Betting on sports online has become very popular. People do this to entertain themselves and place friendly wagers before their favorite game. Furthermore, people bet on both well-known sports like football all the way to niche sports like curling.
It’s safe to say that sports bets have become a part of the tradition and rituals people perform before the game begins. Even some of the best real money casinos in Canada now have sports betting available to customers. This shows just how much online sports betting has gained popularity and momentum over the years.
But with some many options available to you online, how do you know which one is the right one for you? Simply put, it comes down to personal preferences and what you want or expect from an online sportsbook. With that in mind, here are a few tips on how to choose the best online sportsbook.
Sports markets
You can easily determine if the online sportsbook is worth your time based on the number of sports markets they have available. If there’s more than 30 markets, it means you’ll have a lot of options to choose from. But what does that actually mean?
Sports markets indicate sports you can bet on. For example, football, hockey, basketball, rugby, tennis and so on are all common sports markets. Then there are niche markets which are less popular sports, such as horse races, dog races, eSports, darts, beach volleyball and so on.
Therefore, the more sports markets the merrier. This allows players to choose a wide variety of sports and bets with specific odds. This makes online sports betting much more entertaining and enjoyable.
Welcome bonus
Every online sportsbook welcomes new users differently. What they all have in common though is that they provide you with a welcome bonus. Welcome bonuses tend to vary from sportsbook to sportsbook but they usually involve free bets.
This allows sportsbook sites to provide additional convenience to users as you can try out betting on their site basically for free. For example, you get a $/€/£ 20 worth of free bets upon creating an account and making a first deposit.
However, there’s a catch. This is not because sportsbook sites want to cheat you but because they have anti-money laundering safeguards and policies in place. That’s why welcome bonuses come with conditions called rollovers or turnovers.
For instance, Your $/€/£ 20 worth of free bets comes with a rollover of an x3. That means you must wager your bonus at least three times before you can cash out.
Moreover, online sportsbooks may set even more specific conditions, such as placing bets with odds of 1.5 (1/2) or greater. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. After all you do get free bets and if you meet the criteria you can withdraw your winnings.
Live betting
Live betting is another thing you should keep an eye on. Not every online sportsbook has this feature, which is a shame. What it means is that you have an option to watch any game you wish or want to bet on, live.
There’s a full HD stream of various sports games and events. There’s one more thing. Live betting allows you to place bets when the game has already started, as well as place bets at any moment throughout the game.
This is not possible at brick-and-mortar sportsbooks. You have the option to place bets before the game but once the game is on, that’s it. Live betting has way past all that. That’s why online sports betting is much more exciting and flexible.
It provides so many more options than what you can find in land-based casinos or spoorstbooks. A good example is that some sportsbooks allow you to place a wager that a specific football player will commit a foul in the second half of the game. This makes online sports betting much more diverse and entertaining.
User experience
Since we’re talking about online sportsbooks, it’s only logical to check the website’s user experience before doing anything else. That includes checking the website’s layout, website speed and page loading time, availability of live chat feature or other customer support channels, response times and so on.
After all, the purpose is to have fun and enjoy your time spent on sportsbook’s pages. If you have to wait too long for pages to load or if the site keeps crashing for some reason, you will only grow more frustrated.
That’s why user experience is such an important factor when choosing the best online sportsbook. Website functionality, performance and visual representation are all vital factors that can greatly impact user experience. If any of those factors are lacking, you might consider finding another sportsbook.
Closing Words
Choosing the best online sportsbook can be a time-consuming task. It all depends on your wants and needs. If you pay attention to the factors mentioned above, you will manage to find the best sportsbook for you in no time.
