Guide · 7 min read
Three-way arbitrage: 1X2 sure bets, double chance combinations and the overtime trap
Football, ice hockey and handball have a draw, so a sure bet on the match result needs three outcomes covered. This guide shows the classic 1X2 arb across three bookmakers, the two-bet combinations that cover the same three results, and the market mix-up that makes both bets lose.
Updated 22 October 2026
Contents
Why three-way sure bets are rarer and smaller
On a two-way market such as a tennis match, two bookmakers only have to disagree on one player each. On a 1X2 market, the best prices on all three outcomes together have to add up to less than 1:
S = 1/odds home + 1/odds draw + 1/odds away
S < 1 → sure bet
Three things make that harder:
- More margin in the market. Bookmakers spread their margin across three outcomes. For S to drop below 1, at least one bookmaker has to be clearly out of line with the market somewhere.
- The draw barely moves. Prices on the draw tend to sit close together across bookmakers. The room almost always comes from the home or the away price.
- Three bets, three things that can go wrong. Every extra bet is one more chance for a price to move, a stake to be cut or a bet to be voided.
If you are new to the 1/odds test itself, start with sure betting explained.
1X2 across three bookmakers
The direct approach: you back one outcome at each of three bookmakers, wherever that outcome's price is highest. The stakes are split in proportion to the reciprocals, exactly as with two outcomes.
Home win 2.45 at Bookmaker A, draw 3.70 at B, away win 3.55 at C.
S = 0.40816 + 0.27027 + 0.28169 = 0.96012, about a 4.2% return on the total stake.
| Outcome | Odds | Stake | Payout |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home win (A) | 2.45 | €255.07 | €624.92 |
| Draw (B) | 3.70 | €168.90 | €624.93 |
| Away win (C) | 3.55 | €176.03 | €624.91 |
If all three bets are accepted at these odds and stand, you are about €25 up whatever the result.
4% on a 1X2 market is unusually high. In practice three-way sure bets are usually well below that, and a figure like this is a reason to check every price twice. You can work out three-way stakes yourself with the arbitrage calculator.
Home win + double chance X2
Double chance "X2" wins if the match is drawn or the away team wins. Combined with a bet on the home win, it covers all three results with only two bets. Mathematically, it is a two-way sure bet:
S = 1/odds home + 1/odds X2
S = 0.40816 + 0.56180 = 0.96996, about a 3.1% return. On €500 you stake €210.40 on the home win and €289.60 on X2. Either side pays about €515.48.
The advantage: one account fewer and one bet fewer that can go wrong. The condition: both markets must be settled over the same playing time, in football normally 90 minutes plus stoppage time. "Away win + 1X" and "draw + 12" work the same way.
Draw no bet + draw: when it covers everything
With "draw no bet" (DNB) your stake is returned if the match ends level. Many people assume that DNB home plus a bet on the draw covers every result. It doesn't:
| Combination | Home win | Draw | Away win | Covers everything? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DNB home + draw | DNB wins | Draw wins, DNB refunded | both lose | No |
| DNB home + X2 | DNB wins | X2 wins, DNB refunded | X2 wins | Yes |
| DNB home + DNB away | home wins | both refunded | away wins | Yes (two-way) |
DNB home plus X2 is a sure bet when 1/odds DNB + 1/odds X2 is below 1. If you split the stakes so that the home win and the away win pay the same, the draw pays a little more, because you also get the DNB stake back there. DNB home is the same bet as Asian handicap 0.
Ice hockey: regulation time versus overtime
Ice hockey has two kinds of match-winner bets, often listed side by side:
- 1X2 (three-way): settled after 60 minutes of regulation time. If the score is level then, the bet on X wins, even though overtime follows.
- Match winner including overtime and shootout (two-way): whoever wins the game in the end.
You back the home win in the 1X2 market at Bookmaker A and the away win including overtime at Bookmaker B, because the two prices together look like a sure bet. It is 2–2 after 60 minutes and the home team wins in overtime. The 1X2 bet loses (it was a draw after 60 minutes), and the away-win bet loses too. Both bets are gone.
Games level after 60 minutes are common in ice hockey, in Austria's ICE Hockey League as much as in the Slovak Extraliga, where Slovak bookmakers offer a particularly wide range of markets. Only ever combine markets of the same kind: 1X2 with 1X2 (or double chance over regulation time), match winner including overtime with match winner including overtime. The same care applies to cup handball and to football knockout ties with extra time, where some markets are "to qualify" rather than "result after 90 minutes". Our guide to arbitrage betting by sport covers the rules sport by sport.
Money across three accounts
A three-way sure bet ties up money in three accounts at once. In the example above you need €255 at A, €169 at B and €176 at C, and exactly when the prices line up. If one of the three has too little balance, you either skip the sure bet or play it with a smaller total.
- More accounts, less in each. If you want three-way sure bets, spread your money across more bookmakers. That lowers the amount sitting with any single one.
- Minimum stakes and limits. The smallest bet is usually the draw or the outsider. If a bookmaker cuts exactly that stake, the sure bet is out of balance.
- Two bets instead of three. Double chance combinations need only two accounts and are often easier to execute when the prices fit.
How to split a bankroll across accounts is covered in the bankroll guide.
Before every three-way sure bet
- Same playing time in every market (regulation time, or including overtime)?
- Same rules for abandoned and postponed matches at every bookmaker?
- Enough balance in every account involved?
- Betting fee included if a bookmaker passes it on in Austria (see Austria's betting fee)?
- Place the most fragile price first, usually the one furthest from the market.
Frequently asked questions
Can you cover 1X2 with double chance?
Yes. A home win plus double chance X2 covers all three results with two bets. It is a sure bet when 1/odds home + 1/odds X2 is below 1 and both markets are settled over the same playing time.
Why are three-way arbs riskier?
Because three bets have to be placed at three bookmakers. Each one can move in price, be cut or be voided, and the margins are usually smaller than on two-way markets.
How many accounts do I need?
Three for a classic 1X2 sure bet, two for combinations with double chance or draw no bet. Each account needs enough balance at the right moment.
Does overtime count in ice hockey?
Not for 1X2: that is settled after 60 minutes of regulation time. For the match winner including overtime and shootout, it does. Never combine those two markets.
Sources
- Regierungspräsidium Darmstadt: permitted ice hockey betting markets (regulation time and including overtime) (in German)
- IIHF: Rules and Regulations (playing time, overtime, shootout)
As of October 2026. Bookmakers' rules, odds and offers change; their current terms and betting rules always apply.
Betting involves risk, even with sure bets: prices move, bets get voided, accounts get limited. Only use money you can do without. Our responsible gambling page lists free help in Austria and Germany.
Information, not betting, legal or tax advice. 18+.