Once you understand the concept of spread betting, it is actually quite simple.

The spread betting odds makers will take a view as to the likely outcome of something. For example they might believe that there would be between 10.5 and 11 corners in a particular football match. You then decide whether you believe that their estimate is too high or to low. So do you thing there will be more or less corners than their estimate.

The terms used are buy and sell. If you think their will be more corners then you buy corners, if you think that their will be less then you sell them.

If you are correct then you win.

However this where spread betting is different to conventional fixed odds betting in that how much you win depends on how correct you are.

Your winnings are calculated by multiplying your stake x the amount you are correct.

So in our example if there are 14 corners and you had staked £50 a corner you would win:

14 – 11 = 3 x £50 stake = £150

So it’s a bit like playing the price is right higher or lower!!

The way that the Spread Betting companies make a profit is by the use of a spread for their estimate rather than a single figure. So for the above example the spread is between 10.5 – 11 rather than just 11. So in a perfect world for them half their punters will sell and half will buy.