Accumulator bets, or ‘Accas’ as they’re commonly known as, are one of the most popular bet types amongst both casual and pro punters. The main attraction to accumulators is that they have the potential to produce huge returns with relatively small stakes with many punters around the world having won life-changing amounts of money.
In 2013, a lucky punter at a well-known bookmaker placed a £10 bet on a six-fold horse racing accumulator and netted a whopping £986,807. Just shy of 1 million pounds! Another bettor who had luck on their side placed a ten-team BTTS & No-Draw acca which landed the individual £160,000!
There are countless other wins such as these on record which encourages others to take their shot with Accas on their favourite sports.
So, is there a way to win your accumulators?
Unfortunately, there’s no way to guarantee that your Acca will win. If there was, there would be a lot more millionaires in the world and far less bookies. However, you can increase your chances of making a profit over time using the tips we’ve provided below.
1. Do your research
You could simply pick a number of selections out of a hat and include them if your sports betting accumulator but it’ll be unlikely to come in. If you have a good knowledge of a sport, a team or a horse in a race, put it to good use and analyse each event you’re considering adding selections from.
There are usually several dozen football matches and horse races taking place each day around the world and so a huge amount of potential selections for your Acca. Put the time in to do your research and narrow down your selections.
There are many good resources available online for free which can help with this. Whether you’re looking at horse racing, football, tennis or any other sport, several websites have a huge amount of data on current form, missing players, past head-2-head results and much more. These can be a huge help when deciding on selections to add to your accumulator.
2. Check The Odds
Many punters place their accumulator bets with the same bookie every time and don’t put much consideration into the odds they’re offered. All they’re concerned about it whether their acca wins or loses. However, if your acca is going to win, would it not be best to get the biggest payout when it does?
All bookmakers don’t offer the same odds and sometimes, there can be significant differences between them. For example, take a look at the two sets of odds below:
Bookmaker 1 Odds
- Selection 1: 2.00
- Selection 2: 1.92
- Selection 3: 5.10
- Selection 4: 1.23
Bookmaker 2 Odds
- Selection 1: 2.15
- Selection 2: 1.99
- Selection 3: 5.78
- Selection 4: 1.35
At first glance, the odds don’t seem hugely different. However, let’s take a look at the combined odds of each accumulator.
Bookmaker 1
- Acca Odds = 24.09
Bookmaker 2
- Acca Odds = 33.39
Once the odds have been combined, it’s easier to see that there is a significant difference between them.
If you placed a £10 bet on the acca with Bookmaker 1, your returns would be £240.90.
However, if you placed the same acca with Bookmaker 2, your returns would be £333.90!
That’s a difference of £93!
There are many free odds comparison services available online which allow you to input the selections from your acca and they will tell you which bookmaker is offering the best odds for your bet.
Another factor to consider when looking at the odds is the value. For example, if Man Utd are expected to beat Chelsea every other time they play them, they’re true odds should be evens. If a bookmaker is offering odds of just ½ (1.5) then this bet does not have value. However, if a bookmaker is offering odds above evens, say 2.05, then it does have value and is a good bet in the long-term.
Determining whether a bet has value or not can be difficult in sports betting. A good guideline is to look at the odds on a betting exchange and if the bookmakers odds are quite close, you should be getting enough value to warrant your bet. Value bets are hard to come by with bookmakers ass the odds which they offer are generally slightly below the true odds as this is how they make a profit. However, occasionally you can find value bets or bets which are very close to the true odds.
3. Big Odds vs Small Odds
Picking selections with big odds can be tempting as they can result in the returns of your acca being boosted significantly if it comes in. However, remember that the likelihood of all your selections winning is significantly reduced when your selections have higher odds. You must decide whether you would rather have more winning accas with a smaller return or fewer winnings accas with bigger returns. There is no right or wrong choice when it comes to this and is simply a personal preference.
Other Tips For Picking Winnings Selections
Bet with your head, not with your heart
Many punters include their favourite football team or a horse named after something they’re fond of. However, this can often be a bad choice. Always do your research into your selections to determine whether or not they are a good bet based on the odds and the probability of the selection winnings.
Always check form & recent updates
Have there been any last minute injuries? Have the weather conditions changed? If so, these could play a huge factor in whether or not your selection comes in. If you’re quick enough and have enough knowledge about how these factors could affect the outcome, you could find yourself a value bet or save yourself from a losing selection.
