| Updated: October 3, 2024Sports Betting Bonuses – October, 2024
With so many sports betting websites out there, gambling operators are in heavy competition to attract new customers and ensure they return to using their services again. One way to achieve this is by offering bonuses to new punters to motivate them to register at online sportsbooks. Interest on behalf of existing customers is maintained by treating them to a variety of ongoing and limited-time promotions aiming at giving them more value for their money.
Such promotional incentives have been an important part of the online sports betting industry since its very inception. There is a bevy of bonuses you can claim to give your bankroll a boost, including sign-up bonuses of different sizes, reload bonuses, cashbacks on losing accumulators, free bets, and price boosts.
The types of available bonuses would vary greatly across online sportsbooks, both in terms of their size and their turnaround requirements. To make things easier for readers, we explain how each type of sports betting bonus works as well as the most important conditions punters should meet in order to fully benefit from these offers.
Types of Bonuses for Online Sports Betting
Before you proceed to take advantage of a sports betting bonus, it is important to understand how the specific promotion works, how you can qualify for the free credits, and what are the terms of participation. A proper understanding of the promotions would enable you to sift out the good offers from the bad and meet the conditions attached to them in a fuss-free manner.
No-Deposit Bonuses
Some of the largest online sportsbooks offer new registrants No-Deposit Bonuses as part of their promotional packages for first-timers. When the new customer signs up with a real-money account with the sportsbook, they are credited with bonus money and can make a few bets without having to process a payment. This provides newcomers with a way to test the waters and try the sportsbook without risking their own bankrolls.
Due to the nature of this promo type, the bonus amounts are smaller, usually between £5 and £10. In some instances, No-Deposit Bonuses are offered during major sporting events, like the Super Bowl or the European Football Championship, as a means to draw in business from casual punters.
To qualify, you simply need to sign up and opt in for the bonus by entering its corresponding promo code. The winnings associated with the bonus funds are normally capped at a given amount (£100 in many cases) while the remainder is forfeited from the punter’s balance once a withdrawal is initiated. More often than not, punters must use up the bonus on bets at specific odds and should cover the turnover requirement to cash out their winnings.
Welcome Bonuses
This is undoubtedly the most common type of bonus you will come across when selecting a sportsbook. Welcome Bonuses are a powerful marketing tool for betting operators. These are offered when the new punters sign up for an account and process their first deposit.
The bonus amount corresponds to a specific percentage of the deposited sum, with some operators offering 50% matches on deposits and others – 100% or 150%. For example, if you claim a 100% Welcome Bonus of up to £100 and deposit £50, you will be credited with £50 extra for a total of £100 to bet with.
The free money is credited to punters’ bonus balance right away but they cannot cash out the bonus funds, at least not immediately after obtaining them. The turnover requirements should be met before a withdrawal is initiated. In other words, the bonus amount needs to be wagered the stipulated number of times at specific odds before the free money and its associated winnings are released from the bonus balance.
Reload Bonuses
Reload Bonuses resemble for the most part the sign-up offers redeemed by new punters, the only difference being they are granted on subsequent deposits. This is another marketing approach sports betting operators commonly employ to retain the interest of registered punters.
Similarly to the welcome offers, Reload Bonuses come in the form of percentage match-rates that are restricted to a given amount. Sometimes, these percentages may differ depending on the deposit method used. Some operators may offer 5% to 15% Reload Bonuses on each deposit carried out by credit cards or e-wallets.
Free Bets
Risk-free bets are commonly offered to customers as an incentive to keep them coming back to the sportsbook. The name of this promotion type is quite suggestive itself as free bets are precisely what they sound like – bets you will not have to spend a single penny on. These differ in size between online sportsbooks.
The free bets are credited to the punter’s account after he or she has entered a given promotional incentive or has made a specific number of wagers on a certain event. The free bet would match the amount of the bet that has qualified for it. For example, if you have placed a £20 bet on a qualifying market, you receive the extra amount of £20 in the form of a free bet.
The free bet is treated separately from your initial stake. If you have backed the winner with a £20 free bet that pays even money, you would receive only £20 in profits since the bonus amount is non-redeemable. Some operators have rollover requirements attached to their free-bet offers. There may be additional conditions prohibiting punters from using their free bets on some markets, like the Asian Handicaps or the Goal Lines, to give an example.
Price Boosts
Existing registrants at online sportsbooks are often treated to the so-called Price Boosts. These are offers that feature enhanced odds for specific markets to incentivise registered customers to bet on them. The Price Boosts are often available on accumulators. The odds of the qualifying markets are may be enhanced only for a limited period of time.
Occasionally, these may be offered in place of the standard sign-up bonuses. By means of example, imagine the odds of James Milner netting the first goal in the game have been boosted with enhanced odds from 4:1 to 6:1. If Milner indeed scores first and you have bet £10 on this outcome, the Price Boost will earn you £60 instead of £40 in profits.
There is no need to opt in for this bonus or enter a promo code. This type of promotional offer is usually displayed in punters’ bet slips, when valid.
Cashbacks and Rebates on Losing Bets
Registered customers of online sportsbooks are sometimes given the chance to partially reclaim their losses on single bets or accumulators by opting in for a cashback of their losing bets. As you know, if one of your accumulator’s selections fails you, your entire accumulator loses. But if you have opted in for a Cashback Bonus, you can redeem some of the amount lost.
Similarly to the deposit bonuses, the cashbacks are expressed in percentages and usually range between 5% and 50% – it all depends on which sportsbook you have registered with. The amount corresponding to the cashback percentage is to be deducted from your final losses. Thus, if you have lost £50 with your accumulator, your cashback will reduce your losses to £25 only.
Key Conditions of Sports Betting Bonuses
Never underestimate the importance of reading the sportsbook’s terms and conditions in regard to the bonuses on offer. This is the section where you will find all you need to know about the bonus you intend to claim, including the turnover, also known as “wagering” or “rollover” requirements.
This turnover is expressed with numerical values like 20x or 25x. This number indicates how much the punter must wager in order to clear their entire bonus amount and request a cash-out. To use an example, a £10 bonus with 20x turnover requires you to wager a total of £200 to clear the bonus and cash out the profits associated with it.
Sports betting bonuses often have an expiry date as punters are allotted a specific amount of time to use the free credits and clear the turnover. The allotted time differs across online sportsbooks. When using a bonus, pay attention to the types of bets that contribute to the clearance of the bonus.
As a general rule, punters have to bet on sporting events with specific odds, most often 1.50 or 1.60 and greater, to clear the turnover. The wagers should be settled prior to the bonus’ expiry. Some markets may be excluded from turnover contribution. Wagers that have been settled at odds of less than those specified in the terms will not contribute towards the fulfilling of the turnover.
The terms and conditions may also limit the amount of the winnings punters are allowed to withdraw when using a bonus. This is valid in full force for No-Deposit Bonuses where the winnings are customarily capped at a lower amount, up to £100 in the majority of cases. Even if the punter has won more, the remainder of the profits will be forfeited upon initiating a withdrawal.
Common Issues with Redeeming a Sports Betting Bonus
Bonuses are perhaps the most common way for online sportsbooks to attract new punters but you need to understand how they work if you wish to get the most out of your free betting experience. This will spare you the hassles from ensuing problems when opting in for an offer and would allow you to maximise the value of your bonus credits.
Speaking of issues, punters may sometimes face difficulties in redeeming or clearing their sports betting bonuses. Some of the most common problems involve failing to redeem the bonus despite opting in or having the free credits forfeited.
If you have accepted a promotional offer requiring a deposit but have not been credited with the bonus funds, you might have to reconsider the payment method you have used to initiate the payment. Some online sportsbooks exclude specific methods of payment from the promotional incentives, most commonly e-wallets like Skrill and Neteller.
Another reason why punters are unable to claim a bonus has to do with regulatory restrictions. Residents of some jurisdictions may be able to register at the sportsbook but are prohibited from participating in promotional incentives on the website.
If you have your bonus and its winnings forfeited, then most likely you are in the wrong where the turnover is concerned. This issue may result from you failing to clear the wagering requirements within the designated time. If so, the bonus credits are automatically removed from your account once your bonus expires. Requesting a cash-out before you cover the turnover will most certainly have your bonus voided.
Another potential reason for your bonus forfeiture has to do with you failing to comply with the odds restrictions attached to the offer. The turnover is cleared with bets at certain odds, usually 1.50 or above. Violating these restrictions leads to the bonus credits’ removal.
Signing up with multiple accounts to redeem more bonuses is a stark violation of the promotional terms and leads to permanent account termination. Punters must remember they are generally prohibited from using one type of bonus in conjunction with another. Often, one is required to clear through one bonus first before claiming another.
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