How to Bet at Online Sportsbooks

Betting on sports is one of the most entertaining ways that you can gamble online. There are plenty of different ways to go about it, but nothing beats a major online sportsbook. Such a site will also likely serve up casino games and perhaps even a few bingo games to boot. If you’re used to spinning the reels of slots and playing a few hands of blackjack and want to bet on sports, too, these are the ideal venues for you

What if you aren’t too familiar with sports betting, but want to try? There are precious few guides which tell you how to go about that. Fortunately, you’d just stumbled onto one here. Read on, and we’ll show you how to set up a bet on your favourite sporting events online.

First, You Need an Online Sportsbooks Account

Before you can place any sports bets, you’re going to need an account at a sportsbook. We’d recommend choosing an online bookie which also has casino games. If there is nothing to bet on (no sports event which tickles your fancy), you can have a crack at casino games (perhaps even bingo and poker games) all from one account. It beats having to sign into several different accounts.

The UK has a great selection of leading all-in-one betting sites which cover both sports betting and casino games. We’d recommend any of the ones which appear on this page for starters, as they are amongst the best in the business.

Browse Your Betting Markets

Once you have an account and you’re signed in, you can make your way over to the online sportsbook’s lobby. From there, you will likely see a vast array of sports betting events which are due to start imminently. They will likely be in the centre of the page. However, away to the left-hand side (usually), or perhaps across the top of the lobby, you will be able to navigate to specific markets.

The best online sportsbooks will cover all major markets, from football to table tennis and everything in-between. When you have found a market (sport) that you wish to bet on, click on it. What follows next are a series of criteria to narrow down the search to a specific bet. After clicking on a market, you can then break that down into nations or competitions, to find the specific sports match or game you’re after. These will now appear in the centre of the page, whether the upcoming games used to be.

Adjust Your Settings

Most online sportsbooks favour one type of odds over another. There are typically three you can choose from at most websites, namely American, Fractional and Decimal. Some sports work better with American odds (American football, for instance), while others work better with Fractional (horse racing) and Decimal (football) odds. You are free to adjust the odds you use as you see fit, but this should be done before you bet. It is worth learning about the other two odds formats you may not be familiar with, to become a more seasoned sports bettor.

Pick Your Poison

With your odds format adjusted, you can now see sporting events you selected display odds which you are comfortable with. The next thing you need to do is click on the sports match (the bet) which interests you. Doing so will see it added to your betting slip, which will often be displayed on the right-hand side of the screen.

You can add anything you want to your betting slip but bear in mind that anything you add to it will count as one bet. If you were to add two matches or games to the slip then bet, you need to win them both. It is, therefore, better that you create new betting slips for individual bets unless you plan on placing an accumulator bet.

Once your bet is on the betting slip, you can adjust your stake. The amount you put in as your stake will increase or decrease the amount you can win. These should be shown as “potential winnings” on the betting slip. If you’re comfortable with your stake, your bet and the potential amount you can win, you can place the bet. The stake you’ve wagered is then deducted from your balance, and the bet is placed.

Follow the Action

Now that you have a bet placed, you can follow the action. Some major online sportsbooks allow you to watch the action unfold as it happens, via a live stream. Others instead permit players to view stats centres and may offer text commentary to keep them in the loop. Of course, you could always watch the game on television or on your computer.

It is worth noting that some bookies permit live betting, too. These types of bets can be adjusted as the game is played out, and some permit early cashout. In short, you can withdraw your winnings early (before something ruins your result), at a much-reduced rate. Live betting is a story for another day, though.

Track Your History

You will know if you have won because your sportsbook balance will have increased. If it hasn’t, then you’ve probably lost. If you want to check (to be sure), you can do that. All top online sportsbooks have a betting history page. From there, you can examine all the bets you have ever made and see if they are active or not. Any inactive bets have been resolved. Bets which are still “active” have not yet been processed, so this might explain why you don’t have your winnings yet. Checking your betting history is good to do, either way. It helps you keep tabs on how you’ve been betting, and what did or didn’t go your way.

So, now that you know a bit about how to bet on online sportsbooks, perhaps you’re ready for the real thing? Browse this site, and you’ll find plenty of top sportsbooks and casinos to choose from. All come highly recommended and make great, fair and secure places to wager on your favourite sports matches.

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