A middle is an arbitrage situation that falls between a surebet and a regular bet. This only applies if the middle has a positive value, i.e. by doing the bet you will not lose.
It is a combination of two opposite bets that are placed on the same event. The difference from a surebet is that a middle will always have two bets, and both can win under certain conditions.
You can either win one bet and get the other bet refunded, or win both bets. A middle occurs when the '+' side is bigger than the '-' side or when 'Overs' is smaller than the 'Unders'.
An example of a middle:
Man Utd v Arsenal
Over 2.5 Goals @ 2.14 (Stake £48)
Under 3.5 Goals @ 1.96 (Stake £52)
If 3 goals or under, you win £1.92
If 2 goals or more you win £2.72
If exactly 3 goals you win £104.64 (£54.72 + £49.92) as both bets will pay out.
This is a positive middle as you get a payout even if the middle isn't hit. However, there is another side to middles which are called Polish Middles, Irish Middles or Negative Middles.
With these sort of middles, you would lose a small percent of your initial stake if the middle was not met.
An example of a negative middle:
Jamtland Basket v LF Basket
Over 175.5 @ 1.88 (Stake £51)
Under 176.5 @ 1.96 (Stake £49)
If the middle which is 176 points isn't hit you will lose either £4.12 or £3.96 depending on the result. If both bets win you would receive a payout of £91.92.
A negative middle is very similar to regular betting. You are willing to risk losing most bets, so that some of the middles will be met in order to receive a greater return.
A middle will normally occur if the following are met:
* Either bet has to win
* Bets should have an overlapping range of outcomes so that both bets could win
* The odds that are on offer allow you take advantage
The main thing that you should ask yourself if you find a middle (even more so if it is a negative middle), is it worth risking my money? It is a positive middle then you wont lose no matter what the outcome. With negative middles, if you bet blindly you will almost certainly make a loss in the long run.
I hope this post makes sense. I have added the following links which may be better at explaining Middles than this post:
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