Last Updated on 06/03/2026 by Andy Clark
Betfred are offering existing customers a free £10 bet every single day of the 2026 Cheltenham Festival. Opt in, place a £10 bet on the first race of the day (1.20pm), and you’ll get a £10 free bet back to use on the same day’s racing.
Do it across all four days, and that’s £40 in free bets on top of whatever you win from your qualifying bets — and if you haven’t got a Betfred account yet, their new customer offer gives you £40 in free bets just for signing up.
Here’s everything you need to know.
How the Daily Free Bet Works
The offer is straightforward. Each day of the Cheltenham Festival — Champion Day (Tuesday 10th), Ladies Day (Wednesday 11th), St Patrick’s Thursday (12th) and Gold Cup Day (Friday 13th) — Betfred will give you a £10 free bet if you place a £10 qualifying bet on the first race.
Step by step:
- Opt in to the offer via the Betfred promotions page each morning
- Place a £10 Win or Each-Way single on the 13:20 race at Cheltenham
- Once the race settles, your £10 free bet is credited to your account
- Use the free bet on any Cheltenham race — but you must use it before 17:30 the same day
That’s it. Four days, four qualifying bets of £10, four £10 free bets back. The 13:20 is the feature race that opens each day’s card — Supreme Novices’ Hurdle on Tuesday, Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle on Wednesday, and so on — so you’re putting your money on a race worth watching anyway.
Full offer terms: Opt in required. £10 Win/E-W single on 13:20 Cheltenham 10–13/03/26. £5 E/W will count. Free Bets awarded on settlement. Restricted to bets on Cheltenham. Offer removed at 17:30 on the same day. T&Cs Apply. 18+ BeGambleAware.org.
Opt in and claim your daily free bet at Betfred →
Key Things to Know Before You Opt In
Opt in is required each day. This isn’t automatic — you need to actively opt in via the Betfred promotions page before placing your qualifying bet each morning. If you forget to opt in, the bet won’t qualify. Set a reminder for each morning of the Festival.
The qualifying race is the 13:20. The free bet is specifically tied to the first race of the day at Cheltenham — the 13:20. You can’t use a bet on a different race to trigger it.
A £5 each-way bet counts. A £5 each-way is a £10 total stake (£5 win + £5 place), and that counts as a £10 qualifying bet. So you can each-way your qualifying selection and cover both a win and place return while still triggering the free bet.
The free bet expires at 17:30 the same day. Once your qualifying bet settles, you’ll have a window until 17:30 to use the £10 free bet on Cheltenham races. Don’t leave it sitting unused — it won’t carry over to the next day.
The free bet is restricted to Cheltenham. You can’t use it on another sport or a different race meeting. It must be placed on a Cheltenham Festival race on the day it was issued.
The 13:20 Races at Cheltenham — What You’re Betting On
| Day | Date | 13:20 Race |
|---|---|---|
| Champion Day | Tuesday 10th March | Supreme Novices’ Hurdle |
| Ladies Day | Wednesday 11th March | Turners Novices’ Hurdle |
| St Patrick’s Thursday | Thursday 12th March | Mares Novices’ Hurdle |
| Gold Cup Day | Friday 13th March | JCB Triumph Hurdle |
These are all graded races. You’re not being asked to burn a £10 bet on a lowly handicap to trigger the offer — these are the feature races that open each day’s card and are worth following regardless.
For tips on each of the 13:20 races and all 28 Festival races, see our Cheltenham Festival tips pages.
How to Make the Most of Four Days of Free Bets
Running the offer on all four days of the Festival gives you four £10 free bets — £40 in total. Here’s how to approach them sensibly.
Use the free bet on a longer-priced selection. The free bet stake isn’t returned with winnings, so there’s limited value in deploying it on a short-priced favourite. At 2/1, your £10 free bet returns £20. At 8/1 it returns £80. Aim for a competitive handicap or a novice race where you can find a selection at 6/1 or bigger and get real value from the token.
Time the qualifying bet carefully. The 13:20 often has a strong ante-post market by Festival week. If Betfred’s NRNB guarantee covers the race (it covers all 28 Festival races), there’s no downside to backing your selection even if it ends up not running — you get your £10 stake back and can place a fresh qualifying bet before the off.
Use the free bet in the later races. Once the qualifying race settles, you’ll typically have three or four more races left on the card before the 17:30 cut-off. That gives you time to see how the card is developing and pick your spot rather than rushing into the first available market.
Stack it with the welcome offer if you’re new. If you haven’t got a Betfred account yet, the welcome offer gives you £40 in free bets on top of the daily offer — see below.
LiveScoreBet are also giving all customers a bet £10 get £10 free bet each day of Cheltenham.
New to Betfred? Get £40 in Free Bets to Start
If you haven’t got a Betfred account, the current Cheltenham welcome offer is worth grabbing before the Festival starts.
Register with code FRED40, deposit by debit card and place a £10 bet at Evens (2.0) or greater — and you’ll get £40 in free bets credited within 24 hours of your qualifying bet settling.
The £40 is split as:
- £20 Sports Free Bet — use it on any Cheltenham race or sportsbook market
- £20 Acca Free Bet — use it to build a Festival multi
The welcome offer is available from 00:00 on 6th March to 23:59 on 13th March 2026 only. Once you’re registered and your account is active, you can also opt in to the daily free bet offer on each of the four Festival days — so new customers who sign up early have access to both.
New customer terms: New customers only. 00:00 06/03/26 – 23:59 13/03/26. Register with FRED40, deposit with Debit Card, and place your first bet of £10+ at Evens (2.0)+ on Sports within 7 days to receive £20 in Sports Free Bets and £20 in Acca Free Bets within 24 hours of settlement. 7-day expiry. Eligibility, payment exclusions & T&Cs Apply. 18+ BeGambleAware.org.
Claim £40 in Betfred Free Bets →
For full details on the sign-up offer including how to use your free bets across the Festival, see our Betfred Cheltenham sign-up offer page.
Betfred’s Other Cheltenham Promotions
The daily free bet and the welcome offer are the two headline promotions, but Betfred also bring the following to the Festival:
Non-Runner No Bet — All 28 Races. Betfred are exclusively NRNB on all 28 Cheltenham Festival races. No standard ante-post market is available — every bet you place on a Cheltenham race with Betfred carries automatic non-runner protection. Your stake is returned in full as cash if your selection doesn’t run. No opt-in needed.
Best Odds Guaranteed. If the starting price of your selection is bigger than the odds you took, Betfred pay you at the SP. Applies to all win and each-way bets at a fixed price on UK and Irish racing. No opt-in required.
Turbo Boosts. Betfred are running daily price boosts on horse racing throughout the Festival, available each day from 10:30am once declarations are confirmed. They’re also running UCL Turbo Boosts — Galatasaray vs Liverpool on Tuesday 10th (from 10am) and Bayer Leverkusen vs Arsenal on Wednesday 11th (from 10am). Specific selections are confirmed 48 hours before each race day, so check the Betfred promotions page each morning.
Summary — Betfred at Cheltenham 2026
| Offer | Who For | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Bet £10 Get £40 Free Bets (FRED40) | New customers | £40 (£20 sports + £20 acca) |
| Daily Free Bet — Bet £10 Get £10 | Existing customers | Up to £40 over 4 days |
| Non-Runner No Bet | All customers | All 28 races |
| Best Odds Guaranteed | All customers | All UK/Irish racing |
| Turbo Boosts | All customers | Daily from 10:30am |
Visit Betfred for Cheltenham 2026 →
Andy is the founder, owner and editor of thatsagoal.com, with over 20 years of experience in betting on sports. He has a keen eye for stats, particularly when looking at players to be carded, and these form a large part of the bet builder tips you see on the site. As well as creating daily football tips, Andy also keeps thatsagoal updated with all the best bookmaker promotions and offers for our readers.