What Is A Double Bet?

A double bet combines two selections from two separate events into one bet.

It’s slightly more complex than a single bet but not as complicated as a bet builder or a multi-legged accumulator.

In simple terms, double betting is combining two single bets into one bet in order to increase the odds.

It’s a popular form of betting and is often used as a stepping stone to more intricate bets. It’s not as risky as the wider bets, but gives better odds than single bets, so it strikes a nice balance between the two.

So, let’s take a look at the different types of double bets you can place, how it differs with various sports, how to place a double bet, tips on placing double bets and where to find the best odds.

How Do Double Bets Work?

A double bet is when you place a bet on the outcome of two separate matches or events. In order for the bet to win, both outcomes need to land.

For example, if you bet on Horse A to win Race 1 and Horse B to win Race 2, it doesn’t matter if Horse A romps home, if Horse B fails to win, you lose the bet. And vice versa.

Double bets cannot be placed on the same event, they must cover different events, and they can also be on different markets. So, you don’t always have to choose the same market for each bet, however, they must both win for the bet to be triumphant.

The benefit of placing a double bet over two single bets, is that the odds are multiplied with a double bet, meaning you can get a bigger return. This is shown in the table below:

In the above example if you placed a £10 single bet on Arsenal to win at 1.83, you’d receive £8.30 profit. If you placed a £10 single bet on Manchester United to win at 2.50, you’d bag £15.00 profit. Assuming both teams won, your total profit for these two single bets would be £23.30.

However, if you combined them into a double bet, the odds get multiplied together (1.83 x 2.50 = 4.58) to give £35.80 profit - an increase of £12.50 profit.

Of course, the downside to placing the double bet is that if both results don’t come off, you lose your £10 stake. Whereas, with single bets you may win one and lose the other which would reduce the risk.

Example Of Double Bets

So, now we know the fundamentals, let’s take a look at a few other examples of double bets.

With football, double bets don’t have to be all about the result, you can mix and match the markets as long as they are from two separate matches or competitions.

Here’s a few examples of how you can place different double bets on different outcomes in football.

Double Bets In Different Sports

Because different sports have their own betting markets, you can choose from a wide range of double bets. Here are a few examples:

Horse racing – there are two main betting markets in horse racing, betting on a horse to win and betting each way for a horse to be placed. You can place double bets on both the win and the each way market. The each way market will reduce the payouts though.

Tennis – you can place double bets using a variety of combinations such as tournament winners, match winners, set winners, how many games will be played in a certain match, what the final score will be or how many aces will be served

Snooker – you can place double bets on several combinations relating to outright winner, match winner, correct scores, highest break, or how many 147’s there’ll be

Darts – you can use combinations including tournament winner, match winner, correct score, highest checkout, or how many 180’s will be thrown to create double bets

Boxing – you can place double bets on who you think will win two different bouts, or you might want to add in method of victory or what round it will go to

Cricket – double bets can be placed on tournament or league winner, match winner, top batsman, top bowler, runs scored or even who will win the coin toss in a couple of different matches

The great thing about double bets is that not only can you mix and match between markets within each sport, but you can also crossover the different sports.

For example, if I want to place a double bet on Liverpool to win the FA Cup and Carlos Alcaraz to win the US Open, then I can. Double bets really do allow you to widen your options immensely.

How To Place A Double Bet

Placing a double bet is fairly simple. All you need to do is select the two different bets you want to place and the bookmaker should offer you the option of a double bet.

Using the various menus on the bookie website, navigate to where your selections are, or just browse the various sports and events until you find two you like the look of.

When you find the first one, click on the odds and it will go directly onto the electronic betslip. Then simply go straight to your next selection and do the same. Both bets should now be showing on the betslip, with their odds beside them.

Underneath the bets, you will see a box with ‘1 x Double’ on it with the multiplied odds beside that. If you can’t see it immediately you may have to scroll down or select a drop down menu with a ‘multiples’ heading to find it.

Type the stake you want to bet in the ‘Double’ box, (being careful not to put this in the individual box beside each selection) and then confirm your bet.

Tips On Placing Double Bets

Although double bets are quite easy to do, you might want to follow these tips below to help you make your double bet selections.

Research/Stats

Knowing as much as you can about the markets you are going to bet on will always give you an advantage.

Whatever sport or sports you are placing the double bet on, it will help hugely if you have accurate and up-to-date knowledge. The amount of times I’ve placed bets on goal scorers only to find out they are injured is not even funny, so it's always best to do a bit of research beforehand.

There are many things to consider when placing double bets such as recent form for a team or player, whether they are home or away, whether the player plays well on that surface (tennis) or ground, whether there are any injury worries or suspensions, who is the penalty taker? What squad depth do they have? Is there a new manager?

All of these are examples of things that you can research and have knowledge of which will help you place more informed double bets.

Bet Boosts

Some bookmakers offer Bet Boosts on double bet outcomes, for example, Arsenal and Liverpool to win their games on Saturday.

When they do this, it usually comes with a slight increase in the double bet odds, so it’s worth looking out for to give you some extra value.

The purpose of the Bet Boost is to attract you to their site in the hope that you’ll choose to place other bets while you’re there. Obviously, there’s no requirement for you to do so though, so just grab the boost when it's offered.

Find The Best Odds

Betting comparison sites such as Oddschecker are a quick and easy way to see which bookies are offering the best odds on various markets.

Although you won’t be able to search for the exact double bet you want to place, you can certainly use it to find out the best odds on each of your selections separately. You can then make a decision on which bookmaker has the best combined odds for you to get the best value from your double bet.

Knockout Tournament Betting

Double bets are a fine choice when it comes to knockout tournaments in sports.

Think of a tennis event such as Wimbledon or a darts event such as the World Championships.

These events are seeded, meaning in the early rounds, the higher ranked players are matched up against lower ranked players. Often you’ll find very low odds on the tournament favourites to win their first matches, but you can place double bets to help increase the odds.

This is strategic use of the double bet, as the risks are minimal (unless there’s a shock early exit), and it’s a good way of multiplying your odds.

What Is The Difference Between A Double Bet And A Double Chance Bet?

A double bet is completely different to a double chance bet and they should not be confused.

In a typical football match, there are three potential outcomes – Team A wins, Team B wins or both teams draw. There is roughly a 33% chance of either outcome happening (if you take favourites out of the equation).

A double chance bet is when you cover two of the three options. The three options would be:

• Team A win or Draw

• Team B win or Draw

• Team A or Team B win (no draw)

A double chance bet, therefore, reduces the risk and increases your chance of winning to 66% but in return your odds and returns are lowered.

As we’ve already covered, double bets are a combination of two different selections from two different events and this involves increasing the risk and multiplying the odds. So, although the two bets sound similar, they are nothing alike.

Pros And Cons Of Double Bets

You will find advantages and disadvantages of placing double bets, so let’s take a look at a few of these below.

Pro’s

• Fairly easy to place

• Wide and varied markets to choose from

• Can multiply odds considerably to give big payouts

• Considered more likely to win than accumulator bets

• Can do research to help make predictions

• Can use bet boosts and odds comparison sites to get the most value

• Can be used strategically in tournament betting

Cons

• Lower odds than accumulators

• More risky than single bets

• Both elements need to win in order to be successful