Total matched on Betfair means the amount of money already traded in a market: the sum of every bet matched there so far. It shows how much business the market has done, not how much is waiting now, which way the money pushed the price, or whether the price is right.
What total matched shows, and what it hides
It shows how much has traded, a rough guide to how seriously a market is being bet, and where the money went, runner by runner. It hides four things:
- Money waiting now. Offers still on the ladder are liquidity, so a big total can sit beside little on offer.
- Direction. Every matched bet has a backer and a layer, so the total cannot say who was keener. Waiting money on each side is weight of money, with its own limits.
- The price. Money can trade at stale offers, so read the total with the last traded price and the current prices.
- Who bet. One $20,000 trade and 2,000 trades of $10 add up to the same figure.
An exchange may count each matched bet once, by the backer's stake, or count both sides, which doubles the figure. Its own help pages say which, so check before comparing figures from different sources or measuring a bet against the total.
Market totals vs runner totals
Each matched bet is on one runner, so the runner totals build up the market total. With illustrative figures for a six-runner race at the jump:
| Runner | Matched | Share of the market |
|---|---|---|
| Runner 1 | $9,800 | 13.7% |
| Runner 2 | $24,600 | 34.5% |
| Runner 3 | $15,200 | 21.3% |
| Runner 4 | $11,900 | 16.7% |
| Runner 5 | $6,400 | 9.0% |
| Runner 6 | $3,400 | 4.8% |
| Market | $71,300 | 100% |
Share = runner total / market total, so Runner 3 holds 15,200 / 71,300 = 21.3%. A share of the money is not a chance of winning. If Runner 3 is $6.00, its implied chance is 1 / 6.00 = 16.7%, so it drew more trading than its chance suggests.
How the total builds before the jump
The same race, earlier:
| Minutes to the jump | Market total matched | Runner 2 matched |
|---|---|---|
| 45 | $6,400 | $2,100 |
| 20 | $14,800 | $5,200 |
| 5 | $38,500 | $12,900 |
| At the jump | $71,300 | $24,600 |
By five minutes out, 38,500 / 71,300 = 54.0% had traded, so the other 46.0% arrived in the last five minutes. The shape is illustrative: how late a real race market fills varies by race and meeting, which pre-race trading works through.
The total puts a bet in context. A $500 back is 500 / 2,100 = 23.8% of everything matched on Runner 2 at 45 minutes, but 500 / 24,600 = 2.0% at the jump. Whether it moves the price depends on the money waiting at the prices it would take, so check the ladder first.
The matched amount on your own bet
On your bet, the matched amount is the part someone has taken. With illustrative numbers, ask to back $80 at $3.25, see $55 matched, and you hold a $55 bet at $3.25, worth 55 x (3.25 - 1) = $123.75 profit if it wins. The other $25 is an offer, not a bet, and at the jump it is dealt with by the setting on the order.
Exchange prices beside bookmaker prices
On the price side, the Terminal sets Betfair back and lay next to bookmakers' racing and sports prices, 40+ bookmakers in all, each read on a repeating cycle. B337 does not bet on the exchange. Bookmaker names are trade marks of their owners. B337 is not affiliated with them. The lay betting guide starts from the basics of backing and laying.
Risk: Betting involves risk. A busy market can still be wrong about a runner, a bet sized for a busy market can be too big for a quiet one, and there is no guarantee of profit. See responsible gambling for limits and support.