The most famous sort of sports betting out there is undoubtedly pre-game betting, where players place a wager on the outcome of a game before it begins based on a careful analysis of the teams or players playing and their respective records leading up to the game. It comes in several variations with moneyline and spread bets being the most common. 

There is another kind of sports bet, though, that is even more thrilling and that’s in-game betting. This sort of sports betting happens, as the name suggests, during the game with bettors betting on the outcome of the game as it happens. You’re probably familiar with the scene from an old movie: a bunch of stressed out telephone operators taking in bets quicker than they can manage as they come in down the line as the game plays in the background.

Well, these days, with the rise of mobile gambling, this process is largely automated and because it is so simple to place a bet as the game goes on just by clicking a mouse or tapping on an icon, it’s a form of sports betting that has only grown in popularity in recent years.

Whether you’ve tried it out before, there’s always space to improve your in-sports betting game, so here are three simple tips to help you reach the next level before the end of the year.

Improve Your Knowledge of the Game

This one should go without saying but you might think that unlike pre-game sports betting where you really need to do your homework on each team or player’s past record, when betting on a game or match in-play, all that you really need to do is watch the game. Not so. Though obviously knowing what’s going on during the game that’s currently in-play is most important, it’s still very much worth knowing the team and players’ strengths and weaknesses and overall performance throughout the season. 

The most simple example of this is if a team has shown a tendency over the entire season to play much stronger in the second half of a game and you aren’t aware of that fact, you might bet against them based on their performance during the first half only to be taken by surprise by them turning the whole thing around and emerging victorious by the game’s end. 

Improve Your Knowledge of Live Data Feeds

While understanding spreads and past performance data is crucial for pre-game bets, the most important part of live sports betting is the live data feeds that constantly update according to the latest odds, predicted outcomes and nuanced information in every aspect of the game, both in terms of the teams and the players. Being live it updates often and quickly so you need to master your ability to know exactly when to bet and what to make of the information streaming past you.

Gut vs Brain

The real trick when it comes to live, in-games sports betting is knowing when to trust the information flying by you on the live feed against what you feel in the gut. The cautious, responsible and currently favored approach is to mostly ignore the game that’s actually happening and base your decisions on a careful level-headed reading of the statistics provided by the live feed. It’s a smart, reliable and cautious approach that nonetheless removes much of the human element from the game. 

Frankly, unless you’re a professional gambler, betting this way leeches the enjoyment out of the game and there’s simply something to be said for feeling your way through a game rather than over-analysing everything. At the same time, you don’t want to rely only on your gut, especially if your gut has been letting you down of late. Ideally, it should be a mix of your gut and brain, feelings and thoughts, to really improve your betting game.

With these simple tips (at least simple to implement, if very difficult to master at times), there’s no reason why you shouldn’t massively improve your in-sports betting game before the new year. Consider it an early new year’s resolution!