When choosing a bookmaker, incentives are especially appealing – but how do free bets work? Unfortunately, a read through these bookmakers’ terms and conditions show that it’s not just free money. Read this article to learn how free bets work & their drawbacks.

Continuing on from our previous article – Why Free Bets come at a Cost – where we discussed free bet terms and conditions, this time we’ve actually investigated free bets from various bookmakers to learn exactly how they work – including their drawbacks.

One bookmaker – we’ll call them Regret Victor – has a £25 Free Bet offer for new accounts. Upon closer inspection of the offer, it is then revealed in the T’s & C’s that you have to place a bet with your own cash that must contain at least one selection with odds of at least 2.00, unless it is a four-fold or greater. They will then match this bet with ‘promo cash’ up to £25.

A withdrawal restricted bonus may be configured to restrict bonus, deposit or winning amounts. The player may not be able to withdraw the restricted amount or take it to other games. If you are not able to meet the play requirements in the validity period, the bonus and/or winning amounts will be claimed back at the expiration of the bonus.

Essentially, the bookmaker is telling you what to bet on with your own money before it will give you anything. And at 2.00 or greater, it’s a punt with a chance of winning under 50%.

Bet £10, Get £40 in Free Bets for Cheltenham! +£10 Horse Racing Slots Bonus! New Customers, opt in and bet £10 on horse racing (odds 2.00+) & get 4x £10 Free Bets for selected races, expire 16:50GMT on 19.03.21, + £10 Slots Bonus, selected games, 20x wagering to withdraw max £250, 7 days expiry. Bonuses and promotions are something that attracts bettors from all over the world. However, usually, if you want to withdraw your bonus money, you must fulfil some wagering requirements, like a rollover, mentioned in terms & conditions for a particular bonus.

Drawbacks:

• Free Bets usually require you to match the bookmaker’s investment with your own
• Bookmakers steer you into less profitable or losing markets
• To make a withdrawal you need to make ever more bets

Having fulfilled that condition, you are only able to withdraw any winnings from the promo cash once you have staked at least four times the value of your initial bonus amount and these bets are fully settled.

So even with the £25 in promo cash you would need to place a further bet of up to at least £100 of your own money before you could make any withdrawals.

More Money, More Conditions

Some bookmakers – like one we’ll call Daddy Power – try to lure customers by enticing them with a huge free bet – Power offer up to £250.

This isn’t however a gratis gift; to get the money you would need to place a bet of £50 to have it matched by the bookies, and then place another four bets of £50 to receive a second free bet of £50. After another five bets of £50, they then get another free £50, while a further ten £50 bets are needed to reach £250.

Essentially, the bookmaker is telling you what to bet on with your own money before it will give you anything.

The whole scheme requires a punter to bet £1,000 of their own money in order to get £250 worth of free bets. Oh, and all bets must have minimum odds of 1.50. Now is that what you would expect from a £250 free bet?

Another bookmaker – we’ll call them Bet 123 – has a different take on its high-value free bet. It offers a bet of up to £200, provided it is matched by the same deposited amount, and played on events with minimum odds of 1.50.

You then need to successfully rollover (rebet) your total deposit and bonus value three times before you can withdraw anything. This means that if you did deposit £200, you would have to wager £1,200 {£200 Deposit*3 + £200 Bonus*3} before being able to withdraw anything. Additional conditions require that you do not place bets on Asian Handicap, Goal Line and Baseball money line markets.

Risk Free Bet

Another slightly different approach to incentives, but equally deceptive, is the risk-free bet. You qualify for the free bet only if you lose your first bet (up to a certain amount), which essentially gives you your money back. However it is not as straightforward as it appears. This so called risk-free bet requires you to risk your own money first, and you have to bet more than the risk-free bet to be able to withdraw.

A bookmaker –we’ll call them DoBog – offers a £10 risk-free bet, although a £10 bet (from your own money) must first be placed on a bet with odds of at least 2.00 before you receive the £10 bonus. The bonus amount then needs to be rolled-over up to three times at odds of 2.00 or greater prior to any withdrawals.

Conclusion: Don’t Waste Time & Money

These so called incentives are a waste of both time and money. You have to spend time learning the exact terms and conditions if you want to see your cash again, while the poor value odds these bookmakers offer (having enticed bettors in with promo offers) end up costing bettors in the long run.

It’s far better to use a low-margin bookmaker like Pinnacle, which offers much better odds than incentive-offering bookies.

You may have some bonus misconceptions. You will probably be claiming sports betting bonuses when you join online sportsbooks. But how much do you know about how they work?

Quite a few bettors have bonus misconceptions about sports betting bonuses which are worth clearing up before you accept bonuses to wager with. Below, I dispel some of the common myths surrounding sports betting bonuses online.

There is a ton of money being “given away”. I want to make sure you know the rules to claim it!

A Sports Betting Bonus is Free Money With No Strings Attached

The most basic myth or bonus misconception that some gamblers have about sports betting bonuses is that they are free.

This would be an easy misunderstanding, being as they are promoted with text like “Join now and get $200!”

There is nothing deceptive about this – If you join and claim the bonus, you will receive the amount promised, but there will be rollover requirements in place.

Reputable betting sites will draw your attention to those requirements, asking you to check a box saying you have read the terms and conditions for the bonus before you accept it.

Of course, a lot of people don’t read terms and conditions when checking boxes online.

Rollover Requirements for Bonuses Are High

Coming back to rollover requirements, let’s explain those in case you are not aware of them.

Also called “turnover requirements,” they tell you how many times you need to turn over your funds before the bonus can be withdrawn, not just used to gamble.

Many gamblers will lose more money than the amount of the bonus while meeting these requirements. That is the “price” for the bonus.

Of course, if you are going to be turning over that amount anyway while gambling, that “price” is one which you will pay anyway. You may as well get some extra funds for doing so!

While some gamblers falsely believe that there are no strings attached to bonus money, there are others who believe just the opposite.

They may be aware of rollover requirements, but be under the misconception that they are very high.

Rollover requirements can be high, but typically, they are not as high on sports betting sites as they are on some other types of sites which may use them (i.e. binary options websites).

On binary options sites, I have seen rollover requirements as high as 200 times the amount of the deposit and the bonus.

But on sports betting sites, 20x would be a high rollover requirement. A lot of sports betting bonuses carry rollover requirements closer to 5x, or even less. You can even find 1x rollover requirements (especially for free bets).

If you got a $20 free bet, and it had a 1x rollover requirement, that would mean you would merely have to stake the $20 to be eligible to withdraw the bonus.

So do not be deterred by the assumption that rollover requirements are always high. They are not. They are often quite low. And if you intend to gamble regularly, you should have no problem meeting them.

Remember, the average gambler easily pays a price through meeting the requirements for most bets, because the typical punter loses most of the time.

But if you are savvy with what you do, you may be able to eat your cake and have it to, so to say.

You Can Withdraw Your Bonus and Winnings Anytime.

Nope, nope, nope. Make sure you read those T’s and C’s to ensure you don’t get the shaft!

Another misconception about sports betting bonuses is that they do not affect withdrawals.

Those who fail to read the terms and conditions for bonuses may simply not think to wonder whether withdrawals would be impacted by them in any way.

Typically, however, accepting a bonus will impact your ability to withdraw. This is how sports betting websites enforce rollover requirements.

The rules can vary, but a typical example of a rule concerning bonuses and withdrawals might be this:

Only after meeting the turnover requirements are you eligible to withdraw the bonus and any winnings you obtained through its use.

What happens if you attempt to schedule a withdrawal before meeting those requirements?

In that case, you might be able to withdraw the amount of your original deposit, but not the bonus amount, and not your winnings.

And in some cases, depending on the specific terms and conditions, both the bonus and the winnings may be relinquished entirely, leaving your account balance at zero.

In such a scenario, if you were not under the impression that withdrawals were limited by your bonus acceptance in any way, you would have been in for an unpleasant surprise.

But now that you know that this is possible, you will know the importance of reading the terms and conditions before you claim a bonus.

You then need only remember not to try to withdraw too soon.

You Always Have to Make a Deposit to Claim a Bonus

In the vast majority of cases, a deposit is required in order to claim a sports betting bonus.

But what some punters are not aware of is that there are exceptions. There are some bonuses which are “no-deposit bonuses.”

That means that you do not have to make a deposit to claim one. All you have to do is open an account.

This gives you a wonderful opportunity to play for free and experience what the site has to offer before you deposit money of your own.

Once You Have Claimed a Welcome Bonus, You’ll Receive No More Matches on Your Deposits

There is a heavy emphasis on welcome bonuses in the sports betting world online, to the point where you might think the only situation where you can receive a deposit match is when you are joining a site.

But that is simply not true. There are some online sportsbooks which will give you matches on future deposits as well.

If your current betting site does not offer this benefit, you might want to sign up for a few which do.

A Free Bet is Likely to Be Profitable

Now let’s talk about free bets. As discussed before, free bets often have very low turnover requirements. This makes them among the most enticing offers on sports betting sites.

But if you are not someone who shops for value, or you do not yet have a strong understanding of odds, or if you do not read the terms and conditions for the free bet, you can miss an important fact.

Among the requirements for claiming a free bet is that you only wager on a selection which has certain odds according to the terms and conditions.

If you take a closer look at these odds, you will notice that by definition, chances are good that you will lose the bet.

Additionally, you probably will have a restricted time frame in which to make use of the free bet, after which it will expire.

If you are not aware of that limitation, you could lose your opportunity.

Even though you are likely to lose a free bet because of the odds requirements, you can still make very good use of any free bet opportunity through matched betting.

With matched betting, you place both a back bet and a lay bet at different sites. Through careful hedging, you can make a reliable profit with almost no risk.

Opening Extra Accounts to Claim the Same Promotion Twice is Okay

One of my favorite sites, Bovada, sure has a lot of rules. But, as long as you follow them, they’ll treat you right!

Finally, you probably have noticed already that quite a few promotions can only be claimed a single time, such as a match on your first deposit.

This prompts some gamblers to wonder what is stopping them from simply opening additional accounts to claim the bonuses again.

What is stopping you is the terms and conditions for the site. This is very much against the rules universally across sports betting websites.

If you are unaware of this—or simply under the misconception that you will not get caught—you will not be too pleased when you find yourself permanently banned.

So Where Are the Best, Legitimate Sites to Claim Some Bonuses?

Bovada

I’ve already mentioned Bovada earlier on the page so you already know we love them and use them myself for most of my personal wagers!

Here you will find fantastic bonuses for your deposits as well as match deposits for your reloads when it’s time for a top off. Most importantly, when you win, you will get paid!

Using the code 130347 when making your initial deposit will get you a 50% match up to $250! Using bitcoin? You can actually turn that bonus into up to $750!

Can You Withdraw Bonus Bet Winnings

BetOnline

Another fantastic, legitimate sportsbook!

Heading over to BetOnline can net you all kinds of goodies as well!

Happen to be a newer player or just want to give them a try with no risk to yourself? You can take advantage of a $25 risk free player props wager! Also available to you would be

Can You Cash Out Bonus Bets

• A $25 live betting free play
• A mobile betting free play of $50
• and a lifetime reload bonus of a 25% deposit match when reloading your account!

MyBookie

Of course they’re another one of the favorites around these parts! But, if you want to learn more on your own, of course take a look at all of the honest sportsbook reviews!

You can go and grab yourself a lot of bonuses over at MyBookie! They offer things such as

Can You Withdraw Bonus Bets Without

• A 100% sportsbook sign up bonus up to $1000 on your initial deposit
• A $20 risk free bet
• A 25% reload bonus of up to $500
• and for those of you that are into the horse action, an 8% weekly rebate on any losses

What We’ve Learned

We have gone over a number of myths and misconceptions regarding sports betting bonuses online. Let’s quickly review some key facts that we have learned:

• Bonus money comes with strings attached called rollover requirements.
• Rollover requirements on sports betting sites can be surprisingly low.
• You may not be able to withdraw your bonus money or winnings right away, and attempting it before meeting the rollover requirements could cause you to lose both.
• You don’t always have to make a deposit to claim a bonus.
• There are sportsbooks online which offer impressive match bonuses on future deposits, not just your first deposit.
• Free bets are designed to be unprofitable. Sportsbooks achieve this by restricting the odds at which you are allowed to wager with them.
• Matched betting offers you a way to profit with free bets at little risk, even with the odds problem above taken into account.
• Bonus abuse of any kind is a really bad idea. Don’t do it if you don’t want to be banned from a sportsbook.

Can You Withdraw Bonus Bets

In summary, bonuses on sports betting sites have more restrictions than some punters are aware of, but they also may present opportunities of which you might be unaware. The more you learn about how sports betting bonuses work, the easier it will be to avoid pitfalls and capitalize fully on the opportunities at hand.

Can You Withdraw Bonus Bets No Deposit

Where Can You Find the Best Bonuses and Promotions for Sports Betting Online?

One of our key review criteria in recommending sports betting sites is the quality of bonus offers. That means that we have scoured the web from top to bottom to bring you sites which offer:

• Hefty bonus amounts
• Low rollover requirements
• Friendly and fair withdrawal terms
• A wide variety of promotions
• Regular bonuses for repeat customers, not just new sign-ups

Ready to claim some of the hottest online sportsbook bonuses now? Head on over to our sportsbook reviews to discover the most exiting offers available today.

Can You Withdraw Bonus Bets Ladbrokes

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