Round Robin Bet Returns: How Your Winnings Are Calculated

A round robin returns money from ten separate bets, each calculated by its own formula. Knowing what those formulas are — rather than relying on a calculator or trusting the bet slip’s estimate — gives you the ability to check your own returns, spot settlement errors, and understand why two apparently similar round robins can produce wildly different payouts.

This article lays out the return formula for each component type: doubles, the treble, and SSA singles. It works through the maths in decimal odds (since that is what the formulas require) and then addresses the gap between gross return and net profit — the number that actually matters when you check your bank balance. Component by component, here is how your winnings are built.

Doubles Return Formula

A double combines two selections into one bet. Both must win for a return. The formula is simple multiplication.

Gross return of a double = Stake × Decimal Odds A × Decimal Odds B

If Selection A is priced at 3/1 (decimal 4.00) and Selection B at 5/2 (decimal 3.50), a £1 double returns £1 × 4.00 × 3.50 = £14.00. That figure includes your original £1 stake, so the profit from this double is £13.00.

A three-selection round robin contains three doubles, one for each pair: AB, AC, and BC. Each double is independent — the outcome of one has no bearing on the others. If two of your three selections win, exactly one double pays (the one linking those two winners). If all three win, all three doubles pay. If only one wins, none of them returns anything.

Total doubles return (all three win) = S × (D_A × D_B) + S × (D_A × D_C) + S × (D_B × D_C)

Where S is your unit stake and D_A, D_B, D_C are the decimal odds. This expression scales linearly with stake — double the stake, double the return. The odds are the only variable that changes the multiplier.

Converting fractional odds to decimal for the formula is straightforward: divide the first number by the second and add one. So 5/2 becomes (5 ÷ 2) + 1 = 3.50. If you are working in fractional odds throughout, the equivalent calculation is: return = stake × ((numerator_A / denominator_A + 1) × (numerator_B / denominator_B + 1)). The result is identical.

Treble Return Formula

The treble extends the double’s logic to three legs. All three must win.

Gross return of the treble = Stake × Decimal Odds A × Decimal Odds B × Decimal Odds C

Using the same example odds (4.00, 3.50, 5.00), a £1 treble returns £1 × 4.00 × 3.50 × 5.00 = £70.00. Profit: £69.00. This is the single largest payout any individual component of the round robin can deliver, and it is also the most fragile — one losing leg kills it entirely.

The treble’s return is always the product of all three decimal odds multiplied together, then multiplied by the stake. Because the multiplication is cumulative, small differences in odds compound. Shift Selection C from 4/1 to 5/1 (decimal 5.00 to 6.00), and the treble return jumps from £70 to £84. The same change adds only a modest amount to the doubles involving C. This is why the treble is described as the high-ceiling component: it amplifies variance in both directions.

In the context of a full round robin, the treble accounts for roughly 40 to 45 percent of the total return when all three win, though the exact share depends on the odds profile. With shorter-priced selections, the treble’s share diminishes relative to the doubles and SSA. With longer-priced selections, the treble dominates.

SSA Return Formula

SSA singles are conditional, which makes their return formula a two-step process. Each SSA pair (say, A→B) works as follows:

Step 1: If A wins, the profit from A is calculated: Profit_A = Stake × (Decimal Odds A – 1). From that profit, one unit stake is deducted and placed as a single on B.

Step 2: If B also wins, the second-leg single returns: Return_B = Stake × Decimal Odds B. The remaining profit from A — everything above the unit stake used for the second leg — is retained regardless.

Full SSA pair return (both win) = (Profit_A – Stake) + (Stake × Decimal Odds B)

In plain terms: leftover profit from the first leg plus the full return from the second leg. Using A at 4.00 and B at 3.50 with a £1 stake: Profit_A = £3.00. Deduct £1 for the second leg, leaving £2.00 retained. Second leg returns £3.50. Total from this SSA pair: £5.50.

If only A wins (B loses): The retained profit from A is Profit_A minus the stake used for the second leg: £3.00 – £1.00 = £2.00. The second-leg stake is lost. Net from this SSA pair: £2.00.

If A loses: No trigger. The SSA pair returns nothing. Loss: £1.00 (the original unit stake).

The reverse pair (B→A) uses the same formula but with B as the trigger leg. With B at 3.50: Profit_B = £2.50. Deduct £1 for the second leg, leaving £1.50. If A wins: second leg returns £4.00. Total: £5.50. The symmetry when both win is not a coincidence — it follows from the algebra. But when only one leg wins, the directional pairs yield different amounts because the odds differ.

Across all six SSA pairs, the total return when all three selections win can be expressed as the sum of six individual SSA pair returns. The formula becomes lengthy but follows the same two-step pattern for each pair. What matters practically is that the SSA component produces moderate, consistent returns — less spectacular than the treble, less binary than the doubles.

Research by Whelan and Newall, published in Applied Economics in 2025, found that the standard overround formula underestimates real bettor losses by 20 to 40 percent depending on the sport. For multi-component bets like round robins, where the overround compounds across every leg, this understatement means the true cost of placing SSA bets is higher than the odds alone suggest.

Net Profit vs Gross Return

Every figure discussed above is a gross return — the amount the bookmaker pays out including your original stake. Net profit is what remains after you subtract the total outlay.

Net profit = Total gross return from all winning components – Total outlay (£10 at £1 unit stake)

This distinction is critical because a round robin can generate gross returns that look healthy while still producing a net loss. If two of your three selections win and the returning components total £8.50, you have received money back — but you spent £10, so you are down £1.50. The bet slip shows a “return” of £8.50; your bank balance shows a loss.

The gap between gross and net widens when bookmaker margins are factored in. As Philip Newall and colleagues demonstrated in research published in Judgment and Decision Making, «complex bets generally carry odds that lead to a greater expected loss margin for the bettor» — with margins averaging around 5 percent on straightforward match-winner wagers but climbing towards 48 percent on multi-leg exotic constructions such as first goalscorer bets. A round robin’s ten components each carry their own margin, and those margins compound. The odds you see on the bet slip already reflect the bookmaker’s edge; the return formulas above calculate what you receive after that edge has been applied, not before.

For practical purposes, always calculate net profit rather than gross return when assessing a round robin’s performance. The question is not “how much came back” but “how much more or less do I have than when I started.” A round robin that returns £25 from a £10 stake is a £15 profit. One that returns £9 is a £1 loss. Both generated returns. Only one generated value.

Summary

Doubles multiply two decimal odds by the stake. The treble multiplies all three. SSA pairs follow a two-step conditional: profit from the first leg funds a single on the second, with the leftover retained. These formulas apply to every round robin regardless of the odds, selections, or sport.

The number that matters is net profit, not gross return. Subtract your £10 outlay from whatever comes back and you have your real result. Understanding the formulas, component by component, lets you verify the bet slip, set realistic expectations, and make an informed decision about whether the structure justifies its cost at the odds you are being offered.