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Esports has taken over as one of the most dominant industries in entertainment in recent years. With this rise in popularity, top bookmakers are offering esports betting bonuses to attract new punters and keep their existing ones motivated. Learn all there is to know about these special promotions so you, too, can get the biggest bang for your buck!
Latest offer
100% up to €100
100% up to €30
Up to €30 in Free Bets
100% deposit bonus on your first deposit (Up to €200)
100% up to €200
100% up to €1,000 (casino) + 75% up to €300 (all products)
5% up to €500
100% up to €600
There are countless esports betting bonuses that bookmakers offer on a day-to-day basis, many of which grant huge rewards for new punters who've just signed up as well as loyal, long-term customers.
Among these bonuses, the most common include welcome offers, deposit bonuses, free bets, and cashbacks. Here is a comprehensive list of the types of promotions offered by sites such as 1xBet and GG.BET.
A welcome bonus is a promotion exclusively offered to users making their first deposit. This is the most prevalent bonus across various esports betting sites, and it also tends to be the most rewarding. Welcome offers usually grant matched deposit bonuses and/or a free bets.
Due to the stiff competition among top esports bookies, offering a huge welcome bonus is the main way to get the attention of many new users. Top esports betting sites with rewarding welcome bonuses include Rivalry and Galaxy.bet, whose welcome bonuses can reach up to €100!
Since the welcome bonus is only available to new customers, it is advisable to check the bonus’ cut-off date to avoid missing out on the opportunity. As such, make sure to go through the bonus’ terms and conditions before creating an account to know if you are eligible for the promotion.
A free bet is a type of betting bonus where you are given a set amount of money that you can freely use to place bets, free of charge. If you do place a wager using your free bets, any amount you win, outside the original amount you bet, is yours. Free bet are usually linked to a specific titles and tournament from esports games such as CS:GO, Dota 2, or League of Legends.
As mentioned, free bets can either be part of a site’s welcome bonus or be part of a promotional offer. Much like welcome bonuses, this promotion is usually offered by bookmakers to attract new sign-ups and reward loyal customers. One especially attractive scheme would be Betway’s Esports Club, where you can opt in to get up to a $10 free bet every week.
Cashback offers are one of the most sought-after bonuses, allowing bettors to claim a certain percentage of their losses. Every bettor, even pros, are bound to lose a good fraction of their bets. So, this offer helps you recover some of your hard-earned money to ease the blow of your losses.
1xBet is an option among esports betting sites where you can find bonuses offering anywhere from 10% to 20% of your losses in cashbacks. However, these offers often run for a limited period of time, so it's best to keep an eye on your bookie's promotions page so as not to miss out on anything.
The deposit bonus is another common esports betting bonus available to both new and existing customers. As the name suggests, you have to make a deposit to receive the reward. The amount you deposit is then matched either in full, by a certain percentage, or a fixed amount. New punters can claim the offer immediately after signing up.
For example, GG.BET offers a host of deposit bonuses for different games and tournaments, such as the recent VCT 2023: LOCK//IN competition. With these offers, you can also explore betting on more esports titles like FIFA and VALORANT with a bigger bankroll.
A reload bonus is available for existing customers who have made additional deposits past their first one, and are designed to encourage these punters to keep using their platform. If you are looking for a betting site with a good reload bonus, Thunderpick’s reload programme rewards loyal bettors with gift cards or even extra funds on deposits.
Accumulator bets – more commonly known as combo bets or accas – have now become commonplace in esports betting sites. As with traditional sports, you simply add multiple bets to your bet slip to create an acca, and you only win if all of your chosen selections win. With this mind, it is understandably riskier to place an accumulator bet.
To encourage users to take the plunge and place more accumulators, bookies offer accumulator bonuses come in, which grant an additional payout on top of the winnings from each individual bet. The bonus percentage increasing as the number of bets in the accumulator increases, e.g. a betting site may offer a 5% bonus for a 5-bet accumulator, a 10% bonus for a 6-bet accumulator, and so on.
The no deposit bonus allows you to play risk-free as it does not require you to fund your account to qualify for the offer. It could appear in the form of a free bet or free bonus funds. Since the offer is ‘free’, the bonus is usually significantly lower or smaller compared to offers claimed against a deposit. However, the main aim of this particular bonus is only to encourage new users to try out the bookie's platform.
While these bonuses are few and far between, we do recommend Rivalry as one of the few sites that are likely to offer a no deposit bonus (usually worth around €5) should you subscribe to their newsletter. Again, it's always best to keep an eye on your bookie's promotions page in case one of these no deposit bonuses pops up.
Users who are considered high-value or high-volume customers are considered VIPs, and are often rewarded through schemes or programmes with free bets, cash rewards, and deposit bonuses. This VIP status is determined by a user’s account activity and how much they have spent betting on the platform.
Loyalty perks may also extend to users who manage to refer and bring in new users to the platform. Known as refer-a-friend bonuses, these rewards usually comes as a percentage of the referred friend’s deposits or incentives for how many users you manage to refer.
Naturally, esports bonuses should be designed to appeal to enthusiasts and provide value to punters. However, each bonus always comes with its own set of terms and conditions. Failure to meet any of these requirements might cost you your bonus, which of course is the last thing you want to happen.
While going through the fine print, be sure to check the following rules:
The wagering requirement is a condition set by bookmakers before you can withdraw winnings earned from a promotion. Usually, this is the number of times a bonus amount must be wagered before you can make a withdrawal or otherwise called the playthrough or rollover. This rule exists to encourage bettors to use the bonus for betting rather than simply withdrawing it as cash, stopping any potential abuse of the system.
These requirements vary depending on the nature and size of the bonus, with huge offers having an equally greater rollover. Most bonuses for esports betting have playthroughs ranging from 1x to 20x. As an example, if you receive €50 in bonus funds that have a wagering requirement of 5x, it means that you have to place bets worth €250 before you can transfer the bonus funds to your account balance.
Different types of bets, games, or tournaments count differently towards the bonus’ rollover. Make sure to read the terms and conditions thoroughly because, for example, some bookmakers’ welcome offers do not apply to bets made on esports. Meanwhile, there are betting bonuses that only apply to a specific event, such as yearly promotions for Dota’s the International or the League of Legends World Championship.
Betting sites commonly set deposit and withdrawal restrictions before you can claim any esports bonus. For instance, the minimum deposit for welcome bonuses ranges from €10 to €50. Any deposit that does not meet this limit will miss out on the offer. Meanwhile, deposit amounts that exceed the bonus limit will not benefit from the promotion.
For withdrawals, there are limits to how much you can withdraw from bonuses earned from a promotion. Each bonus also has its own conditions before you can initiate a withdraw. For example, as seen in Betway’s welcome bonus, you will only receive the €10 free bet once you deposit a minimum of €10 using a valid debit card within one week of making your account.
Another overlooked factor you should consider when choosing an esports betting bonus is its time restrictions. Many bookies will require you to claim an offer and meet its wagering requirements within a set time frame, usually within 7 days to 30 days. Past this time limit, the offer and all your potential winnings associated with it becomes null and void. This limit is set in place by operators to give bettors a sense of urgency to place a lot of bets more frequently and in shorter time frames.
The deposit method restriction is mostly common in sign-up offers where bookies are keen on only accepting deposits on safe and verifiable payment options. Some of the payment options that are often restricted include Skrill, NETELLER, and PayPal. In this case, you can use other banking methods such as Visa, MasterCard, Klarna, and Entropay. As of late, there are even bonuses that offer generous incentives for deposits done using cryptocurrencies.
Now that you have an idea of what esports offers are up for the taking, it is time you learned how to claim these bonuses before they go into the vault. Despite each bookmaker having its own unique interface, the process of claiming an esports bonus is similar across all betting sites.
We have outlined how to claim these bonuses below:
Select a bookmaker from one of our recommended betting operators. Since each bookie offers different promotions, think of what offers you want to take advantage of whether it be welcome bonuses, deposit bonuses, and the like when choosing a betting platform. Then, before doubling down and deciding to create an account, we suggest you read the terms and conditions of each of the offers and only claim bonuses with reasonable and attainable requirements.
Once you have chosen a bookie, create, and verify your account. The registration process of most sites is easy and fast, only needing you to provide basic information about yourself to get started.
Remember, you can only claim a welcome bonus for a limited time once you have signed up for a new account. If you already have an account, you can claim other offers for existing players, such as reload offers, cashbacks, and acca bonuses. If you have a promo code, be sure to use it. But as always, be sure to check the current available promotions on each bookmaker so you do not miss out on any bonuses.
Unless you are claiming a no deposit offer, most esports betting bonuses require you to fund your account. Often, a set minimum deposit must be met to qualify for the offer and claim the bonus. For a matched deposit offer, the amount you deposit is matched by a certain percentage (which can even reach up to 100% or 200%), and the higher the deposit, the more bonus funds you will receive. In the case of a fixed deposit offer, you only need to meet the set requirements to qualify for the offer.
After claiming an esports bonus, the last step left to do is to place your bets to meet the wagering requirements. Typically, you must place several wagers to meet the playthrough requirement. For example, a first deposit bonus of €100 with a 10x rollover means that you need to place bets totaling €1000 before you can withdraw any winnings.
Furthermore, you should check the games that contribute towards the wagering requirement. After you have met these requirements, you can finally enjoy the fruits of your labor and withdraw your sweet, sweet winnings!
Esports bonuses are a great way to boost your bankroll, allowing you to place more wagers or increase the size of your bets. However, just because you have more to wager with does not mean you can place bets carelessly. Instead, you should treat the bonus funds as your own cash and ensure that every bet counts.
Here are a few tips to help you use betting bonuses to your advantage:
To start, you should always compare and contrast bonuses between bookmakers to see which ones give you the most value. Then, once you have found an offer that fits you, make sure to read the fine print of your chosen esports bonus. This is so you know how much you need to deposit or what the rollover requirement is to claim your bonus funds. Some bonuses even only allow bettors from specific countries to claim an offer so always be wary.
Before betting on a team, you should ensure that your analysis is in line with your predictions. Research and analyse esports teams by understanding the players’ stats, current form, any changes to their team’s roster, and match history. You can start doing so by, at minimum, watching livestreams and VODs of the teams you want to bet on. This will help you find high-value bets that can win you even more money alongside your betting bonuses.
Don't forget to check whether your chosen bookmaker offers a bet builder, a popular tool that allows punters to design and craft their own custom bets to their liking.
Since most bonuses have a time limit, claim offers that give you enough time to wager. You do not want to place rushed bets while trying to meet the time limit. Bonuses that give you a reasonable time frame allow you to do your research and only wager on promising opportunities.
Having bonus funds can give you the illusion that you have more money than you think you have. As such, do not be carried away and place unjustified bets. Of course, you can try your luck on new betting markets with the additional funds to keep betting fun and exciting. But you would be much better off taking the time to learn how to make smarter wagers through our dedicated betting academy.
Lastly and most importantly, act responsibly by always betting within your means. Certain promotions often require you to bet absurd amounts just to reach the rollover requirement and claim your bonus, thus leading you to bet more than you had intended to. So, you should instead find bonuses with reasonable rollovers that are within your allotted bankroll limit.
We have scoured our top bookmakers to provide you a list of the best esports betting sites where you can find impressive welcome bonuses and ongoing promotional offers. Some of the best esports betting bonuses include sign-up offers, deposit bonuses, cashback offers, and acca bonuses.
Here are the types of esports bonuses you can find on each of our recommended bookmaker:
Top betting sites for esports offers include GG.BET, Rivalry, and 1xBet for their diverse range of bonuses.
The welcome bonuses are the most rewarding since esports betting sites are often generous to attract new players.
Some esports offers will have restrictions on the games and tournaments you can use them on. But in most cases, you can use betting bonuses to bet on any esports title.
Bonus funds can only be withdrawn after all the terms and conditions of the promotion have been met. Thus, ensure you have met the wagering requirement within the offer’s set time frame before you cash out.
Absolutely! While the terms and conditions may vary among esports offers, in most cases, you are allowed to bet on an ongoing live event.
Through our in-depth guides and reviews, we are focused on providing the best insights into esports betting.