Sports betting is big news across the US, especially in terms of which states are or are not legalizing the activity. Since May 18, 2018, the day when the United States Supreme Court allowed states themselves to decide whether to legalize online sports betting, 31 states have given sports fans what they want.
With each new state legalizing this type of online betting, countless betting operators are doing their best to get a piece of the action, as well as offering sports betting bonuses. Those who do so have to compete with others to get customers.
What is one of the most effective ways to achieve that? Come up with attractive welcome bonuses, and it’s those we’re talking about today.
What is the Purpose of Welcome Bonuses?
Have you ever seen how busy a bar gets when they run a promotion offering one free drink for every person who enters? That, in a nutshell, is why online sportsbooks offer welcome bonuses. It’s to get paying customers through the door. They’re also hoping bettors will stick around and spend a lot of money over time.
Of course, a bar, or in this case, an online sportsbook, would not need to run a promotion like that if they were the only ones in town. Competition is the main reason why online sportsbook welcome bonuses exist. Sports betting is a huge industry that’s only getting bigger, and these betting platforms are fighting for as many sign-ups as they can get.
And who benefits from this battle for new sign-ups? We, the sports bettors as we can now reap the rewards of as many welcome bonus deals as they like by creating accounts on sportsbooks.
What Types of Welcome Bonuses Are There?
Now that we know what they’re for let’s get into the different types of welcome bonuses that are waiting for us at online sports betting sites across the land.
No Deposit Bonuses
Although rare, no-deposit bonuses are often handed out to players who do nothing more than create an account at an online sportsbook. As you might have guessed by the name of this type of bonus, no deposit is required.
We can grab these bonuses without spending any money, which is probably why they’re quite rare, as essentially, the sportsbooks are handing away money for free.
Speaking of money, often, no-deposit bonuses come in the form of small amounts of cash. Alternatively, you might receive a free bet of a certain size. Whichever you get, there’s always going to be wagering requirements for this kind of bonus.
That is one way a sportsbook can prevent the abuse of the promotion. Generally, you will have to bet that cash or any winnings from a free bet a set number of times before you can withdraw your winnings.
The terms and conditions will usually state minimum odds bets you can use to wager the bonus cash and also break down any other rules you’ll need to be aware of.
Match Deposit Bonuses
The most common sports betting bonuses you’ll come across when registering at online sportsbooks are match deposit bonuses. These give you a match of your first deposit as a percentage. For example, if you deposit $50 and claim a 100% up to $100 match deposit, you’ll receive $50 bonus funds on top of your $50 deposit. That’s $100 to bet with for the price of $50.
That percentage obviously differs across the many sites and their bonus offers. Some may offer a 50% match, while you could receive 200% or even 300% on top of your deposits in some cases.
As we touched on with no deposit bonuses, you’ll often have to adhere to wagering requirements when claiming a deposit match deal. From our experience, these can require you to wager your bonus funds between 5 and 40 times over.
Free Bet Bonuses
Free bets are another welcome bonus some sites give in return for creating an account and making a deposit. These are generally lower in value than match deposit bonuses, but their also straightforward, which is something some bettors prefer. Simply grab your free bet, choose what you want to wager it on, and hope for the best.
Wagering requirements come into play with this bonus, just like they do the others. We recommend you learn about those rollover requirements and any other bonus rules before you claim, as some bonuses are easier to wager than others.
Grab Your Sports Betting Bonuses and Enjoy!
Hopefully you’re now well-versed on the different bonus offers you can find when looking for new sportsbooks to enjoy. What we would recommend, is comparing what each platform is offering before you decide which to grab. Not just how they look at face value but also their wagering requirements and other stipulations, such as how long you have to wager the bonus and whether there is a cap on winnings.