This page sets out the rules the SportBetTime Editorial Team follows when it researches, writes, checks and updates articles. It is meant to be practical. If you read a guide on this site and want to know where a rule came from, how a payout was worked out or why a date changed, the answer should be here.
What a SportBetTime article should do
Every guide has one job: to explain a bet, a market or a sport clearly enough that the reader understands what will happen to their stake in each outcome. That means stating the rule, showing a worked example with real numbers, and pointing out where the rule varies between operators or competitions. We write in plain English and avoid hype. Words such as "best", "guaranteed" or "sure thing" do not belong in a betting guide, and you will not find them used as promises here.
Research and sources
We start from primary sources wherever they exist and treat secondary summaries with caution.
- Sports rules: the published rules of governing bodies and competition organisers, for example how extra time, retirements, abandoned matches or dead heats are treated.
- Betting rules: the general betting rules and market terms that licensed operators publish, which decide how bets are settled. Where these differ between operators, we say that they differ instead of picking one version and presenting it as universal.
- Law and regulation: official regulator and government sources. We describe the legal position in general terms only and do not give legal advice.
We do not invent figures. You will not find made-up bonus sizes, payout speeds, licence numbers, statistics, quotes or user reviews on this site. When a number depends on the operator, such as each-way place terms or a maximum payout, we explain the typical range, say that it varies, and tell readers where to check the current terms.
Checking the maths and the facts
Odds conversions, implied probabilities, accumulator returns and each-way payouts are worked out by hand and then checked a second time before an article goes live. For example, if a guide states that £10 at 5/2 returns £35, or that decimal odds of 1.80 imply a 55.6% chance, those figures have been recalculated by a second person or a second pass, not copied from the first draft.
Each article is reviewed by a member of the team other than the person who drafted it. The reviewer reads for accuracy first, then for clarity: does the example match the rule, does the text say where rules vary, and could a beginner follow it without already knowing the answer. Anything that cannot be confirmed from a reliable source is removed or rewritten.
How dates are shown
Each article displays the date it was first published and the date it was last updated. The updated date changes when we make a meaningful revision: a corrected example, a rule change, a new section or a rewritten explanation. We do not change the date just to make an old article look fresh, and we do not touch it for trivial edits such as fixing a typo.
Updates and corrections
Sports and betting rules change. Competitions alter their formats, governing bodies revise regulations, and operators update their settlement terms. We review our guides when we become aware of a change that affects them, and we revisit the most read articles on a regular basis even when nothing obvious has changed.
If we find an error, we fix it promptly and update the article date. Where a correction changes the meaning of a guide, for instance a wrong payout figure or a misstated settlement rule, we add a short note in the article saying what was corrected. We would rather admit a mistake than leave a reader working from bad numbers. If you spot an error, email contact@sportbettime.com with the page address and what looks wrong; more ways to reach us are on the contact page.
Independence and commercial content
SportBetTime has no bookmaker partners at present. No operator reviews, approves or pays for our articles. If we add affiliate links in the future, we will disclose them clearly on the pages where they appear, and they will not change what we say about odds, rules or risks. Our approach to future sportsbook reviews is described on the how we review page.
What we will not publish
Some content is excluded regardless of who asks for it:
- claims of guaranteed or risk-free winnings;
- advice on chasing losses or increasing stakes to recover them;
- ways to get around geo-blocks, account restrictions or regulatory controls;
- text copied from other websites;
- content aimed at anyone under 18.
Responsible gambling is part of the editorial standard, not an afterthought. Where a guide covers higher risk bets, such as long accumulators or in-play markets, we say so and link to our responsible gambling page. You can read more about the people behind these standards on the editorial team page.