Most online sportsbooks offer gamblers a bonus and there are different types of bonuses available. All of them work in a way to provide you with additional betting funds you can use to bet on your favourite sports. However, they are different types of promotions and below you will find an explanation of the various free bets and bonus you can claim online.
The question is, are free bets actually free? In many cases, you are required to add your own funds before you will be awarded a free bet, meaning it is not 100% free. There may be some online sportsbooks who will provide a small free bet without any deposit having to be made but this is rare. The majority of online sportsbooks will ask you to complete a specific task in order to qualify for the free bet or promotion.
Matched deposit bonuses are a good example and as the name suggests, the amount of money you deposit into your account, will be matched by the sportsbook. These are usually offered to new customers and are available on the first deposit. For example, you might have an online sportsbook that offers you a 100% matched bet deposit up to $150. So, if you placed a first deposit of $20, this would be matched and the sportsbook would give you $20 in bet tokens. However, if you deposited $200, the amount of bonus you received would be $150, as this is the maximum amount set by the sportsbook.
The deposits are usually required to be above a minimum amount set by the sportsbook but if you are planning on having a few wagers anyway, it makes sense to try and claim the maximum amount available.
Some online sportsbooks will offer a refund if your first bet loses. This is often labelled as a risk-free betting offer and some even offer a $500 risk-free bet, so be sure to check gamble-usa.com for these offers. So, if you join an online sportsbook with this offer and your first bet is a winner, you claim your winnings as normal and nothing else happens. However, if your first bet loses, you are covered by the risk-free bet promotion and will receive a refund on that bet. You must check the terms and conditions at each sportsbook to see how the funds will be distributed as it could be in the form of bonus cash, site credit, or a free bet.
It is worth remembering that if you decide to take full advantage of the risk-free bet bonus, you may not receive the money back in cash and withdraw the funds back to your bank account. In most cases, it will be available for you to use again on the sportsbook.
Another of the popular online sportsbook bonuses is the matched bet. This is similar to the matched deposit offer highlighted above but is based on amount of the first wager placed, rather than the amount of the deposit. For example, the offer could be bet $50 and receive five $10 free bets. There are usually time restrictions on this type of bonus and you may have to meet specific requirements when placing the initial bet, such as betting on odds of 1.50 or more.
It is important to always read the terms and conditions before making a deposit or placing a bet with the intention of claiming a bonus.
