A popular promotion with punters that bookmakers offer is giving out a free bet when your selection has been successful. This may seem fairly counterintuitive for most, but it’s something that a number of bookmakers offer.
You may think the reason behind this offer is to channel you into backing a certain outcome but actually most long standing free bets for winners offers are quite broad ranging in the markets that they apply to. Even the more specific offers of this type are generally triggered by quite popular markets or outcomes.
These offers are where specific bets, usually singles, qualify for a free bet when they win. More on the offer of winning accumulator bonuses can be found here.
Current Free Bets for Winners Offers
Below we show the current promotions available for winning bets. As always, please check those T&Cs before betting to see what sports or wagers these apply to.
On any UK or Irish race on Saturday 27th or Sunday 28th April, opt-in and back a winner at odds of 5/1 or greater and you can get a free bet up to £10 in value. Win singles and the win part of each way singles only. One per customer.
Common Rules & Terms
This is a fairly straightforward promotion but there will be a few key points to watch out for when reading through the small print.
- Qualifying odds – We go into more detail on this below however, there will be minimum odds to be met by your winning bet in order for it to qualify
- Markets – This is a popular horse racing promotion but may also be available on football or another sport. It could also be an all sports offer
- Stake level – It is likely that will need to wager a certain amount on the bet before being able to claim your free bet. There may be a minimum wager in order to qualify for these offers but they will be designed to benefit the majority of punters. There might also be a maximum stake that qualifies so be aware that if you fail to meet these criteria you might not be eligible
- Free bet value – The free bet that you can claim will be limited as well. This again could range from a set amount from the bookmaker, such as a £5 bet for all wagers or could reflect on your bet amount, for example a 100% match up to £50
- Bet type – Generally this offer will be for single bets but could also apply to winning multiples in specific promotions
- Timing – These offers will almost always apply to bets placed and settled on the same day meaning ante post bets are unlikely to qualify
How the Offer Works
The first thing that you need to be aware of is that your bet will need to have won for your to receive your free bet. An unsuccessful bet will not prosper from this offer and any promotion that hits your account will almost definitely be a free bet and not simply cash for you to withdraw immediately.
This type of offer won’t be available to any winning bet that you might place on a given day. It will probably apply to a particular event or sport and will usually have a minimum odds level for you to qualify. That said, some offers will be triggered by a winning bet on any sport as long as the minimum odds requirement is met.
Is This Offer Just for Horse Racing?
No, this offer may not just apply to horse racing and could be available on a range of other sports. There are long standing promotions which focus on horse racing but you may find that you can qualify for backing a winner on football, tennis or golf markets. Also, you could find a offer that gives you a free bet for backing almost any winner on site as long as you meet the criteria.
Why Are There Minimum Odds?
As we mentioned above, one of the key components to a ‘free bets for winners’ offer will be the minimum odds which qualify, as is the case for many bookmakers offers. This is because such offers are there to reward regular customers with an additional free bet when they have backed a winner. If there was no minimum requirement, bets could qualify from a heavily odds-on favourite winning and the offer could quickly become misused.
A standard benchmark for minimum odds for his promotion is 4/1, though this may be lower or higher. Free bet refund offers on losing bets will have much lower qualifying odds however the bookmaker will be keeping your stake, whereas here they will be paying you as a winner should you qualify, giving you the free bet in addition.
By way of an example, the table below gives a brief, if not complete, idea of which odds would qualify for such an offer if the level was set at 4/1.
Odds That Qualify for a 4/1+ Winner Offer
| Odds | Bet Qualifies? |
|---|---|
| 8/1 or greater | Yes |
| 15/2 | Yes |
| 7/1 | Yes |
| 13/2 | Yes |
| 6/1 | Yes |
| 11/2 | Yes |
| 5/1 | Yes |
| 9/2 | Yes |
| 4/1 | Yes |
| 7/2 | No |
| 10/3 | No |
| 3/1 | No |
| 11/4 | No |
| 5/2 | No |
| 9/4 | No |
| 2/1 or less | No |
As you can see, for this example which has a 4/1 threshold, bets at odds of 4/1 are included in the offer along with any odds greater than that level. Any bets at odds below 4/1, i.e. 7/2 or shorter, are not included.
Examples of Free Bets for Winners
To see how these offers could work in practise, we have a couple of scenarios to look at. The first offer involves backing a 4/1+ winner, the second involves a 3/1+ offer.
Free Bet for a 4/1+ Winner
For our first example, we’re going to look at a horse racing offer, crediting free bets for winners at odds of at least 4/1. For this, we’ve taken Qipco British Champion Day at Ascot on the 15th October 2022.
British Champions Day 2022
| Time | Winner | Odds | Bet Qualifies? |
|---|---|---|---|
| 13:25 | Trueshan | 11/8 | ✖ |
| 14:00 | Kinross | 3/1 | ✖ |
| 14:40 | Emily Upjohn | 3/1 | ✖ |
| 15:20 | Bayside Boy | 33/1 | ✅ |
| 16:00 | Bay Bridge | 10/1 | ✅ |
| 16:40 | Balmoral Handicap | 80/1 | ✅ |
The table above shows that none of the first three races qualify, however, all of the final three races could have qualified for a free bet if you had backed one of those winners.
Free Bet for a 3/1+ Winner
For a wider ranging horse racing offer which could offer a free bet for backing a winner at 3/1 or greater, we’ve looked at one of the biggest betting days of the year in Britain, Boxing Day, in this case on the 26th December 2021.
We have taken the winners from all eight meetings running in England that day – Kempton, Fontwell, Huntingdon, Market Rasen, Sedgefield, Wetherby, Wincanton and Wolverhampton on the all weather.
Out of the 55 winners that day, 36 (65%) won at odds of 3/1 or greater. This means that over two thirds of winners could have qualified for an offer of free bet for a 3/1+ winner.
Incidentally, had the offer been at odds of 4/1 greater on this day, almost half could have qualified. Of those races, 25 (45%) won at odds of 4/1 or greater.