Betfair and their ‘Betting Exchange’ have drastically expanded how you can bet on the Melbourne Cup. We’ll explain how an exchange betting site like Betfair compares to a more standard bookmaker so you can take full advantage ahead of the Melbourne Cup.
Betfair Horse Racing Overview
Betfair launched in the UK in 2000 before expanding into Australia and quickly establishing an excellent reputation. The key differentiator is that they’re an exchange betting site. That gives you the option to bet against other Melbourne Cup punters instead of the bookmakers themselves. You also have the opportunity to place money on a Melbourne Cup horse to lose, known as a ‘lay’ bet. The exchange can be daunting for newer bettors, but it’s very easy to get the hang of. If you prefer, you can use Betfair like a normal Melbourne Cup betting site.
| Criteria | Betfair Melbourne Cup |
|---|---|
| Offers for existing customers | Visit Site |
| Streaming | Live Stream available |
| Odds | Odds compare favourably with other betting sites |
| Live Betting | Live Betting is available* |
| App | App available to download from Play Store and App Store |
| Register account and bet |
*Please note: due to the Interactive Gambling Act in Australia, any form of live betting cannot be conducted online. Play betting can only be conducted via telephone.
How to Sign-Up with Betfair for Melbourne Cup 2024
Follow these steps to open your Betfair account so you’re ready for the Melbourne Cup. The sign-up process couldn’t be much simpler, but you can follow our guide below to help you through it.
1. Start the Betfair Melbourne Cup sign-up process by using the link below. This button will take you directly to the Betfair registration landing page.
2. Once on the Betfair registration page, you must enter your personal details.
3. Tap through to the second part of Betfair’s sign-up process to set your secure password. Then, decide whether you’d like to add deposit limits to your account.
4.Once you’ve joined Betfair, you can deposit immediately or wait until you’re placing your first bet.
How To Bet On Melbourne Cup 2024 With Betfair
One of the most exciting parts about Melbourne Cup day is making a bet on the horse you think will win. You can follow these steps to make a Betfair Melbourne Cup wager:
1. First, sign in to your new Betfair account using your username and password
2. In the run-up to the Melbourne Cup, Betfair will have a banner link to the odds on their homepage. Alternatively, the Betfair Melbourne Cup odds are on their Racing page.
3. Once you’ve found this year’s Melbourne Cup horses, you can add your picks to your betslip. If you are using the Exchange, choose the odds surrounded by a blue square to back a horse to win. If you think a horse will lose, lay the horse by using the odds in a red square.
4. Enter your stake. If you’re ‘Laying’ a horse on the Betfair Exchange, look out for the liability box, which tells you how much you’d lose if your bet doesn’t win.
5. Once you’re happy, press’ Place Bet’ and get set for the race ahead.
What do other bookmakers offer for the Melbourne Cup?
- Bet on the Melbourne Cup with bet365 – What does bet365 Offer?
- Bet on the Melbourne Cup at Ladbrokes – What does Ladbrokes Offer?
- Bet with Unibet on the Melbourne Cup – What does Unibet Offer?
- Bet on the Melbourne Cup with betr – What does Betr Offer?
Betfair Melbourne Cup Betting Markets
Because Betfair is an exchange rather than a fixed odds bookmaker, the two main Melbourne Cup betting options open to you are win bet or a place bet. You can switch between the two options once you’re on the Betfair Melbourne Cup betting page, depending on your preference.
Win
Betfair’s most popular Melbourne Cup market is the win. Here, customers need to stake their money on the selection that they believe will cross the line first. Returns are awarded if the selection wins the Melbourne Cup.
Place
Bigger priced horses in the Melbourne Cup often run well but you may not want to go all-in on them winning the race when the payout for finishing in the top three or four places is still generous. If you make a place bet on a horse with Melbourne Cup odds, the selection must finish in a position determined by Betfair to get a return.
Betfair Melbourne Cup Odds
Betfair offers a range of odds for the markets that are offered. The biggest difference in odds that customers should be aware of is the difference between ante-post prices and standard prices.
The ante-post Betfair Melbourne Cup prices are far more competitive, and this is the market to get the best value. However, unless it is stated, customers could lose their wager should their selection not run in the Melbourne Cup.
What are the different odds?
As one of the leading sportsbooks online, Betfair understands that all customers are different. One of the ways that this is shown is by the fact that they allow players to change the layout of odds. When you first land on the page, all the odds are in the fractional layout. However, this can be changed at the bottom of the page to the decimal format.
What to be aware of?
Before making a bet on the Betfair Melbourne Cup odds, customers should understand how the different odds work. Fractional odds are the most straightforward to understand.
The number on the left is how much you will get from the number on the right. For example, if the odds are 10/1, then you will get $10 in returns from a $1 wager.
However, you will also get the stake back, so you will get $11 in returns. Decimal odds already take into consideration the returned stake. Therefore, the odds would be 11.0 for the same selection.
Betfair Melbourne Cup Live Streaming
There is an excellent live stream service available at Betfair. Customers can stream the Melbourne Cup action on their device after making a bet. The live stream is an excellent way to watch the race if you’re not at home on the day. However, it is encouraged that you connect to Wi-Fi, as this is the best way to ensure you’ll get high quality stream.
Betfair Melbourne Cup 2024 FAQs
Yes, Betfair is fully licenced to operate in Australia, meaning you can use them for your Melbourne Cup bets, knowing your money will be completely safe.
Yes, and the choice of Betfair horse racing markets is almost endless. Once you’ve signed up, you can bet on racing action from across the globe.
Betfair customers can wager on Melbourne Cup horses in the win, place, each way and forecast betting markets.
The Betfair Exchange allows you to bet against other punters instead of Betfair themselves. As Australia’s only betting exchange, Betfair has become extremely popular with more experienced racing bettors. If you think you know how they’ll run, you can ‘back’ or ‘lay’ any Melbourne Cup horse on the exchange.
The Betfair Melbourne Cup odds will fluctuate right until the race gets underway but, at the time of writing, it looks as though Vauban could set off as Melbourne Cup favourite for the second year in a row. The other horse currently vying for favouritism is Jan Brueghel, an unbeaten youngster travelling all the way over from the northern hemisphere.
