How to bet on horse racing

'The Sport of Kings', horse racing has existed in some form or another for more than 2,000 years, dating back to the days of ancient Greece.

While horse racing became more popular in Britain the 18th century, the addition of three classics (to the already-contested St Leger and the Epsom Derby) - the Epsom Oaks, the 1000 Guineas and the 2000 Guineas - increased its popularity further.

Central to most horse racing throughout history has been people willing to place a bet on the outcome of a race; a practice that still continues today in a variety of forms.

We look at the basics of how to bet on horse racing below, as well as the different types of bets you can place.

Each-way betting

While some races can be particularly difficult to pick a winner - the Grand National for example has had 40 entrants with the favourite priced bigger than 10/1 - most races give bettors the option to place an 'each-way' bet.

In essence, this is two separate bets: a bet on the horse to win, and a bet on the horse to 'place'. The place terms are typically dictated by the number of runners in the race, and it means that if your horses fails to win the race, but finishes high in the field, you can still get a return.

For example, if you have a £1 each-way bet on a horse priced at 20/1 in a race where the place terms are 1/4 odds, 5 places, and the horse finishes between second and fifth, your win bet will lose, but your place bet will win. The way to calculate this is multiply your stake (£1) by the odds divided by the place terms (20/1 divided by 4, so 5/1 in this instance). You will also receive your stake back for the winning part of this bet, so your returns would be £6.

Forecast/tricast betting

While some races are difficult to find winners in, others are more straightforward, with a short-priced favourite not always offering a particularly attractive betting proposition.

If you think you can pick out the first two horses in a race (either in the correct order or in any order) or even the first three, you can select a forecast or tricast bet, where you select the horses you think will come first and second (and third for a tricast), select whether you think they'll finish first and second in that order or in any order and place your bet.

Not to win betting

Picking out a winner on the horses can be difficult, so picking out a horse that won't win should be easy, right? Of course, things are never that simple, but if there's a horse that's well fancied to win and you fancy going against the grain, you can win by betting on horses to lose.

Betting without favourite

Some races have a short-priced favourite. Let's say you think that horse will win, but you don't want to back it at the odds. You have the option of betting without the favourite, which is a separate market and priced up differently, so if the favourite does win, your bet rolls on as normal.

Race/horse winning distance

Another way of enhancing your price can be betting in the winning distance markets. Perhaps you're unsure which horse will win, but you're anticipating a close race. You can often bet on the winning distance of the race being under a certain amount of lengths.

Alternatively, if you think that a particular horse will not just win, but win well, you can bet on that horse to win by certain winning distances.

Place betting

Each-way betting gives bettors the chance to place two separate bets, that can act as a bit of insurance if a horse doesn't win. If you don't want to place a bet on a horse winning at all, however, you can simply bet on a horse to place.