Betting Syndicates Explained
What are betting syndicates and how do they work? In our guide, we tell you everything about pool betting and placing bets as a group.
What are Betting Syndicates?
Put simply, this type of betting involves two or more punters combining their resources and placing bets together - thus forming a syndicate - and increasing potential winnings. For example, it is very common among co-workers or friends to play the National Lottery together, combining their stakes and sharing the potential winnings.
In recent years, there has also been an increase in online betting syndicates, with experts making the most of their knowledge and deciding where to place the bets together - all chipping in for the total pot. While this online betting - often through private groups - falls under the syndicate umbrella, punters perhaps relate the word more to pool betting.
The National Lottery is the best example one can give, as already explained above, but punters will also find pool games on betting sites such as The Pools these days. Among other things, the site offers pool betting for football and one of the games even has a guaranteed jackpot of £3m. This is another common way for groups to place bets together.
Example of Syndicate Betting
As explained above, syndicate betting is when two or more players combine a certain stake into a total pot and then use said pot to bet on one or multiple outcomes. With pool betting, it is usually the latter and we can take BetMGM's Golden Goals as an example. In that game, punters must predict the final score for six games.
Getting all six scores correct triggers the jackpot, which is set at an impressive £2m, and it is shared among the potential winners. If no one gets all six scores correct, then a £5k prize pool is divided between those that had the highest amount of correct scores. Since BetMGM's Golden Goals is free to play, however, it is not the best recommendation for syndicate betting.
It would make a lot more sense for each punter in the syndicate to have a go at the game, but it could still technically be a syndicate if the scores are coordinated among the members to cover the bases. Horse racing is another popular sport for syndicate betting thanks to pool games such as Placepot, Scoop 6 and others.
Key Pool Betting Factors to Look For
When picking the online pool betting game that works best for you and your syndicate, there are three important things to double-check:
- Guaranteed Jackpot Prizes: If this is the case, you can get the full jackpot amount regardless of the total amount of contributions from other players.
- Consolation Prizes: Depending on the pool betting site, you can get consolation prizes if you come close to getting all the selections right. Check the specific game information to find out the consolation prizes for each one.
- Cash Out Option: On occasion, punters can sell all or part of their bet back to the site to guarantee a profit regardless of the outcome. Of course, your selections need to be winning or you have already won several legs.
Our Favourite Site for Syndicate Betting: The Pools
Anyone who has dabbled in pool betting before will likely know of The Pools, seeing as it's one of the best pool betting sites in the UK. From regular lottery betting to predicting football draws, the site has it all and generous jackpots as well, we should add. At least if we are speaking about online pool betting, this is probably the biggest site around.
Steven is an experienced iGaming content writer who has been working in the industry since 2018. He is passionate about sports betting and enjoys writing about all aspects of the industry, including bookmaker reviews, betting tips and strategies, and news and analysis.