Interview with Ian from The Footy Tipster

I have decided to start interviewing some of the best tipsters on the internet to get their thoughts on various things relating to online football betting. Who best to start off with than our very own Ian!

Ian is the brains behind all the tips that appear on The Footy Tipster and works tirelessly every day to make sure that you get your fill of free and paid tips!

Toby – For people who don’t know you could you give us a quick background into who you are?

Ian – Well, I don’t honestly know how to answer a question about my background. I’m a bit of a workaholic, I guess you could say. I juggle a number of jobs and simply never have time to be bored. I like to travel, watch/play/bet on football, occasionally pursue interests (e.g. languages, philosophy, psychology etc.) and sometimes just shoot pool in the local with my best mate. Not a lot of other areas of my life get attention because of the way I am so I don’t think there’s a lot of point in writing more than I already have on this one!

Toby – How long have you been a tipster for?

Ian – I’ve been a tipster for 5-6 years now, I guess? Maybe longer.

Toby – During your time as a tipster have you noticed any weird changing trends in the world of online football betting?

Ian – The most fascinating trend to me has always been the people who just bet on statistics. It’s crazy! Statistics are superb for supporting a bet but if you’re using them to formulate a bet then you’re doing it wrong! Start with knowledge and support with statistics.

Toby – What does an average betting day look like for you?

Ian – An average betting day? I don’t really know. I tend to just watch games and bet if anything stands out in-play. Sometimes there are good bets to make and sometimes there aren’t.

Toby – What tools do you use to help you make the right choice?

Ian – The only tools I use are in my head. I have plenty of support from locals around the world but I make the decisions, nobody else. That’s how it has to be, in my world. I tip when I think there’s a good reason to do so and when I can substantiate it; the rest only supports what I think.

Toby – If you had one tip you could give to our readers about football betting in general, what would it be?

Ian – See above! You have to have knowledge of the game before betting. You can’t walk into this world and say “Team X always wins at home so bet on them to win at home”. It’s imperative to understand why they regularly win at home (turf? support? pitch size? it doesn’t have to be quality that does it!) before betting on them to beat someone else there. You could train a monkey to identify which bets make sense statistically but it takes a good tipster to find a tip and explain it.

Toby – What have you found most challenging about doing a tipster service online?

Ian – The most challenging thing I’ve found about being an online tipster is people, ironically enough. It never ceases to amaze me how little people understand in terms of the work and effort that goes in behind the scenes. Both Toby and myself rearrange our personal/social lives to fit in around TFT being updated. I do not get a break from this line of work; ever! The number of people that will idly dismiss your work with a few poorly-chosen words is staggering, though.

Toby – Who do you support? Do you let your love for them effect your betting?

Ian – I’m an avid fan of Manchester United and a massive enthusiast of Athletic Club de Bilbao. Do I feel I am biased? No. I know when my teams are playing well and when they’re not. I’m a very realistic fan, to be honest – it’s just something I’ve always been good at. I don’t get blinded by my team’s colours. If they don’t play well then they don’t play well!

Toby – If there is one thing you could change about football what would it be?

Ian – I’d make it so I could watch all the games that I want to rather than adhering to some media maniac’s wishes!

Toby – Thank you so much for this, is there anything else you would like to add?

Ian – Yeah, there is one thing I’d like to add; boobs. I just want to say that again; boobs. (If you know where this quote has come from then you get a brownie point!)

Thanks so much to Ian for taking the time to answer my silly questions! If you work as a football tipster and either have your own site or work for someone and would like to be interviewed, please get in contact with Toby :-)