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.
Klarna is an up and coming payment method that has pretty recently begun to be accepted in the gambling world. However, Klarna is already a very popular player in general commerce, and it may mean its expansion into betting as a deposit method grows in future.
Klarna is a Swedish bank which provides online payment services to a global audience. There are three types of transactions you can do with Klarna: ‘Pay Later’, ‘Split It’ and ‘Instant Banking’. The latter of these – the instant payment method – is the one we see in the betting world, as more and more bookmakers accept Klarna based deposits.
One reason why you may prefer to use Klarna Instant Banking as a means of depositing your betting funds is related to security. When you register with Klarna, you can use your bank details to make transactions, but Klarna acts as a middle-man so that the site you are paying at never sees these. This also means that the transaction will not appear on your bank statement, only in your Klarna account history. This can be useful as it lets you track all your betting activity in one place, and thus you can stay on top of how much you are spending without losing the transactions in the sea of all the other banking you do.
The steps to register with Klarna are pretty easy – you can normally do this directly with the bookmaker. Simple, right? Once you have made your account with the bookmaker of choice, the deposit window will have all the steps you need to know in order to register to use Klarna as a deposit method. This may seem a little confusing as you cannot make an account directly on the Klarna site, but that is the way Klarna operates, as it is primarily used for online shopping and fashion. Just take your time with the process and ensure you are entering your details in the Klarna window on the betting site, and you should be able to enjoy all the benefits of Klarna with no issues.
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We have researched far and wide for you in order to find what we think are the best esports betting sites for Klarna payments, taking into account other benefits for you before you use them.
Here’s a list of the top 3:
Pinnacle may not offer a sea of bonuses and entice you with offers, but they are one of the best in the business thanks to their incredible odds. Most of the time, these guys will be the ones you should look to place your wagers on for the best outcome. Seasoned bettors also enjoy Pinnacle’s high limit ceiling, so if you are someone who the stars align for, you may want to seriously consider betting with Pinnacle. And, well, they let you deposit with Klarna (called Sofort on this platform).
Another reason why Pinnacle is rated so highly by us is due to their amazing selection of esports titles and competitions which you can place your wagers on, including some less popular games like Heroes of the Storm. Many of these also include special pre-match bets, like first bloods, to make your betting experience a little more exciting than just the same old boring markets over and over again. The Pinnacle website is easy to use and rarely has issues, which is another plus to the user experience and another reason on the long list of reasons why we like the platform.
Energybet are not newcomers to the gambling world at the slightest. While the betting site was established in 2016, the Energy Casino company has years of experience in the casino market that it is bringing to the development of betting, esports betting included. They apply this by having a bunch of promotions and bonuses for you to take advantage of, and the site itself is very easy to use. This bookmaker has also earned awards for its progress and innovation in betting, so they are surely going to be here for a long time, and are trustworthy.
GGBet gets a very honourable mention on our list as it is the best bookmaker we know for an incredible selection of tournaments for you to bet on. There are more than just the most well-known tournaments like the LEC – on GGBet you can find almost every and any esports tournament that is worth something, and place your wagers on a variety of markets. The outrights range is also great on GGBet, and the odds for these are pretty nice. Also, GGBet has top customer support, with a live chat feature available should you run into any problems. This approach to their service ranks them very high for us, and we recommend you strongly consider them to place your Klarna esports betting wagers.
Klarna is still on the rise in popularity in esports betting, and it has many competitors out there that can do the same job. Many of these are also already trusted by the community, and each has its own advantages and disadvantages. Sometimes, choosing one is simply preference, so let’s have a look at some alternatives to Klarna.
Skrill is an e-wallet owned by Paysafe Group Limited. An e-wallet allows you to link your bank account or debit/credit card and host these details online on the platform, much like Klarna. You can then use these to make transactions online using your Skrill username and password, rather than the bank details directly.
Skrill is at the top of our list as it is a very widely accepted deposit method at bookmakers in the UK, and has a good verification procedure before you can fully create an account. It is also a very convenient service as you can use the username and password to place your wagers across multiple bookmakers, without the need to tell them all your bank details.
Notably, there is a small charge for withdrawals, which can add up over time, so make sure to keep this in mind if you plan on using Skrill instead of Klarna. Skrill currently operates in 200 countries, and has been in the business for almost 20 years since its launch.
More info can be found in our Skrill Esports Betting Review.
Neteller is a cousin of Skrill in more ways than one: it is also owned by Paysafe Group Limited. It is another e-wallet, and works just like a middle-man which lets you keep your bank details safe and secure as the sites where you will deposit your funds never see those details. Neteller is often favoured by experienced bettors, as it has a really high deposit ceiling at most bookmakers (over £35,000). Neteller also promises your deposit and withdrawal transfers are instant. You can also get a physical MasterCard for ATMs to use with Neteller, although this does come with an annual fee of £10.
What’s more, topping up your Neteller account also comes with some fees you should be aware of, depending on the source of funds you use to deposit:
Also, be mindful you are not likely to be eligible for some betting bonuses at various bookmakers, so check the terms before you commit if there is one you are interested in.
Read more about this payment method in our Neteller Esports Betting Review.
PayPal is incredibly popular across the internet in most retailers, so it is no surprise it makes an appearance in esports betting too. One of the reasons why you may want to use it in esports betting is that you probably already have an account and are likely to be familiar with how it works. This is a fast and reliable payment method, but can, in some cases, come with transaction fees, so make sure you are aware of these before using it on esports betting.
For a more detailed look at the possibilities of PayPal Esports Betting, have a look at our guide.
Ethereum is part of the global cryptocurrency craze. It is a pretty reliable and secure way of transferring your funds to use them on esports betting. However, it is not so widely available at the moment, meaning you will only be able to use it with a select few betting sites – but this number is increasing. The bookmakers that do welcome Ethereum also often entice you to use it through bonuses available only with that currency, so that is something to keep in mind…
Feel free to find out more about Ethereum Esports Betting with us, including how to use it to place your wagers.
Bitcoin is the more popular older brother of Ethereum, and this in turn means you will see this payment method accepted at more bookmakers than the other cryptocurrency. Placing esports bets with cryptocurrency can often be good for you in the form of lower fees, faster transactions, anonymity and reliability.
We cover all the benefits (and some things to keep in mind) when using Bitcoin in our Bitcoin Esports Betting Review.
Entropay is a quiet but trustworthy player in the payment method world. It is not the most popular method out there, but it does not normally have fees for managing your funds with them, only a fractional charge when you take the funds back out. Entropay works like a virtual Visa card, meaning your actual details are hidden when you process the transactions.
For all the ins and outs of Entropay, check out our Entropay Esports Betting Review – it may be the thing for you!
This is another extremely popular method, particularly in mainland Europe. Paysafecard has been around since 2000, and has operated as an online payment provider since. The simple verification process and years of payment handling experience make it a trusted candidate for esports betting.
Paysafecard is the most unique funds depositing method in this list, as it is a physical card you have to purchase in a store, much like a gift card. The funds get loaded onto the card at the store, and you bring it home with you and use it to deposit funds onto your chosen bookmaker’s site. This means that this method is only usable for depositing and not withdrawing, but some may find the physical aspect useful as they can stay in control of their depositing habits.
If you are interested in Paysafecard, check out our Paysafecard Esports Betting Review for more information.
This method is the most widely accepted on this list. If you see none of the other methods available, it is almost guaranteed credit/debit cards will be available as a deposit method. And, almost every adult on the planet owns one, so you would not have to make any new accounts, only sign up with the bookmaker/s of your choice and that is all. However, when using the same details as you do with all your other everyday transactions, you run the risk of losing track of how much you are spending on betting, and, if there is a breach of the website and your details get exposed, you could have your money stolen. For this reason, many prefer to use one of the middle-men methods mentioned above.
For more info on using your card to bet on esports, check out our Credit Cards Esports Betting Review.
Trustly is the final method on our list, and you may have seen it more often than you think. This payment method has been around since 2008 and is widespread all over Europe. Trustly is very easy to use even for the non technologically-savvy, and bookmakers rarely place fees on using Trustly as a deposit method.
We have covered all the ins and outs of Trustly for you in our Trustly Esports Betting Review.
Overall, it seems Klarna is a pretty safe and reliable option to manage your esports betting funds. It would be nice if it was possible to make an account on their website directly as this does generate some confusion, and we would like to see Klarna/Sofort more widely accepted in the future across more bookmakers.
Our favourite Klarna-supported esports betting sites are Pinnacle, GGBet and Energybet.
Klarna is an online payment method, owned by a bank in Sweden. Klarna is used in many countries throughout Europe, and is also known as Sofort.
Klarna is pretty safe to use and does have security protocols in place. The company is experienced at handling money safely and it is rare to find a case of an external data breach in Klarna.
You can choose to use Klarna as a deposit method at the deposit screen bookmakers like Energybet, William Hill and GGBet. You do not have to go to another site to make an account, and you can make one on the mobile app.
Some alternate esports betting payment methods include Skrill, Bitcoin and Trustly.