THE Cheltenham Festival this year will be held between Tuesday, March 13th and Friday, March 16th. The race is usually one of the most anticipated events in the world and it also causes a lot of traffic in betting sites. The first day of the event is a favorite of many punters with the Champion Hurdle, the Supreme Novices Hurdle and the Arkle Chase forming a series of major betting heats.

The Queen Mother Champion Chase is usually the major event of the second day. The third day of the competition is dominated by Stayer’s Hurdle whose popularity with the punters has been experiencing an upsurge in the last few years. The major event, the Cheltenham Gold Cup, is usually held on Friday, the last day.

Due to the attention that this festival attracts, several media platforms have promised to go out of their way to ensure that we can follow the events as they unfold. If you cannot make it to the Cheltenham Racecourse in Gloucestershire spa town, you need not worry. ITV will be having live coverage of the first five races for all the four days that the event will be happening. In addition, you can stream the races online or even get the results through BBC.

The tickets to the event are available at the Cheltenham Racecourse website. Over the four days, it is estimated that over 260,000 people pass through the gates and this is just a tip of the iceberg since there are many other people who follow the event from their homes.

There are many favorites this year and choosing which horse to stand behind with your money can be a little confusing, especially in the Gold Cup. Sizing John is one of the most promising horse this year and he is 9/2 with Betfair. Another horse that is on most people’s tongues, with regards to Cheltenham Festival betting, is Might Bite. Having performed exemplary well in the previous races, he is definitely a candidate for the top three positions.

He is 13/2 with Betfair. Several betting sites have given Yorkhill 8s and Thristle Crack 12s. At the 888sport, Bristol De Mai is given 12s and Native River is at 14/1.

Even as you analyze the horses, it is important that you also put the bookmarkers into consideration to ensure that you get the best value for your money. Paddy Power, for instance, is offering to refund on any first bet lost up to £20. If you are looking to open a new account, then you should really consider this site.

With Ladbrokes, you are required to enter ‘F50’ as the Promo Code when registering and place a bet worth £10 or more and you will receive a free bet of up to £50. Again, you can check out Coral which is promising £30 in free bets for every initial bet of £10 placed.

Betfred and BetVictor have a sign-up offer of £30 and £40 respectively. There are many other bookmarkers out there and it is up to you to decide which one to pay a visit.

In addition to free bets, you also need to consider other ante-post betting offers. The most popular one is the non-runner money back offer and you should go for those platforms that have it like Paddy Power.

This offer simply means that in case the horse you had placed your money on is pulled out of the race, you receive a refund of the amount you had placed.

During last year’s event, very many people were disappointed after their horses failed to race and they lost their money just like that. Another ante-post betting offer you should go for is the each-way betting where you can enjoy several advantages like receiving returns even when your horse finishes fifth.