What is Profit? Profit Explained in 2 minutes
Jesse M. Cox Last Verified
19/04/2026
What is a Profit?
The profit is the money made from a successful bet. When calculating how much the pay-out will be if a bet comes in successfully, the initial stake should always be included, and the money which is over and above this initial state will represent the profit which has been made. In the event of an odds on bet being successful, the winnings will actually be less than the stake which was initially bet, but will still represent a profit on the bet overall.
How is Profit used in Sports Betting?
The following are examples of the kind of profit which can be generated through sports betting:
A single bet of £25 is placed on Liverpool to Beat Barcelona at odds of 16/1. If Liverpool go on to win the match, the pay out will be £425. Take the original stake away from this, and the profit left over will amount to £400.
An each way bet of £10 is placed on a horse which is running at 8/1. Because this is an each way bet, the stake will actually be £20. If the horse comes in first, then the pay out will be £120, of which £20 is the original stake. The profit in this case is made up of £80 for winning the race and a further £20 for placing, which in this case means coming in the first four. If the horse, on the other hand, comes in third, then the pay out will be just £30, because £10 of the stake will have been lost, and the other £10 will pay out at odds of 2/1 (the original odds divided by the first four places), leaving a profit of £10.
A more complex bet shows how large profits can be generated from small stakes. A £5 accumulator on four horses to win at odds, respectively, of 5/1, 10/11, 30/1and 2/1 would, if all four horses won, generate winnings of £5326.36, which is a profit of £5321.36.
