online-gambling.com

Online Esports Betting Odds & Best Esports Sites for 2024

Online Esports Betting Basics
Rules Difficulty Medium
Betting Types 20+
Payout 94% – 95%
How to Win Tips & Strategies
Where to Bet Bet365

Esports Betting Guide – How to Bet?

Esports betting became popular in the last decade as competitive gaming online increased in popularity. Initially, people just wanted to play games, but as things developed, they also found that they wanted to bet on them too.

Our Esports betting guide will help you understand the way games work and how to bet on Esports. There are new releases almost every month, but the most popular games are usually older games like Counter-Strike, League of Legends, Starcraft, and others.

Best Online Esports Betting Site to Bet for Real Money:

Top Offer

Bet365
Bet £10 and get £50 In Free Bets

Many newer games such as Fortnite have exploded up popularity, but the long standing Esports games are still the most wagered on. As in every type of gambling, there are specific Esports betting rules, and in the next paragraph, you can learn more about them.

Esports Betting Rules

One important point is that each operator can set their own Esports betting rules. Therefore you need always to thoroughly check all terms and conditions of any operator before you deposit money and start betting.

Because there are many Esports Betting sites in the world, we decided to show you some of the most common rules that you will see at our top Esports betting sites. Take a quick look at them now and then we will share more interesting information.

Rule Explanation
Rule 1 If the match is promoted with a wrong date, the bet still stays on.
Rule 2 If a team decides to sign off before the start of the tournament all bets will be refunded
Rule 3 If a team or a player is disqualified, the bet still stands.
Rule 4 If the name of a player or a team is misspelled, the bet still stays.
Rule 5 If changes in the team are made before the beginning of the match, all bets are void, but if the change is done during the game, bets will stand.
Rule 6 Platforms reserve the right to cancel bets if they suspect the person receives inside information regarding the outcome of it.

Have in mind that all operators may have slightly different rules because, there are no standard Esports betting rules that are applied in all operators across the globe. You may see some rules missing from some operators, but present in others. You need to check each operator before you place your wager.

Types of Betting

Esports betting types are not that different from any other sports betting, with a few small differences in the names of the bets thanks to the diverse terminology. You can still bet on the Match Winner or the Tournament Winner, and the name of the bet is the same as in any other sport.

But let’s take for instance “First Blood”, this is the term in electronic games for “first kill”. In soccer, this will be “first goal”, so the bets are not that different after all. You need to be a fan of video games in order to win bets on them, the same way as you need to be a football fan if you want to win some money on football betting. All of our Esport betting websites provide a large variety of bets and games, so hopefully you can find your favorite.

Betting Type Explanation
Tournament Winner This is maybe the most common bet. You can bet on any of the contenders, and you can maximize your winnings if you made your bet at the very start(or before the start) of the tournament.
Match Winner Another super simple and popular bet. Obviously you bet on the winner of the match in question.
First Map It is typical for shooter games where maps are changing more often.
First Blood/First Kill This is very dynamic and hard to predict bet with excellent odds. You bet on who will make the first kill.
Odds/Evens Odds and evens bets you can place on everything, from how many matches one team will win to how many kills a player will make for one match. You bet on either odds or evens.
Over/Under You bet on a team’s score to be in a certain range, over X and under Y.
Handicap Handicap is a complicated bet that helps you accumulate more profit even if you bet on the obvious outcome of the game.
Accumulator This is a bet on multiple games or matches, but if you win it, the prize is always very satisfying.
System This is similar to the Accumulator bet as complexity because you do bet on a large range of options. There are many diverse betting systems that you can find online.

As you see, the Esports betting types are similar to other sports. Practically you just need to get familiar with the terminology that we have prepared for you in the next paragraph. Before that we want to be sure that you know which are the best sports betting websites in general.

Esports Betting Terminology

Now is the time to step into the gaming universe where you will face many new words and phrases related to games. Some apply to any game, others only to a particular type of game. Here are the most popular Esports betting terms:

  • First Blood – This is an expression used to describe the first kill in any type of game.
  • Carry – Used mostly in MOBA games like Dota or LOL, carry is a hero damage dealer.
  • AOE – Area of Effect, again mainly used in MOBA games, describing magics dealing damage in a particular area not on a single target.
  • Blink/Flash – Used in many games, the meaning is literally – teleporting from one place to another in a short distance.
  • Buff – Used for magic with positive effect over the hero/heroes.
  • Farm – Farming means accumulating more gold by killing units in the game.
  • Feeding – Feeding is when a person intentionally is trying to be killed in order to let the other team win extra gold.
  • GG – Good Game
  • Creeps – Creeps are the waves of units in MOBA games.
  • Rush – As a term is widely used in any type of computer game, kind of replacing the word “attack”.
  • Tank – It is used to describe a type of hero, but it could be used as “go tank”, which means that someone needs to rush in and collect the incoming damage so that others can infiltrate intact.

Betting on Esports will require knowing the aforementioned terms because they are tightly related to the games themselves and the betting types too. But since you are looking for Esports betting, we presume you are a gamer anyway, and you know these and all other fundamental terms.

Odds vs Payouts

Esports betting odds and payouts are different, but at the same time similar in all Esports betting websites. The truth is that they depend entirely on the bookie and the league in question. Since there are many international tournaments led in different countries, you can imagine the diversity of bets and odds that you can find online.

Now we want you to concentrate and take your time to investigate the table below because it contains information about some of the largest world tournaments, their locations and payouts. Later on, we will explore the best online Esports betting sites in detail just wait to see.

League/Tournament Nation Continent Payout %
CS Summit Europe Europe Europe 93.49%
Professional League Europe Europe 93.40%
ESEA Advanced Europe Europe Europe 93.09%
CS Summit North America USA North America 92.89%
Dota Pit League Europe Europe 92.55%
Global Starcraft 2 League Worldwide Worldwide 92.23%
Parimatch League Russia Europe/Asia 92.61%
Perfect World Asia League Asia Asia 92.46%

We cannot say where most of the tournaments are held because the truth is that there are electronic games fans all around the globe. Still, from an overall perspective, we can point to North America, Europe, and Asia as the 3 top gaming continents. It follows that these continents have the biggest interest towards Esports betting too.

Leagues and Tournaments

There are many tournaments and leagues across the world followed and watched by millions of players and gaming fans. But not all are top Esport betting options and some are more popular to wager on than others.

Some of the tournaments are global, and they have events all around the globe while others are held in specific places each year. Similar to all horse racing events, some tournaments have bigger prizes than others, let us tell you more about them now.

CS:GO Summit – Europe & North America

They are organized each year in different places but usually super large halls where many computers and large screens can be stationed because this is one of the most high-tech summits of our time. Thanks to Coronavirus in 2020, tournaments were entirely set online because of all flying and travelling restrictions.

Dota Pit League

Dota Pit is a very famous tournament where different teams from all parts of the world compete for the pool prize of $120,000+. This means the sum will be split between 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th place or 45%, 25%, 18% and 12% according to the place. This is also one of the fanciest Esports betting tournaments.

Global Starcraft 2 League

Also known as GSL, the Global Starcraft 2 League organizes many tournaments each year. Its origin comes from South Korea, but events are held all around the globe. Let’s say that this tournament is more of a tradition nowadays because in 2020 it made its first decade, which for a computer game is a serious achievement.

Perfect World Asia League

This is an Asian CS:GO tournament which runs every summer and has a prize pool of $100,000 split between the first four places in the competition. Not only in Asia, but all around the world this tournament is considered a great Esports Betting opportunity.

Best Esports Betting Sites

Earlier in this article, we told you that we would familiarise you with the best Esport betting sites that you can find on the web. Have in mind that all of them provide additional services like online casinos, lotteries together with all types of sports betting from horse racing to table tennis.

Find below the Top Esports Online bookmakers for 2024:
Last updated: February 08, 2024
Welcome Bonus Pros and Cons Test Score Trusted Link Terms
£50 Huge Platform Reputable Operator No PayPal 100% www.bet365.com Full T&Cs apply. 18+. New customers only. Registration Required. Min deposit $5. Bet Credits available to use upon settlement of bets to value of qualifying deposit. Min odds, bets and payment methods exclusions apply. Returns exclude Bet Credits stake. Time limits and full Terms and Conditions apply.
$20 Reputable Operator VIP Club Fewer Selection of Game & Bets 99% www.williamhill.com
$200 Great Mobile App Many Jackpots Cons 98% www.888sport.com
£100 Good Bonuses Nice Live Features Simple Design 98% www.22bet.com Full T&Cs apply. 18+. New customers only. Enter bonus code 50SPORT when making first deposit and wager your deposit once on betting markets with odds of at least 1.65 within 30 days. Activated bonus carries wagering conditions of 10 times. Min odds 1.65. Full Terms and Conditions apply.

If you open any of these top 5 Esports betting websites, you will see that they usually combine all possible online gambling operations in one. Some of them provide amazing mobile apps for easier and quicker access for their players and loyal customers. You won’t get bored we can guarantee you that.

Betting Offers & Bonuses

Now let’s take our attention to the Esports betting offers and their specifications. A welcome bonus is something that must grab your attention, but you need to be aware of several more things before you make your first deposit. Payment methods are extremely important because you need a convenient way to either deposit or withdraw money from your account.

The below-mentioned Esports betting promotions are gathered from the best betting websites that we specifically reviewed and checked. Never forget to check the wagering requirement even though for sports betting it is usually 1x. It is essential to know everything about it before you deposit real money.

Esport Betting Site Bonus* Wagering Requirement Min Odds Min Deposit Top Payment Method T&C
bet365 Up to £50 1x 1.20 £10 paysafecard Full T&Cs apply. 18+. New customers only. Registration Required. Min deposit $5. Bet Credits available to use upon settlement of bets to value of qualifying deposit. Min odds, bets and payment methods exclusions apply. Returns exclude Bet Credits stake. Time limits and full Terms and Conditions apply.
Unibet Up to $250 1x 1.33 $10 PayPal
William Hill Up to $20 1x Deposit + Bonus n/a $10 Neteller
888sport Up to $200 1x 1.50 $20 MasterCard

Choosing which operator to proceed with is more of a personal matter because it really depends on your individual preferences. Preferences about colour, design, functionalities, banking , mobile compatibility and many other small details. Of course, some of you may look for other suggestions to bet on, for example, many boxing fans will prefer to know which are the best boxing betting websites.

Esports Live Betting

Live betting became popular in the last decade. You can watch live Esports events online and bet on them as they happen. This can add extra excitement as you watch your favorite Esports events.

Top for Live Betting

888sport
Up to $200 Free Bets

Of course, probably you already figured that out, but American football fans can also take advantage of this feature. So if you are a fan of both Esports and American football, just find the operator that displays them both and have fun!

Esports Apps for Betting

There is nothing more convenient than placing a bet when you are on the go. Esports Betting apps make life easier for anyone who wants to place a bet when they are not at home.

Best ESport App

Bet365
Bet £10 and get £50 In Free Bets

There are two ways to bet with your smart phone. Either through your mobile web browser and or with a dedicated app that you can locate in the marketplace of your phone operator. Betting apps are usually compatible with both iOS and Android.

Speaking of functionalities, there are no big differences between desktop and mobile betting sites. You can choose and do either Esports or tennis betting or pretty much any sport or game you can think of.

New Betting Sites – What is New?

There is always a new opportunity around the corner and new betting sites often enter the market. Remember though, these sites don’t have a long track record and you should only trust sites that you know are 100% safe.

For your convenience, we review Esports betting sites and only recommend them if they are safe to use. We know the best and the worst practices of online gambling and the names of the authorities that you can trust. We also investigate the background of each website including the legal state of gambling in the country in question.

Esports Betting Across the Globe

Esports are played all over the world, and in the quarantine period, interest in video games raised exponentially. As interest in Esports grows, so will interest in betting on them. Most countries recognise electronic games as sports, but others don’t, take a look at the table below:

Country Legal Age Online Esports Betting
United States – 21 states 21+ Yes
Canada 18+/19+ Yes
Germany 18+ Yes
South Africa 18+ Yes
Nigeria 18+ Yes
Italy 18+ Yes

You need to be careful where you place your trust because online you can find many tempting offers. The best you can do is trust us because our job is to help you out, teach you how to sort platforms and show you the best of them.

Tips & Strategies of Betting

Everything in this world has its “know-how” or a way to make it quicker, more precise or just better thanks too known practices. Well, now we intend to show you some of the most commonly used Esports betting strategies and tips that you can find online.

  • Know the game
  • Investigate the players & teams
  • Check the list of available bets
  • Check previous tournaments and the winners there
  • Check for new updates of the game in question
  • Read the feedback and comments online regarding your bet
  • Take a look of the odds and payouts in different operators

These are just essential tips and advice that you can follow on any sport and any bet. Right now on the table below, we will show you some of the most successful and commonly used Esports betting strategies that you can find online and that can help you increase your winning chances.

Strategy Explanation
Use Cash Out Commonly used in sports betting. If you bet on a team and they are doing well at the very beginning of the game, you can cash out and take some profit. You can also cut your losses bail out if you think your side of the bet is a sure loser.
Bet on Totals This is another commonly used technique to expand your winnings. But you need to have a bit of luck and a lot of knowledge about the teams and the game. You can bet on the total number of kills, towers taken, total deaths and many other small details.
Larger Odds & Smaller Bets You can try to place smaller amounts on more complicated bets like Accumulator. The chances are slim, but the amount that you can eventually get is more than satisfying.
Bet on Smaller Tournaments Have in mind that for all big contests, betting operators are well prepared, and they investigate all teams and odds thoroughly. While when speaking of smaller tournaments, they don’t pay such massive attention because the interest towards them is respectively lower.
Do Your Research This is essential for newcomers and even for experienced players. Esports betting combines your game skills and knowledge with your knowledge regarding the best teams in the world in that game. Knowing small details will help you place your bets in a better and more successful way.

The truth is that Esports betting is a relatively new type of betting that has existed only for the last decade and it develops and changes fast. There are many new releases constantly and the interest in available games is frequently switching. The same goes for the top teams and the pro players in them. If you look at the best horse racing betting, you will see that new players and tracks don’t occur so frequently like with Esports.

History of Esports Betting

Esports is one of the most fast developing and modern sports along with skate, surf and snowboarding. But compared with those outdoor sports, Esports has developed literally in the past 20 years.

Technology has evolved to a sky-high level, and the level of equipment and services nowadays are fantastic. In 2010 the first Esports betting was already a fact thanks to the tremendous development of internet and global networks, allowing multiple players from all parts of the world.

Esports Betting History Timeline
2010 Pinnacle allowed its users to bet on Esports for the first time in history.
2017 The Intel Extreme Masters tournament had over 45 million views, and it was the most-watched sports event in 2017.
Nowadays Nowadays, Esports are gathering more and more fans as technology develops further. We honestly cannot say what we can expect from the future.

Where there are fans of a new game or sport there can be new betting markets. Bookmakers saw the potential of Esports and capitalized – especially as interest grew during the pandemic. Now not only sports fans but computer geeks can gamble and win. But of course, don’t forget that there are many other sports and many other great sports betting opportunities that you should not underestimate.

Final Thoughts – Conclusion

If you still wonder which of our top Esports betting websites to use, take your time to explore them because each Esports betting website has its own strong points. Which one you choose will come down to more of a personal preference and your individual betting style.

Top Offer

22Bet
100% up to $250 Sports Betting

Esports is a fast-growing sector and bookmakers are willing to offer an increasing amount of markets for gamblers to place a wager. The bookmakers that offer good odds on Esports are likely to also offer good odds on other sports. Here are the best football betting sites so you can compare.

FAQ

To be even easier for you, we decided to gather the most common queries related to Esports betting and place them here with short answers. Take a look at the questions below to read about the most common topics people ask about.

1. What is the best online Esports betting site?

Well, it is hard to say because the choice is based on many factors and most of all your preferences. We can show you which are the best ESports betting sites, so you can check them, learn more about them and then choose one based on your personal vision of how you want it to look and what functionalities you seek.

2. What is Esports betting?

Esports betting is like any other sports betting and even its Esports betting terms and bets are similar. Electronic games are the new mecca for all gamers, and nowadays they attract big audiences. As more people watch electronic sports, the bigger the interest in Esports betting will be.

3. Esports betting odds and how it works?

How much you are about to win depends entirely on mainly three factors, while we can combine two of them. The Esports betting odds and payouts are organized based on the skills of the teams, previous games, and what are the current predictions and expectations for the upcoming match. It also depends on the operator itself, because they quite often have similar but slightly different payout percentages.

4. Is there a way to bet live on Esports?

Yes, there is a way to bet live on Esports. You can watch the event and bet at the same time as the action takes place. For your convenience, we prepared the best live betting app

5. Are there any Esports betting strategies and tips?

Of course. We have prepared a full list of the best Esports betting tips so you can choose how to bet based on the situation at that current moment. Don’t forget that sports betting sometimes can be very complicated and knowledge about the games and teams is needed if you want to succeed .

Matt Speakman, Betting Expert at online-gambling.com
Matt Speakman

Matt Speakman is a Connecticut-born and raised betting expert with a soft spot for the Patriots. He is also a proud member of the online-gambling.com team. You can read his articles on a broad range of topics, including sports betting and DFS.

Back to top