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Request-a-bet sports betting products indicate patterns of bettor preference and bookmaker profits

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Newall, Philip W. S., Walasek, Lukasz, Vázquez Kiesel, Rebecca, Ludvig, Elliot Andrew and Meyer, Caroline (2021) Request-a-bet sports betting products indicate patterns of bettor preference and bookmaker profits. Journal of Behavioral Addictions, 10 (3). pp. 381-387. doi:10.1556/2006.2020.00054 ISSN 2062-5871.

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Official URL: https://doi.org/10.1556/2006.2020.00054

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Abstract

Background and aims
Request-a-bet services are a modern gambling product delivered via the social network Twitter, which allow sports bettors to design custom bets. The public nature of Twitter data provided a unique opportunity to investigate patterns of bettor preference and the bookmaker profit margin in soccer, the UK’s favorite sport.

Methods
Two multi-method studies. Twitter users’ engagement with request-a-bet services was monitored unobtrusively (n = 1,406), meaning that potential patterns across users’ requests could be observed, and the bookmaker profit margin could be estimated. Twitter users were also surveyed directly (n = 55), providing self-report measures of request-a-bet usage.

Results
Twitter users requested bets with an average potential payoff of £56.5 per £1 risked (median = £9). Overall, 9.7% of requested bets paid-off, but these were mostly bets at short odds. This meant that requests yielded a high bookmaker profit margin of 43.7% (roughly eight times higher than current margins in conventional soccer bets), which increased to 74.6% for bets at longer odds. Requested bets also tended to involve star players from the best teams. Finally, 92.7% of surveyed Twitter users reported placing at least one bet via request-a-bet services (mean = 44.4 bets).

Discussion and conclusions
Researchers can use request-a-bet products to increase their understanding of sports betting behavior. Sports bettors should be given information about how much higher the bookmaker profit margin can be in modern sports bets compared to the conventional sports bets that they may be more familiar with.

Item Type: Journal Article
Subjects: B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BC Logic
G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GV Recreation Leisure
H Social Sciences > HM Sociology
H Social Sciences > HV Social pathology. Social and public welfare
Divisions: Faculty of Science, Engineering and Medicine > Science > Psychology
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH): Gambling , Remote gambling , Internet gambling , Sports betting , Probabilities, Social media
Journal or Publication Title: Journal of Behavioral Addictions
Publisher: Akadémiai Kiadó
ISSN: 2062-5871
Official Date: 5 October 2021
Dates:
DateEvent
5 October 2021Published
8 September 2020Available
18 August 2020Accepted
Volume: 10
Number: 3
Page Range: pp. 381-387
DOI: 10.1556/2006.2020.00054
Status: Peer Reviewed
Publication Status: Published
Access rights to Published version: Open Access (Creative Commons)
Date of first compliant deposit: 2 September 2020
Date of first compliant Open Access: 2 September 2020
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