One of the biggest draws for punters to sign up with online sports betting sites is the availability of lucrative bonuses. You can’t walk into a Las Vegas sports bar and expect the bookies to match your bet dollar for dollar, but at an online sports betting site, you can!
Sports betting bonuses come in several forms. We’ll detail the most common types of sports betting bonuses below.
Free Sports Bet
The “Free Bet” is a common sports betting bonus awarded to new members when they first join an online sportsbook and make their first deposit. The free bet will be a 100% match of your initial deposit, up to a specified amount. For example, you may be offered up to $100 in free sports betting cash. By making a first time deposit of $100 or more, you would receive the maximum $100 free bet.
You can then use your free sports betting cash to place a wager on whatever sporting event or bet type you like. Bovada usually offers a Free $20 bet and JustBet offer a Free $10 mobile bet.
Not all sports betting “free bet” bonuses are alike. One may give you a small free trial bet that does not even require a deposit. Another may match your first deposit at 25%, 50%, 60%, etc. It may even be a preset amount of free betting cash, regardless of the amount of your deposit (i.e. $20 free bet with your first deposit). Be sure to read the details of the “free bet” sports betting bonus before claiming the bonus.
Reload Deposit Bonuses
Once a punter has spent a certain amount of time, or made a prerequisite amount in deposits, they may be eligible for reload deposit bonuses. These are much like free bet bonuses, but they are not offered on the member’s initial deposit; rather to existing members with a history of loyalty at the sports betting site.
You may receive a percentage-based match bonus on your next deposit, such as 50% up to $200. Since these sports betting bonuses are offered to existing members who have already met the criteria to receive them, you can expect to find the offer in your email inbox rather than on the promotions page. Be sure you can receive email from the online sports betting site in order to receive the promotion code required to claim the bonus on your next deposit. The current leader with this bonus is BetOnline.ag – they offer a 25% reload bonus on every deposit for life!
Reduced Juice Bonus
“Juice” is the commission a punter pays in order to place a bet on sports. Many sports betting sites will offer “reduced juice” (a lower commission) on certain bet types, or a specific sporting event. This information should be found on the promotions page of the sports betting site, and is often advertised directly on the front page to encourage more bettors to take advantage of the offer. I have found that 5Dimes sportsbook offers the best lines.
For example, a sports betting site might normally charge 10% commission on NFL wagers, but during the playoffs, since NFL would become one of the most popular sports bets at that time, the site might offer reduced juice on all NFL wagers.
