Ante Post Betting Guide

Ante post betting is betting on an event before the event takes place. These markets are available weeks, months or even years before the event. The term is usually associated with horse racing and greyhound racing but there are ante post markets available for a number of popular sports.

The term has its origins in horse racing, literally meaning before the post i.e. a bet placed before the horses were at the post. Traditionally, ante post markets were only available for major horse races such as the Grand National or the Gold Cup but now it is available across most sports.

Why is Ante Post Betting Popular?

Ante post betting, also known as Futures betting, is very popular with experienced bettors. The main factor behind this is the boosted odds. The ante post markets allow punters to back their selection at the best price for them. The futures markets generally have bigger prices because there are so many variables that can ruin your bet between the bet being placed and the event taking place.

In horse racing, the most common threat to your bet is horse withdrawal or injury. There is no non-runner reduction factor applied to the horse racing markets. This means that if the horse you backed is not in the race you don’t get your money back. Non-runners are counted as losers. On rare occasions you will see bookmakers offering ‘non-runner no bet’ and ‘non-runner free bet’ on some of the major races. This means that if your ante post selection fails to run, your stake will be refunded or a free bet will be applied to your account for the same stake. However, this is rare and usually only applies to major races like the Grand National or the Cheltenham Gold Cup.

Again, with higher risk comes higher reward and the ante post odds are significantly higher than ‘day-of’ odds. If you feel you know the markets better than the bookies then ante post betting is the way to go.

Ante Post Betting in Other Sports

As has been noted, futures betting is no longer confined to horse racing, it’s very popular in other sports too. There is  similar risks involved here too. The teams/players you bet on in a certain event may not even participate. For example, betting is available now for the 2025 World Cup in Qatar. At the moment only one team have qualified, the hosts Qatar (they are 100/1 with Ladbrokes by the way). France and Brazil are joint favourites at 6/1. There is a chance, albeit slim,  that neither of these teams will even make it to Qatar. It’s very hard to predict the form and quality of a football team five years in advance. The most recent FIFA U-20 World Cup Winners, Ukraine, are listed at 150/1.

Ante post betting is very common in football accumulator betting. Punters place bets on league winners and top goalscorers before the season starts. These bets are popular due to their long-term interest. Elsewhere, futures betting is available on a whole host of other sports including golf, tennis and athletics. You can also place bets on political markets such as the 2025 U.S Presidential election.

Changing Odds

Ante post odds will change over time. The markets react to events relating to race or tournament. This is particularly true in horse racing. Many of the larger races have feeder races. These races are run in similar conditions to the main event to give the trainer an idea of how his horse is performing. The biggest changes in odds will come off the back of these races. It has been known for horses to go from being unlisted to one of the race favourites after a victory in a feeder race.

This is mirrored across all sports. Betting on major events will change depending on circumstances leading up to the event. For example, after Tiger Woods won the Masters earlier this year (his first Major win in 11 years), his odds for every other major significantly shortened. He’s now priced as short as 9/1 with some bookmakers to repeat his Masters victory in 2025. Similarly, the odds in the aforementioned 2025 World Cup market will significantly change depending on the nations’ performance in their continental tournaments e.g. EURO 2025.

Where to Bet?

Not all bookmakers will have all the ante post markets you want. You may need to look around and check to see if the market you want is available with your chosen bookmaker. A sportsbook should have an ante post or futures tab in each sport with all the markets available.

We have a great range of bookmakers for you to bet with which you can see below. We have also reviewed each bookmaker listed on our site including information on what markets they have available. You can view those here.

Keep an eye out on jwbetting over the coming weeks as we will be providing with you tips for a number of ante post markets.