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 is a phenomenon that has taken society by storm in the past decade. No matter where you’re from, you're bound to find something to enjoy, particularly if you happen to live in one of the top esports countries in the world. And Australia is no different. Esports has certainly made its mark in the Land Down Under, featuring many top teams, leagues and players. If you’re an Aussie that's passionate about esports and looking to get into esports betting, then you've come to the right place!
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By 2020, esports had grown into a global industry boasting an annual revenue of close to a billion dollars ($950 million). With an audience of around 495 million from all across the world, it's easy to understand how esports has become as popular as it is right now.
The esports Australia market is valued to be around 3.4 billion Australian dollars, and is forecasted to grow to 4.4 billion by 2024. With a diverse audience that reaches young and old alike, we think it's safe to say that both gaming and esports will continue to thrive in Australia for years to come.
In Australia, there is a breadth of titles that come to the surface when it comes to competitive gaming. There are classic first-person shooters in Fortnite, Call of Duty, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO), and Overwatch. Then, you have the iconic MOBAs, Dota 2 and League of Legends. Lastly, there are esports titles such as Rocket League, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG), and FIFA that also find avid fans within The Land Down Under.
One of the key Australian esports events to happen in the past few years was Fornite’s Australia Open, which had a prize pool of $500,000 with up to 100,000 peak viewers tuning in to the stream. Then, you have the Overwatch Contenders: Australia and the ESL Australia & NZ Championships for CS:GO and StarCraft II.
To find out which titles are making a name for themselves in 2021, read up on our dedicated guide on esports games. For the mobile gamers out there, we’ve got an in-depth guide listing all the top mobiles esports titles for you as well.
Now, we’ve established that esports is a hit in Australia. That being said, are esports betting sites in Australia legal?
For starters, Australians love to bet. From 2017 to 2018, Australians bet an estimated $242 billion! This translates not only to esports, but sports betting as well, both of which are recognised as legal under the Interactive Gambling Act. The law only requires bookmakers to apply for licences from the Australian government to operate. This means that locals can participate in esports betting sites in Australia with no worries, leaving any legal issues for bookmakers to resolve.
The only forms of gambling that are outlawed are online poker and casino. Again, however, accessing these gambling services as a citizen of Australia is not an offence. Only the gambling operator will be held liable for any breaches of the aforementioned Gambling Act.
To get started with esports betting in Australia, you should look up authorised bookmakers such as GG.BET and Betway. To read up on our recommendations, you can check our esports betting site reviews linked below.
Through these bookies, you’ll primarily be able to place bets on Dota 2, League of Legends, and CS:GO. A few of these sites also offer markets for PUBG betting, StarCraft II, VALORANT betting and others. Just remember to check which esports are available before signing up to any bookmaker.
Just like Unikrn, GG.BET was developed by esports enthusiasts and professionals, offering range of titles that matches its gamer-esque name. Despite primarily catering to esports bettors as its target audience, GG.BET offers odds for sports as well. Head over to our GG.BET betting review to learn more about this betting site.
Betway is a global company that was founded in 2006, and is known as a go-to esports betting site for interested bettors. Their company has sponsored the likes of esports teams such as Ninjas in Pyjamas and even the ESL UK Premiership in 2015. Our comprehensive Betway esports review has everything you need to know about this bookie, covering aspects such as welcome bonuses, available payment methods and customer support.
With thousands of betting options available for both sports and esports, arcanebet pride themselves as being one of the best in their industry. They offer betting for regions all across the globe on titles such as League of Legends, Dota 2, and CS:GO. Take a look at how they operate by reading through our detailed Arcanebet esports betting review.
Dafabet serves bettors in Europe as well as the Asian Pacific region. In 2015, this bookmaker was also partnered with Fnatic, one of the leading organisations in esports. Get to know more about them with our in-depth Dafabet esports review.
Bethard started with professional gamers who wanted to offer a one-of-a-kind experience for bettors. Today, this bookie offers a diverse portfolio with markets for sports, esports, casinos, esports live betting, and even fantasy sports right at your fingertips. It’s a veritable one-stop betting shop for all your betting needs! Check out our Bethard esports betting review to find out more.
Formerly known as Pinnacle Sports, Pinnacle has caught up with the times since it was founded back in 1998. In addition, they were one of the first bookmakers to offer odds on esports in 2010. They offer odds for titles from StarCraft II to World of Warcraft betting. Our Pinnacle esports betting review has everything you need to know about this bookie, including the types of bets and odds available on their site.
DoubleBet has been on the rise in the past years, and is a bookmaker to look out for if you want to bet on esports. They offer a diverse range of sports and esports, constantly adding new titles to keep up with what's new and popular with fans. Head over to our in-depth Doublebet esports review and placing your bets today!
EnergyBet is one of the most reputable bookmakers around, licensed and regulated by the UK Gambling Commission and the Malta Gaming Authority. They have an award-winning sportsbook that offers pre-game and live betting alike. To find out more about betting with EnergyBet, read through our detailed Energybet esports review.
Needless to say, it's important to learn as much as you can about the esport you want to bet beforehand, as opposed to diving in headfirst without knowing anything. Doing your research on these games early on will save you a lot of hassle when you get started, and prevent you from suffering heavy losses too. For MOBAs (multiplayer online battle arenas), get to know how lanes work, what objectives are there to take down, and what roles players take up in a competitive game. In FPS (first-person shooters), it’s helpful to learn which goals players need to achieve in order to win a round. Study up on everything you can so you can start winning right out of the gate!
Before you can begin placing bets, you need to have a positive balance in your account. For bookmakers available in Australia, you’ll generally find that the below payment methods are accepted:
A few bookmakers will have alternatives to the above available, such as NETELLER, Skrill, and paysafecard. For more information, check out our article on the best payment methods for online betting.
No matter what game or esport you’re betting on, there will usually be many ways of betting available. A few examples would be moneyline wagers, handicap bets, totals, prop bets, and futures. You can explore how these bets work in our own in-depth betting guides for LoL, Dota 2, and CS:GO.
However, before begin betting, it’s crucial for you to know how the game in question works on a strategic level. Aside from playing it yourself, there are useful resources that you should always have on hand, such ProGuides, to which many turn to for support and guidance.
To get you started with esports betting in Australia, we recommend taking a look at our in-depth guides. From LoL, Dota 2, and CS:GO to the likes of Fortnite, VALORANT, Overwatch, and Rocket League, we’ve got you covered on all bases.
Below, we've listed a few of our top tips to keep in mind before going all in:
Choosing to specialise in one game will help increase your proficiency in predicting the right odds for your bets. As such, it can be helpful to focus on one game in a region of your choosing, instead of overexerting yourself by taking on too much, too soon. If you are a particular fan of North American League of Legends teams, for example, you can't go wrong with our LCS betting guide to keep you on track with everything you need to know about the League of Legends Championship Series.
It's of utmost importance that you familiarise yourself with the video game in question. Learn what strategies are good at any given time, what roles players fulfill in a team, and the ins and outs of the game’s rules and mechanics. Once you’re caught up with this information, you should then anaylse the league you’re going to bet on. Get to know a team’s playstyle and their rough power level so you can successfully gauge who will win in a head-to-head match. Are players on the rise? Is the team on a slump? Doing your homework beforehand can only serve you well in the long run.
At the end of the day, it matters that you choose a league that you're passionate about in order to enjoy the experience as much as possible. If you can’t be bothered to follow the game religiously, how can you make sure your bets are on the winning side? Make sure that you can handle all the inevitable ups and downs of betting so that, no matter what happens, you'll still be able to have fun.
Depending on the esport, there is a wide number of tournament organisers that hold competitions all year round. For League of Legends, you have Riot-approved regional leagues that run all year long, which lead into international tournaments. Dota 2 and CS:GO tournaments are fragmented with majors and minors throughout the year, during which teams fiercely compete for glory.
For League of Legends betting, you'll have the following major regions available: North America (LCS), Europe (LEC), China (LPL), and South Korea (LCK). The minor regions are: Southeast Asia (PCS), Vietnam (VCS), Russia (LCL), Turkey (TCL), Brazil (CBLOL), Latin America (LLA), Japan (LJL), and until last year, Australia (OPL). You can follow all the regional leagues through LoL Esports.
As for Dota, key tournaments include ESL, DreamLeague, and of course, the yearly The International. This has yet to incorporate the long list of majors that take place from month to month in the pro scene. Check out Liquipedia if you want to see a scheduling of all the relevant tournaments set to be held throughout the coming year.
For CS:GO, there are Valve-sponsored tournaments that offer millions in prizes, such as ESL One and the PGL. Just like Dota, there are tiers of events that happen on a yearly basis. Feel free to check Liquipedia once again to stay updated.
Esports fans and bettors usually turn to YouTube to watch compilations and montages of their favorite streamers on the platform. Having said that, for those who are unable to access Twitch, YouTube can also serve as an alternative for watching tournament streams. See our article about esports streams here, as well as a more specific one about LoL Esports streaming.
For content that is both fun and educational, we recommend well-known streamers such as Tyler1, Shroud, and Purge.
We've listed down below just three of the most popular esports streamers that hail from Oz, along with a short description of each.
Lannan “LazarBeam” Eacott is one of the biggest names in Fortnite right now, with around 18.3 million subscribers on YouTube. He’s well-known for his comedic skits on his channel, and he’s even got his own Fortnite Icon Series set. He's not exactly shy about his success, either, having even declared on one occasion, “I’m a bloody legend”.
Drew “Midbeast” Timbs is a content creator for Team Liquid who primarily creates guides and analyses on League of Legends. His content series that focuses on Korean and Chinese pro builds is also well-loved by the community.
Harley “Fresh” Fresh is another prominent content creator in Fortnite, with 7.23 million subscribers on YouTube. Fresh rose to fame as a competitive Fortnite: Battle Royale player in 2018, and has been on the rise ever since. He even showed his dedication to his craft by changing his name from Harley Campbell to Harley Fresh just last year!
There are quite a few celebrated Australian esports teams and players that have made a name for themselves in the global scene. One of the most notable esports Australian players would be Dota 2’s Anathan “ana” Pham from OG, who has lifted the Aegis not once, but twice in back-to-back The Internationals. Next, you have Damien “kpii” Chok, who became known for stint in Newbee. However, the Australian player fell short to Team Liquid in the finals of the International in 2017.
In CS:GO, you have Justin “jks” Savage and Aaron “AZR” Ward, who enjoyed a successful run in the Australian esports team Renegades from 2016 to 2019. Rocket League fielders will also recognise Daniel “Torsos” Parsons, who has been dominating the local scene for the past year under Ground Zero Gaming.
Aside from Renegades, you might also be familiar with the Dire Wolves and Chiefs Esports Club for their dominance in the Oceanic Pro League for League of Legends. The pro teams have had international showing as well in Worlds and the Mid-Season Invitational, but have had no success to their name just yet.
We’d say that GG.BET and Betway easily take the top spots for esports betting sites in Australia that you can trust.
Yes, it is. Under the Interactive Gambling Act, Australians are allowed to bet on sports and esports across online bookmakers.
For Australians, we would recommend betting on mainstream titles such as League of Legends, Dota 2, and Counter Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO). These will all be widely available on many different bookies.
As the former back-to-back TI champion, ‘ana’ of OG should definitely be on your watchlist! For League of Legends, keep an eye on the menacing Dire Wolves, while you can follow jks and AZR on their respective teams for CS:GO.
You can check out gaming channels from Twitch and YouTube respectively for all the esports content you will ever need. For League of Legends, go to LoL Esports. For CS: GO and Dota, follow Liquipedia for a comprehensive list of ongoing tournaments.