What Is Ante-Post Betting?

Ante-post bets are risky but come with big rewards, which basically sums up gambling, of course. However, with an ante-post bet, this is emphasized even greater as all you’re effectively doing is betting on a race/horse before the market is opened, so the chances of winning are slimmer and your bet will not be voided if they fail to run, unlike if you bet online.

Of course, this means more money and bigger odds if you win, even if it’s on the favorites. Here, we will touch on the positives and negatives of an ante-post bet.

Positives of Ante-post betting on horse racing

As the negatives of an ante-post bet are relatively easy to understand, such as lack of a refund, the positives are also clear as day! Ultimately, you will get a greater price on the favourites on the day if you bet on them before the market opens, so if you are planning on backing the favourite as you’re certain they will win, doing so on an ante-post bet is a popular method.

Negatives of ante-post betting

The negatives on an ante-post bet are relatively clear. Firstly, your bet will not be refunded if your horse does not run as the market is not open and you’re also, in a way, backing that horse to also run.

Secondly, you may not know that much about the race that is coming up and you could subsequently be betting on something without greater knowledge and research.

Ante-post bets can be backed around many races around the UK such as the days at Cheltenham Festival, the Grand National and Royal Ascot. Ultimately, many bookmakers will offer ante-post markets throughout both the flat and jump season, so it’s a good idea to sign up to a few bookmakers, get some free bets, and keep your options open for ante-post bets.

Most bookmakers will offer ante-post bets as they are a popular market. The likes of bet365, Sky Bet and more all offer them, and you can sign up with these bookmakers for ante-post bets right here. Some bookmakers may not offer them, but more often than not, you will be able to back ante-post bets anywhere you go.

The Betfair Exchange is another popular way of betting on the ante-post markets as they offer good value and bets can trade out of them for profit before the off. The Betfair Exchange can be a way for punters to get better odds on many different markets and sports, and this is no different for an ante-post bet.

• Ante-post bets are accepted all in run or not. Your stakes are lost on an ante-post bet if a selection does not take part
• Cashouts, as a result, are also not available
• If, however, a race is postponed to another day then the bet stands
• All each-way doubles, trebles, etc., are settled win to win, place to place
• Ante-post bets are settled at the price and place terms applicable at the time of acceptance
• Place only bets and forecast betting are not accepted at ante-post odds
• Where the same selection is backed to win two or more ante-post events in an accumulator bet, a unique price will apply regardless of any individual odds

Ante-post betting doesn’t just apply to horse racing betting and is actually a very popular way bettors play in an attempt to get the best odds. For example, in golf tournaments, you will see punters place ante-post bets on the winner of a tournament before it has started, such as USA to win the Ryder Cup months in advance.

Also, football punters on ante-post bets will be betting on the outcome of the season before it starts, such as Liverpool to win the Premier League or PSG to win the Champions League. This is an extremely popular type of football betting for most punters before each season commences.

Reality TV betting also has ante-post betting, where you can bet on the winner of a reality show before the lineup is announced, or furthermore, bet on the actual participants of the show itself before that is confirmed.

There are many, many ways to bet on the ante-post market and they apply for a bunch of sports.