In this review of the best eSports betting sites, our experts show you exactly which bookmakers are the best for complete coverage of the sport. Here we also explore the best eSports markets, betting promotions, odds, and more.
With the likes of Fortnite, Rocket League, Apex Legends, Valorant and Counter-Strike: GO action commonly streamed online, the popularity of eSports has opened up plenty of betting opportunities. This guide will explore all the different betting markets including map betting and total kills. Find out more in our full guide below.
After browsing through many online sportsbooks, here are our top three sites to go and hit up for the best eSports betting site experience. These are all fully licensed, safe platforms to go and explore today.
Ladbrokes are on the best eSports betting site list because they are a good all-rounder. They bring reliable odds and decent market variety, like Map Winner and Correct Score options from the likes of CS:GO, LOL, and Dota 2.
Ladbrokes is one of the top live streaming betting sites where you can watch games on desktop or mobile devices, and that includes watch options for some of their eSports markets. This is ideal to complement your live in-play options, which is a perk that not all sites offer for eSports.
Ladbrokes is also a good first stop for finding eSports Futures from events like the ESL Pro and Six Invitational. They also tend to price up match odds early, even a couple of days in advance. Ladbrokes also provides a daily odds boost for a bet of your choice that can be put towards eSports options.
We admit that the NEO.bet site might not be the most appealing upon first glance, but in terms of sheer market variety, it’s hard to beat NEO.bet as one of the top eSports betting sites. They pull in markets from all around the world for top titles like League of Legends, Call of Duty, Valorant, and Starcraft 2.
The eSports section is neatly organized by game title within its own tab that is separate from the main sports betting area. From there, you can explore the ‘Top Leagues’ or see a full A-Z of listings to get to big competitions like ESL Pro or The International. A great feature of NEO.bet eSports betting is that the Money Line, Winner Map, Spread, Total, and Correct Score markets are all listed for matches on the main hub.
That cuts down on a lot of extra clicking around, as there are no individual match pages. Instead, the full list of betting options (an average of 11, for example, on LoL matches) shows in the sidebar. While there aren’t live streamed matches for eSports here, there are exemplary statistics, like their form tracker, which shows teams’ recent results.
One of the eye-catching things about the 20Bet eSports betting site is the number of live matches they cover. If you are dipping into the CDL Major or the Lol Worlds for League of Legends, you are going to get great coverage.
There are around 10+ bet options per eSports fixture for most titles. League of Legends markets are particularly impressive with Total Maps, Correct Score (in maps), and Handicaps. 20Bet has a VIP Sports Club, where your sports bets earn points that can be turned into free bets.
We applaud 20Bet for giving each eSport its own section instead of grouping them all together broadly, which makes it easy to navigate to the one you want specifically. Another great touch is in-depth eSports stats for a fixture, covering recent results and any pertinent head-to-head records. However you won’t find eSports streaming here either.
Whether or not betting on eSports is legal all depends on where in the world you live.
If you are gambling in the United Kingdom, betting on eSports is totally legal as long as the bookmaker has the relevant gambling licence in order to operate.
It is a little bit different if you are gambling in the United States of America. The states in which betting on eSports is 100% legal are Nevada, New Jersey, Tennessee and West Virginia.
Some stakes are a little bit more restricted when it comes to eSports gambling. The following states regulate their eSports betting. They are Arkansas, Delaware, New York, Iowa, Illinois, Michigan, Rhode Island, Montana, New Mexico, Oregon and Pennsylvania.
The regulations for these states mean that players are allowed to gamble on eSports, although there are specific rules and restrictions they have to follow.
eSports betting has taken off in recent years and has become a mainstream feature of bookmaker sites. But what exactly are the types of eSports betting opportunities that you can find?
Here is a selection of some of the most popular games for betting found at the best eSport betting sites:
A huge multiplayer online battle area (MOBA) game where players control a ‘champion’. Champions have different skills, and the goal of the 5×5 team game is to become the first to destroy the opposition’s enemy base.
Another of the behemoth titles of eSports is Dota 2, another MOBA with two teams of five. The goal is to destroy the opposition’s ‘Ancient’ structure in a fascinating blend of action and real-time strategy.
In CS:GO, the opposing teams have different objectives. One team has a goal of destruction and terror; the other takes on the role of rescuing hostages and trying to negate the overall threat in a terrorist vs. counter-terrorist strategy game.
Set in the future, Valorant is a 5×5 multiplayer game, another team-based eSports game that is separate in attacking and defending sides. The attacking teams plant a “spike,” and the defending site has to stop it from happening.
| Fortnite | A creative, visually stunning multiplayer battleground |
| Starcraft 2 | A real-time space-themed strategy game |
| FIFA eSoccer | Professional eSports on the popular FIFA soccer title |
| NBA eBasketball | Basketball action on the court |
| PUBG | A multiplayer battle royale, with a teams feature |
| Apex Legends | A battle royale-hero game |
| Rocket League | A competitive soccer game played with vehicles |
| Overwatch | A last-man-standing game, which can also played in teams |
Every game title may not be featured at a given site, but that is where eSports betting markets add real flavour to the mix. While the match outright winner market for matches is still the most common way to go, scenarios arise where a highly-ranked team faces a heavy underdog.
There may not always be favourable odds on an outright market, even though you are at a leading betting site. However, the advantage of playing at a top eSports bookmaker is the market variety within each title, so you can explore other betting value options.
Each round of a match in a title like CS:GO is called a Map. Matches are usually the best of three or the best of five. You can bet on what the final score on the maps will be.
An alternative to the correct score option for betting on eSports is the handicaps option. It could be giving a team a -1.5 map handicap to overcome, for example.
Before a match has started, you can select which team will win the first map of the contest, and sometimes pre-match options can be found for Map 2, Map 3, etc.
Another approach to Map eSports betting is picking the over/under line on how many will be played in total in an eSports encounter.
Some betting options appear for First Kill. This is backing which team will be the first to strike down an opponent in a match.
Ideally, your betting site should uncover markets in a wide range of gaming titles, and that includes major competitions. The most common type of eSports betting opportunities that you will find are from regular league or competition matches.
It is a little trickier to find outright betting markets for eSports tournaments and leagues. But you can find huge coverage of individual matches, and from a betting perspective, it’s not just all about the winner of a match, either. The leading eSports betting sites will have a lot more to offer than that.
Features can add a lot to the overall eSports betting experience that you get at a leading betting site. These additional aspects can not only help with strategy but can also add a lot of value to your eSports betting.
The best live betting sites have plenty of in-play eSports coverage. This is mostly limited to the same markets that are found pre-match, but sometimes it can be expanded to things like Next Map Winner or Next Kill.
Streaming and gaming pretty much go hand in hand. Some leading eSports betting sites, like Ladbrokes, have gotten on board and provide live eSports streams of matches. That’s perfect to sit along with the live match odds.
You will find that many of the leading eSports betting sites also have cash-out options on eSports markets. It’s a great feature to look out for, as you can opt to close out a bet early if you receive a cash-out offer.
Don’t underestimate the value of stats and results for eSports markets at betting sites. Like any other sport, looking at recent form and how a team’s performances have been trending can tell you a lot about which way to bet.
With eSports, you can get right into the thick of the action by live streaming the video games you are betting on.
Yes, you can live stream traditional sports like soccer, horse racing and cricket, but because of TV rights and legalities, not every single sporting event is available to watch live. This is the next best thing.
eSports players will video stream their matches or events live online and it is a way of building their fan base – which is larger than you think.
These matches can be streamed live on a number of betting websites. It is important you check out which bookmaker website has the best streams available and what events you can regularly bet on.
For eSports betting, bonuses can add some extra value to your options. With a bit of creativity and know-how, you can land yourself some nice returns through the best betting bonuses for eSports.
All sites have some kind of welcome bonus offer that you can snap up. The bonus from them, usually free bets, can be applied to eSports betting markets.
Rewards clubs can put something back on your side as well for your eSports betting. By meeting the weekly wagering requirements, free bets can be earned through this type of promotion.
While you may not directly see many enhanced odds boosts for eSports betting markets, some sites credit boost tokens to your account. The advantage of these is that they can then be used on an eSports bet of your choice.
If you build eSports accumulators from markets like the match winner, then look for the top online betting sites that will pay out a win boost on a successful multiple bet.
Below is a table showing the recent odds for a Call of Duty League tournament with a number of battles taking place. The odds show the different prices from some of the best betting sites for eSports.
| Call Of Duty League | Home Odds | Away Odds |
|---|---|---|
| Seattle Surge vs Toronto Ultra | 7/2 Bet365 | 1/7 William Hill |
| Carolina Royal Ravens vs LA Guerrillas | 4/9 BetMGM | 8/5 BetUK |
| Miami Heat vs OpTic Texas | 6/1 Betway | 7/100 Betway |
| Boston Breach vs Los Angeles Thieves | 13/8 Bet365 | 4/9 BetMGM |
It is difficult when you are looking for a top eSports betting site to fulfil your eSports needs. It is easy to go with the global brands that we all know, but you might be missing out.
Some of the lesser-named brands tend to try harder to get noticed, but that is not a bad thing. They put in the extra work in an attempt to break through some barriers.
Every online bookmaker needs an edge to get ahead. Not everyone likes betting on eSports – actually not everyone understands it. It is still seen as a niche market and a lot of bookmakers would prefer to concentrate on the regular sports like soccer, horse racing, cricket, rugby league and boxing.
Thinking and looking outside the box can be crucial in choosing the right eSports betting site for you.
Depositing and withdrawing funds at the top eSports betting sites is quite simple. Using a debit card is the most popular way, but bettors now have more choice with the rise of digital payments and e-wallets.
Apple Pay allows you to pay for items conveniently from your Apple devices such as iPhones, iPads, Apple Macs and Apple Watches. When you set up Apple Pay you will add your preferred payment method – credit and debit cards – to your device and you can then pay for items without needing to refer to those cards.
Neteller is a digital wallet that can be used for online transactions and contactless payments. There are a number of top eSports betting sites that accept Neteller as a payment method and it allows you to make deposits and withdrawals. Neteller is used in over 150 countries worldwide.
Trustly is not an e-wallet or even a payment card. Trustly is a form of facilitator that allows you to move your money in and out of your chosen bank account. There is no sign-up required to get involved with Trustly. Trustly is there to give eSports players a simple funding method that is easy to understand and quick.
Google Pay is a fast, secure and very simple mobile payment service that allows you to make hassle-free contactless payments from your Android device. To get started to be able to use this at most popular betting sites for eSports, you will need to ensure that your bank accounts and debit cards are compatible with Google Pay.
PayPal offers online payments for bettors using the top eSports betting sites. This system allows you to deposit and withdraw funds in a safe and fast manner. PayPal operates worldwide and is reported to have over 360 million active accounts. This includes customers who use the best eSports betting sites with PayPal.
Some bookmakers are now using cryptocurrencies as a form of basement which has led to people searching for the best Bitcoin eSports betting sites. Bitcoin allows people to safely send digital currency over the internet.
The kind of experience you get at any of the best eSports betting sites will depend on which one you are at. One of the big benefits of better-quality sportsbooks is primarily getting the required coverage of markets, coupled with fair market odds.
Arguably, one of the biggest downsides when betting on eSports is that streaming of events can be sporadic. Another area is finding that eSports promotions are not particularly common.
Sometimes, to get the best full coverage, it may be an option to sign up with more than one of the best eSports betting sites. That way, you can play with odds comparisons and features. With all that said and done, it’s time to ease over into our final thoughts about the best eSports betting sites.
You can securely slide into eSports betting at Ladbrokes, NEO.bet, and 20Bet, our highest-ranked bookmakers for this genre. Each has superb coverage of titles like Dota 2 and CS:GO, with fantastic Maps and Handicap betting in particular, coupled with highly competitive odds.
Live betting and live streaming are strong among our top picks, with the latter being a major element of eSports betting and gaming in general. Another thing we like about the bookmakers on our list is their high-quality results and statistics services, which can help boost selections. Additional value through the likes of free bet welcome bonuses and price boosts just clicks everything nicely into place.
When eSports started to filter through to the world of betting, many people thought it was a fad and that it would be over in a couple of years.
It looks like eSports is here to stay.
The global eSports audience is expected to grow each year by over 8%. China, USA and Brazil currently lead the way when it comes to eSports, but it will not be too long until the other countries are catching up.
Some experts believe that we are living in a golden age of eSports. With the expansion into mobile gaming as well as Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR), eSports gaming and gambling is only going to get better.
New games are released every week and with franchises like Call of Duty, Fortnite, Rocket League and EA Football, the interest is never going to die down.
As long as computer games are being made there will be people wanting to play them. And as long as people are playing them online, then there will be others who want to bet on it.
It is both safe and legal to bet on eSports. Use online betting sites that are licensed for your safety, as they will provide security tools like encryption.
Many leading titles, from LoL, Dota 2, and CS:GO to electronic sports titles like FIFA eSoccer and NBA eBasketball events.
A number of bookmakers now provide live streaming of eSports. Betway allows you to watch and place in-play bets at the same time with special eSports boost offers.
At some sites like Ladbrokes, yes. The variety and quality of streams may vary greatly between different eSports betting sites.
Among the most common eSports markets are the match winner, handicaps, and map winner options.
Absolutely. Look for the Futures markets at the best sports bookmakers to find tournament winner options.
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