Exchange: What does the term "lay" mean and what is a lay bet?
Betting against is placing a bet on something that you believe will not happen. For example, betting against Manchester United means that you DO NOT want the team to win. If you were to bet against the team, you would win the bet if they lost or drew the match.
With Betfair, you can not only lay any selection, but you can also choose how much you want to win and how much you are prepared to risk. The lower the price you are willing to lay, the less money you have to risk compared to the potential prize.
Examples:
Betting against a draw in a football match at 13.5 may seem safe, but for every R$40 you want to win, there is a risk of R$500, meaning the risk is high and the reward is small.
People bet against for a variety of reasons. Some people think it’s easier to pick a team that won’t win than one that will. Others bet against because they think the price is too low. Others will first bet against and then watch the same team live again – this is called trading.
Betting against someone may sound scary, but you have full control over how much you want to risk and how much you could win. When betting against someone, you always have the chance to win the amount of a different bet (i.e. $40 as shown in the examples above). You can bet against a single person or multiple people.
How to place a lay bet
Select a market, choose a selection you want to lay and click on the best lay price. In the following example you would lay Arsenal at odds of 9. The bettor's stake is R$40.
Your potential profit: R$40
Your potential loss: R$320
Your $320 risk is taken out of your balance sheet because it is your worst-case scenario. The payout will be $360 and includes the bettor's stake. If this bet is matched, there would effectively be a pot of $360 for someone to win. This amount corresponds to the $40 backer's stake and the $320 layer's stake.
If Arsenal win the tournament, you will have to pay out $320 to the winning customer. If any other team wins the tournament, you will receive $40 minus the commission. When placing a lay bet, you can only win the amount of someone else's bet.