SportStack vs Football Index: Best Sports Stock Trading App?

A recent trend in online sports is sports stock trading.  As you can imagine, it works somewhat similarly to normal stock trading, apart from you are dealing in players and teams, for example, rather than physical assets.  Therefore, a sports trading app might let you invest in your favourite teams and any players you think you have potential.

If you have played fantasy football before, you might find this process a little familiar.  The football stockmarket is growing in popularity, and two big names in the online scene right now are SportStack and Football Index.  These are sites which offer punters the chance to lay down a bit of cash and to put their money where their mouths are.

I thought I’d take a quick look at both of the platforms with a comparison and review.  In this guide, I’ll consider SportStack vs Football Index, and whether either of them are worth getting into in the long run.

What’s the Difference Between Football Index and SportStack?

If you don’t have time to read the full review, here’s a quick lowdown on the difference between Football Index and SportStack.

• Both Football Index and SportStack allow you to buy and sell shares in football players.
• Football Index sets player values based on how they perform on the pitch, as well as how they perform in the media.
• SportStack bases values purely on how players perform on the pitch.
• Football Index has been around for longer than SportStack and was considered the first of its kind.
• SportStack provides a much better user experience and is easier for beginners to get started with.
• You’ll pay a 2% levy on any player shares you sell at Football Index.
• You’ll pay a 4% levy on (but only on any positive player outcomes) you’ll receive per match at SportStack.
• You can get 10 Free Shares in randomly assigned players with you sign up, deposit and stake £10 with SportStack.

What is Sports Stock Trading?  How Does It Work?

If you’re new to the football stockmarket, it’s time I gave you a bit of a rundown of what to expect.  With sports stock trading, you don’t buy shares, stocks or assets – you buy football players.  Just as you will receive dividends on the stock market for shares and assets that do well, in the sports stock market, you will receive money when your players perform well on the pitch.

The pricing of players varies from platform to platform.  The price of a given player might change based on how they perform in matches, or in terms of how they are seen in the press.  In any case, traders will be able to buy and sell those players they think are going to reap dividends in the season to come.

Is it Gambling?

To answer this question, you’ll probably need to think about whether or not traditional stock trading is gambling, too.  The answer all depends on your experience and your viewpoint.  Stock trading on the whole revolves around a more careful management of risk.  With betting, it’s all or nothing.

Sports stock trading, football or otherwise, revolves around your knowledge of the game.  That applies to betting and gambling, too, to an extent.  However, when it comes to buying and selling players on the market, you likely have to go in deeper.  Therefore, any punters keen to get a bit more detail out of their bets should look into sports stocks.  It can be a lot of fun.

Now that we’ve considered the vague difference between football betting and trading stock, let’s take a look at the main names in trading I’m comparing in this guide today.

What is Football Index?

Football Index is, for all intents and purposes, the first sports trading platform of its kind.  Therefore, it has led the way for a while.  Football Index offers a series of in-depth parameters for you to check out from player to player, meaning that if you’re a football fan who really likes to crunch the numbers and take in all the data.

Football Index takes its data from various sources, based on how players perform on the pitch and how they perform in the public eye, too.  In that way, Football Index might just have the edge as far as in-depth analysis goes.  Ultimately, buying your own shares in your favourite players means you side-step the bookmaker completely.

How Does Football Index Work?

As mentioned, Football Index lets you search for players and to buy shares in them, just as you might in assets or brands through a traditional stock trading platform.  This means that you can effectively ‘buy’ a player when you think they are on the up, and ‘sell’ a player if they are performing less than positively on and off the pitch.

You simply need to register an account, deposit at least £10, and search through the main catalogue of players.  It’s nice and easy to find players you want to add to your portfolio, and you can do all this through the phone app.  The platform will also offer deals occasionally, such as the chance for you to claim losses back up to a specific point.

Football Index gives players points based on how they do.  This also adds value to their price.  For example, scoring a goal could add points on, as could being named man of the match.  Football Index also takes into account positive and negative press coverage, so if your star player has a bad week in the tabloids, their value may well crash.

How Does Football Index Make Money?

While Football Index may not make money the same way that bookies generate income from punters, it still has to generate an income.  Therefore, you’ll find that the platform claims 2% in commission on each share you sell.  It’s worth keeping in mind.

Can You Make Money on Football Index?

Potentially, yes.  However, it really will pay to have a good knowledge of the game, as well as the players you buy.  That being said, there are more performance indicators that come into play here than you will likely find through other sports trading app platforms.  It’s one of the key distinctions I’m going to cover in terms of Football Index vs SportStack, and I’ll come to this again a little later on.

However, yes – providing you are shrewd, and you know what you’re getting into, there are no reasons why you can’t turn a nice profit from Football Index.  If you’re a football fan and you’re looking to get more out of your betting money, it’s maybe time you gave this app a closer look.  Many people might find it trumps betting on sports as far as potential returns are concerned.

What is SportStack?

SportStack, meanwhile, serves itself up as a viable alternative to Football Index.  It refers to itself as the ‘future of sports trading’.  Naturally, you and I can be the judges of that.

SportStack is a newer platform in the game, which means that Football Index probably has the edge as far as experience is concerned, but don’t discount it.  SportStack offers a slicker, more streamlined, entry-level approach to sports trading, meaning it may well appeal to people who are just getting started. 

But does SportStack work in the same way as Football Index?  Does it actually offer more in the way of value for general punters?

How Does SportStack Work?

Much as you’d expect from this kind of engine, SportStack lets you search for players, to buy shares, and to add them to your portfolio.  It’s relatively easy for you to find the players you want, and what’s more, if you do want to buy and sell, you can.

SportStack offers a nice portfolio system where you can keep track of your players.  The platform also drills down a fair bit in terms of available data and statistics, meaning that if you are really up on your form, or you simply love digesting the data that comes with it, you’re going to find this side of things particularly interesting.

What separates SportStack from Football Index right away, however, is the fact that the sale prices here all appear to be in line with how players perform on the pitch.  Unlike Football Index, outside media performance never comes into it.  In my full look at Football Index vs SportStack, this is one of the most obvious differences.

How Does SportStack Make Money?

SportStack, naturally, will make money from the spread, which means that the amount you buy player shares for are always likely to be more than what they are selling for.  This is to be expected, and there’s no need to worry.

Beyond this, SportStack will charge a 4% commission on profits that you make should players perform well in any given match.  This works a little differently to the Football Index model, though the amount you stand to lose is pretty much the same.  Therefore, there’s not much to tell between them at this point.

Can You Make Money on SportStack?

SportStack is a relatively new site and app, which means some punters may still be a little shaky about quite what they can expect.  However, there’s no reason you can’t work the site and its index to your advantage.

However, SportStack is much more likely to appeal to seasoned football fans.  That’s because the value data corresponds directly with how players perform in any given match.  There is a bit more scope with Football Index, which might help it to appeal to more people, a broader audience.

Once again, however, your chances of making money are all down to your knowledge.  As things are so tied-in with pitch performance here, I would argue that you are going to make good money if you pay attention to form.  Seasoned sports betting fans, therefore, might find this app and platform a bit more appealing.

Now that I’ve looked at both apps and platforms in detail, it’s time to consider the pros and cons of both – and whether or not either of them are worth your time and money.

Football Index Pros and Cons

• Football Index, inarguably, got here first.  It’s a well-established football trading platform, which means that it’s had time to iron out its rough spots.
• A point of contention with Football Index is how the platform grades and values its players.  Some people – quite a lot of people – will like the fact that you can buy and sell players keeping their media profile in mind just as much as their on-pitch performance.
• However, some punters and traders are going to find this a little bit off-putting.  If you’re in it to bet on players and their performance, one argument says that surely you should keep things to match statistics only.
• Also it may not be the easiest to get used to.  There are plenty of tutorials, and welcome deals should ease you into the way everything works, however, some traders may actually find SportStack to be a little easier to get into right away.
• That being said, the fees at Football Index aren’t bad at all, with only a 2% applying to your sales.

SportStack Pros and Cons

• SportStack has plenty going for it in terms of usability and charm.  While Football Index has been around for a while, SportStack has the benefit of setting up with knowledge of how to appeal to the public from the word go.
• That being said, you can only buy and trade player shares based on on-pitch performance.  This is likely to be a sticking point for some people, and a positive trait for others.
• SportStack is very easy to use.  It seems to squarely aim itself at newbies, which is only ever a good thing.  Perhaps that’s another reason why it keeps things so narrow in terms of what affects player values.
• However, it is an app with plenty of room to grow.  While there are plenty of stats here and there to pore through, nothing quite hits the scale of data you get from Football Index.

Conclusion

When looking at Football Index vs SportStack, I have to consider usability as much as I have to consider your chances of making money.  Therefore, I have to say that SportStack has the edge in terms of functionality and performance, as well being more beginner friendly.