on the event on which you have placed the bet, and be prepared to cut a loss if the bet is going against you. You can do this by closing an open bet at any time. Our website keeps you up to date with the current profit or loss of any open positions you may have.

Additionally, with our Stop Loss account you can benefit from a cap on the amount that can be lost (and won). It is important that you familiarise yourself with our stop loss rules: they can limit your winnings, limit the size of the bet if it was to expose you to excessive risk, or in some instances cause a bet to be refused. You can also check out Stop Loss limits here for our most popular markets. 



Here are some handy additional tips to consider. Think of these nuggets as the 10 commandments of sports spread betting and they should stand you in good stead.

There will always be a percentage of surprise results in any sport, but it does no harm to check the statistics (or the 'form' as it is often called) and do your homework. Take a football game you are considering having a bet on. Have you checked the probable line-ups of both teams? Do you know what record the referee has with brandishing cards? And what is the history of a particular fixture - is one team the other one's bogey?

A muddy pitch and windy weather can equalise the skill levels between seemingly mismatched football or rugby teams. Cloudy skies can quickly give a fielding side the upper hand in a cricket game. Heavy ground may render the form book valueless in horse racing, and have a significant impact on winning distances. Some fair weather golfers only produce their best when the sun is shining!

If an event is live on television not only will we be offering our unrivalled in-running service with a whole host of great markets, but it also allows you to watch the action as it unfolds.

Try to keep in touch with the event you are betting on, and monitor the changes to our spread markets in running. Remember, if you are away from a PC and/or TV, you can always keep up to date with our latest prices by using our award winning 'Bet on the Move' mobile phone service.

It can be very tempting to close a trade that's going well for an early profit but leave one running that's going badly in the hope that things will get better. Always consider cutting your losses as well as taking a profit.

Imagine you had to price up a particular market. Would you go higher or lower than the prices on offer? You can then see if we have a difference of opinion from your original view.

Spread betting isn't just about how much one team will beat another by, or where a horse/golfer/driver will finish in an event. Get to know all the different markets and how they work as you never know when a Multi-Mules or Fat Lady might strike you as the value bet.

Always calculate how much your worst-case scenario could cost if your judgment turns out to be completely wrong. There is nothing worse than going high (buying) on the time of the first match goal in a game at around 40 minutes and then seeing someone score after 90 seconds. It does happen!

Don't be afraid to start small. You can get the hang of it all with stakes as low as 10p a point. Then of course as you build confidence and understanding you can increase your stakes to whatever level you are comfortable with.

Consider a Sporting Index stop-loss account where your downside and upside on any bet is capped.