One of the most anticipated StarCraft 2 tournaments is just around the corner, with the world's best players getting ready to fight for their share of $500,000 in prize money.
A legendary esports event, the Intel Extreme Masters (IEM) Katowice is a CS:GO tournament held in Poland. In this guide, we'll go over all the participating teams, details about the schedule, as well as everything you need to know about IEM CS:GO betting!
The Dota Pro Circuit is in full flow. The next big tournament in this seasonal circuit is the PGL Arlington Major. Texas is the location, Esports Stadium Arlington is the venue of choice, and seventeen brilliant Dota 2 teams will be eyeing their chances here.
The LEC (League of Legends European Championship) is entering a new decade starting with the inaugural Winter split. From team rosters to an all-new tournament format, the league will be seeing much more competition.
Esports free bets allow you to place wagers on matches or tournaments without using your own money. Pretty good, right? Read our expert guide to learn how to use them and where to find the best esports freebies of 2024!
Latest offer
Up to €30 in Free Bets
Welcome Offer
100% up to €100
Bet €10 Get €30
Up To €40 Money Back
Up to €100 in extra winnings on first sport bet
Free bets are a little extra perk for bettors to enjoy, handed out by top bookmakers as a reward for signing up or available as an ongoing promotion for existing customers.
As such, they may form part of a welcome bonus or be offered periodically to registered punters who like to consistently bet on esports. Free bets can also be awarded as a gesture of appreciation when you bet on top games, including CS:GO or League of Legends.
While these offers may not appear as lucrative as other promotions, they are a great way of enhancing your bankroll as a new customer or if you're new to online betting as a whole.
In most cases, free bets are worth up to 30 or 40 EUR, GBP, or USD for your first deposit.
Esports free bets and welcome bonuses are two types of promotional offers commonly offered by online betting sites.
As we have already mentioned above, punters can use free bets to place wagers without having to use their own funds. These free bets usually have certain terms and conditions attached to them, such as minimum odds or wagering requirements, and are often given as a reward for signing up, customer loyalty, or as a special promotion in itself. Of course, there is almost always a catch involved – you would still need to make a deposit in order to claim the offer, for example.
On the other hand, welcome bonuses are typically given to new users when they sign up for a betting platform. Now, these bonuses may very well include free bets as well, but also frequently appear in the form of deposit bonuses or other types of incentives to encourage new users to try out the platform.
A typical welcome bonus might offer a 125% deposit match up to the value of €125. By comparison, free bets tend to be smaller – you might get a risk-free bet of up to €15, for instance. However, free bets usually have much better terms (especially when it comes to wagering requirements) than a deposit bonus.
But attracting new players with a welcome bonus is only a small part of it. Betting sites also need to try and retain their players, which they can do by offering further esports free bets to existing players. Often, this is done as part of a loyalty programme, such as a free bet club.
Ultimately, both free bets and welcome bonuses can be great ways to add extra value to betting experience overall and potentially increase your winnings. Having said that, it's important to carefully read the terms and conditions of any promotion that you claim to ensure that you understand the requirements and limitations.
In most cases, using your free bet is self-explanatory. Once you have qualified for the offer, it will usually show up within your account once you sign in. Place your bet and tick the relevant box on your betting slip to indicate that you wish to use your free bet promo.
Esports betting is no different to any other kinds of sports betting – so it stands to reason that the esports bonuses available to players are also similar in terms of design and value.
Let’s take a deep dive into some of the most common types of free bets that esports sites may offer.
Sometimes referred to as insurance bets, risk-free bets give players a safety net should their bet lose. If you place a losing risk-free bet, esports sites will refund the value of the bet to your bonus balance. Think of it as a consolation prize.
A free bet club is essentially a miniature loyalty programme offered by bookmakers. If you regularly place bets, you will receive frequent rewards, most commonly in the form of free daily or weekly bets.
The best example of such a scheme is the one offered by Betway, which rewards punters placing accumulator bets with two free bets on esports per week. Another example of a free bet club is Paddy Power’s Paddy’s Rewards Club, which offers players an esports free bet of up to £10 per week.
Please be aware, though, that not all free bet clubs apply to both esports and sports betting. For instance, Unibet has a free bet club which currently only applies to traditional sports betting, but will hopefully extend to esports betting in future.
Free betting on esports often comes in the form of “bet x, get y”. This means you need to place a bet of an x-amount for which you will receive a single free bet, valued at y. The amount of your free bet might even be higher than the bet you need to place in order to get it. You can find these sort of promotions offered by William Hill and 888sport.
There's no better way of getting started as a new punter than by claiming a juicy welcome bonus. Below, we've listed down the two most common offers you're likely to come across when signing up for the first time at an esports betting site.
One of the best possible free bet offers you can come across is the no deposit bonus.
As you might imagine from the name, these free bets do not require anything on your part other than to complete the registration. It really is something for nothing – a gift to you from the bookmaker. Sadly though, these no deposit bonus offers are increasingly difficult to find, which only means that you should snap one up as soon as you find it (assuming that the T&Cs are reasonable, of course).
The most commonly observed free bet offers at esports betting sites are deposit match bonuses. With these offers, the site will quite literally, match your deposit up to a certain amount.
Be aware that some sites accept promo codes, usually made up of a series of letters and numbers. In these cases, the deposit match bonus will not be automatically applied. As always, in order to avoid frustration later on, be certain that you have read the terms and conditions of the offer beforehand.
Esports free bet offers will always have restrictions attached for various and important reasons. These limitations are often in place to encourages users to continue betting on the platform, to ensure that users understand the terms and conditions of the offer, and to prevent abuse of the system. Let's take closer look below.
All esports free bets (except if they are “no deposit”) come with a minimum deposit. Usually, you also need to place a qualifying bet (at certain minimum odds and with a minimum amount) in order to get the free bet.
Whether it’s cashback, a deposit bonus or a free bet, esports betting offers always come with terms and conditions. One such condition to look out for is whether or not your free bets come with an expiry date. Most of them do have a time limit, and this can range anywhere from 7 days to a year.
Another frequently seen condition is a minimum odds requirement. This can apply to the actual bonus, so you won't be able to use the free bet on odds below a certain level as defined by the bookmaker. But it may also apply to the qualifying bet too.
By way of illustration, you may need to place a wager of at least £10 at minimum odds of 1.50 in order to qualify for the free bet.
Sometimes, a free bet will be accompanied by a cap on the amount that can be won. Although many people don’t realise it, all sports betting sites offer a maximum payout on winning bets anyway. But in the case of free bets, those payouts are likely to be greatly reduced.
So, let’s say that the maximum winnings from your esports free bet are 20x the stake. If your stake is £20, then you will only be paid a maximum of £400, even if your potential returns are far in excess of that amount.
Top esports betting sites accept a wide variety of payment options, ranging from credit/debit cards and e-wallets to cryptocurrencies or prepaid vouchers. But beware: if you’re depositing in order to claim a free bet, certain bonus offers are only eligible when using certain payment methods – so make sure you read the fine print beforehand to ensure you’re using the correct one.
For example, bets with Skrill or NETELLER are sometimes excluded from bonus offers.
When issuing a free bet, esports sites will sometimes restrict the possible markets on which it can be used. It is not especially common, but it does happen. The restriction may simply apply to a specific game, such as League of Legends. But it could also apply to a specific market, like Match Winner.
As the most popular esports, you’ll naturally find the most attractive betting markets for LoL and CS:GO, as well as DOTA 2. Successful punters usually gravitate towards these markets as well due to the stability of the odds.
If you have found free bet offers with restricted markets, it’s worth checking out top esports tipsters for advice on how to use them effectively. But proceed with caution, as gambling always carries an element of risk, even if the tipster in question is trustworthy and reliable.
When you have a winning free bet, esports and sports betting sites often pay the returns into a separate bonus wallet. In cases like this, there are wagering requirements attached to the winnings. Before you can withdraw these funds as real money, you need to use them to place further bets.
The very best esports free bets are those with low wagering requirements, since it is easier to actually bank the winnings as real money. In most cases, free bets carry very small or no wagering requirements, meaning you only need to wager them once, usually at odds of around 1.50.
Bookies sometimes restrict their promos to players from certain countries. Additionally, the promos or free bets available might differ, depending on the version of the bookie’s website you visit. For example, certain promotions might only be available in the UK, while others are only available in the rest of the world, or specific countries. Unfortunately, there is little you can do about this. Most bookies frown upon using a VPN to claim a bonus, so you will have to make do with the promo available in your county.
Certain esports betting sites also come with their own, tailored betting app. In most cases, the latter will have the same promos and free bets as the desktop site, sometimes even offering an extra bonus after you download it. Be sure to keep your eyes open if you want an extra freebie!
If you’re looking for the best free bets esports sites have to offer in 2024, you could do a lot worse than checking out the following esports bookmakers.
As a respected global sportsbook, Betway currently offers several free bet promotions that esports fans will love.
First of all, there’s the Betway Esports Club, which offers players the chance to collect weekly free bets on esports. Another great promotion is also the matched free bet offer that allows players to earn additional free bets at the weekend, simply by placing an in-play esports bet on Saturday.
Of course, the welcome offer of €10 in free bets is a good start for any new customer!
888sport is often overlooked when it comes to esports betting, which is a shame, since the site has an excellent selection of esports offers, especially when it comes to free bets. In fact, there are three different esports free bet promos!
First, there is the welcome offer, where you get a €/$/£30 free bet (+ €/$/£ 10 for casino) if you bet €/$/£10. What's more, you will also get a €/$5/£ free bet when you bet €/$20/£ on multiples, or when you win any bet at 5.00 or bigger!
Betsson is a licensed betting site that started out in Sweden but has grown to one of the biggest betting sites in Europe! You can bet on all the top esports and leagues, including CS:GO, Dota, LoL, VALORANT, and more.
Their welcome offer comes with a deposit boost of 100% up to €100 + €10 Free Bet!
Thanks to our detailed guide, you now have access to a list of the best Esports free bets currently available, as well as other esports betting promos.
Of course, you should remember that most of these free bets require a deposit at the very least, and often a wager at certain minimum odds. So, use your free bet wisely, and make the most of your first freebie. Of course, nothing is stopping you from claiming all of these welcome offers right away!
Almost all bookmakers have a welcome bonus that can be used to bet on esports online. You can qualify for a free bet by registering at any of the esports sites mentioned in this article.
That depends on the exact terms and conditions of the specific free bet esports sites are offering. In most cases, you will be required to make a deposit, and often place a qualifying real money wager before receiving your freebie. However, you can usually claim any winnings from your free bet right away, as long as you win it.
It depends. These days, most free bet esports promotions will be automatically applied, without the need for a code. But some sites do require specific esports betting bonus codes. Always check the terms and conditions before registering.
No. Every bookmaker offers their own esports betting bonus codes and bonuses, each with their own rules. For example, certain bookies exclude deposits with Skrill or Neteller from bonuses. Make sure that you read and understand the terms and conditions of any esports free bets before getting involved.
Essentially, they do this to draw in new customers. In an ultra-competitive market, it can be hard for bookies to distinguish itself from the competition; by offering a free bet or other promo, a bookie can attract new players from other sites.
Through our in-depth guides and reviews, we are focused on providing the best insights into esports betting.