Beginners, experienced punters, and everyone in between — we’ve got crucial information that can make your sports betting journey a lot easier. Our experts have shared tips on placing the right bets, understanding odds, and of course, finding the best online sportsbooks.
In this section, you’ll enter the world of sports betting, where you’ll learn to navigate the different types of bets, odds, and online sportsbooks. Sports betting is certainly more of an art than a science, and no matter how long you’ve been doing it, there are sure to be some surprises! However, learning the ins and outs as much as possible is the best way to minimize the surprises and maximize your enjoyment.
But first things first. Before you start betting, you’ll want to choose an online casino that’s right for you. Here we’ll review just how to do that.
How to Choose a Trusted Online Sportsbook
With so many online sportsbooks available, how can you decide which one you should trust with your hard-earned money? Here we’ll review several factors that you should consider before making just any old sportsbook “your” sportsbook.
License: Only bet at bookmakers that are licensed and regulated by recognized authorities. This will save you a lot of heartache in the future.
Banking options: Choose a sports betting site that offers a wide range of banking options, or specifically, the banking option that you want (i.e. credit cards, eWallets, cryptocurrency, etc.)
Customer support: How important is customer support to you? If you want a support team on call 24/7, make sure to choose a bookmaker that offers that option.
Language: Choose a site that offers a language you feel comfortable with.
Bonuses: Does the sportsbook offer a welcome bonus to new players and ongoing worthwhile promotions as you continue to patronize the site? While the actual bonuses are important, you also want to see that the site knows how to treat its loyal punters.
Mobile option: How important is a mobile option to you? On what device will you be doing most of your sports betting?
Security: Is the site secured using industry-standard SSL encryption technology? If not, run the other way.
Game selection: Does the sportsbook offer the games you want to bet on? A sportsbook may offer hundreds or thousands of events and matches, but if it doesn’t have what you want, what good is it?
Types of bets: What kinds of bets does the site accept? Live in-play bets are very popular now — does the sportsbook offer this option? What else is on the table?
Reviews & reputation: Does the bookmaker have a good reputation? Our expert reviews here are a great place to start!
While these might seem like a lot of factors to consider for something as simple as sports betting, you’ll thank yourself for doing in-depth research before depositing money at any old site. And if you read the reviews by our experts, you won’t have to do much legwork — just see if the casino in question ticks all the boxes. If not, move on to the next review. If yes, go ahead and start betting!
There are many different types of sports bets, also know as markets. Here are some of the most popular.
Odds are a crucial component of sports betting and often the drivers of different betting decisions and strategies. They express a sportsbook’s opinion on a specific game, match, series, etc. and also tell players how much they need to bet in order to win a certain amount.
Most online bookmakers give bettors the option to view odds in decimal, fractional, or American format.
How Sports Betting Odds Are Calculated
Odds give bettors an idea of how much they stand to win or how much they need to spend. However, they’re also used by sportsbooks for another reason — to attract action on both sides of the bet and to mitigate how much they lose on winning bets.
Sportsbooks and bookmakers are the ones that generate the odds of any given sporting event, with the help of mathematicians, statisticians, and computers. Ultimately, the head oddsmaker of a sportsbook has the final say. These odds, however, aren’t truly accurate when it comes to implied probability (what the expected results will be) since they include the vig (the commission taken by the bookmaker for taking your bet.)
That’s why not every bookmaker offers the same odds — because their algorithms might have produced different results, or their vig is lower, or both. Serious punters should look for online bookmakers that offer the best odds so that they can make the most of their bets.
Want to start placing sports bets? Follow these five easy steps.
Find an online bookmaker that meets your criteria and sign up.
Make sure to claim your welcome bonus specifically for the online sportsbook (some sportsbooks have casinos attached and offer both casino and sportsbook bonuses — so look out for both of them!).
Many bonuses require you to make a deposit in order to claim the bonus. If you don’t want to claim a bonus, you will still need to make a deposit in order to start betting.
Adjust the settings on the sportsbook to display the odds in the way you’re comfortable with — American, decimal, fractional, etc.
Scour the site for a team, player, or event that looks good to you, and place your bet!
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These sports betting tips can help you place intelligent bets and maximize your chances for success. Check them out!
What makes a sportsbook great? Here are some of the attributes that our experts look at when evaluating the quality of an online sportsbook.
Sports Selection What sports are on offer? What matches can you bet on? Are they local or global? This is the most basic factor when considering an online sportsbook — does it offer the games you want?
Markets Many bookmakers offer different markets, which is why it’s important to choose carefully. How many markets are on offer? Do they appeal to you?
Types of Bets Does the sportsbook offer bets you like? Live in-play betting, parlays, teasers, props, etc.? You don’t need to adjust your betting to a sportsbook — you should find one that offers what you like.
Bonuses & Promotions What bonuses does the sportsbook offer? Do they require a large deposit upfront? Check out the welcome bonus and recurring promos to make sure you’re getting the rewards you deserve.
Banking & Payouts Look for a sportsbook that supports your preferred deposit and withdrawal method. Also make sure to check how fast you’ll see your money after you submit a withdrawal request.
Security Does the sportsbook use industry-standard security to keep your financial information safe? Check for the small padlock icon to the left of the site’s URL.
Customer Support How available is the customer support team? How knowledgeable? Do they speak your language? Customer support can be crucial when an issue arises — make sure the team can help you.
Mobile Option Can you access the site via mobile browser or do you need to download an app? Is the site optimized for mobile? Find out if mobile betting is important to you.
What sports can you bet on at most online sportsbooks? Here are the most popular.
Soccer Soccer is the most popular sport in the world, so you can bet you can find many betting options at every online sportsbook.
Basketball Basketball is another popular global sport, with many sportsbooks offering options to bet on both local and international games.
Hockey Hockey is most popular in Canada, the U.S., Russia, and several European countries. Online sportsbooks give you a chance to bet on hockey games you wouldn’t necessarily see at home.
UFC UFC, the Ultimate Fighting Championship, is based in the U.S. but has events all over the world in 12 different weight divisions. In 2022, it held over 600 events.
Horse Racing With online sportsbooks, you don’t need to go to the track to place bets on horse racing. You can pick your favorites from the comfort of your own home.
College Football College football is mainly popular in the U.S., along with NFL betting. There are about 130 teams playing in Division 1, which makes for lots of action.
American Football American football is mainly popular in the U.S., though a lot of expats and even citizens of other countries enjoy placing bets on big games and the Super Bowl.
Cricket Cricket is the second-most popular sport in the world with about 3.5 billion fans, so it’s easy to find matches to bet on at online sportsbooks.
This is an answer that only you can determine. Before you start placing sports bets, determine a budget for yourself. Then work backward to see how many bets you want to make and what your budget allows. Your budget doesn’t need to be split equally between the number of bets — If a specific game is very important to you, you can allocate more of your money to bet on that game.
Yes, many online bookmakers offer bonuses and promotions for sports betting. Just make sure you're aware of them and read the terms and conditions before claiming them.
Vigorish, also known as vig or juice, is the commission a sportsbook takes for accepting bets. It can range between 5% and 10%. The vig is included in the displayed odds and is often indiscernible from it.
There are many factors to consider when choosing an online sportsbook, in addition to the basic question of game and bet selection. You can consider: the site’s security, banking options, customer support availability, languages supported, the welcome bonus and recurring bonuses, mobile option, and more.
Yes, sports betting is legal in Nigeria. It’s regulated by the National Lottery Regulatory Commission and bookmakers are required to obtain a license from the commission before launching.
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