A few people in the United States will still bet with their 'local bookie', others don't want the risk and will travel all the way to Las Vegas to place a bet with one of the big hotel sportsbooks. Today, however, by far the majority will bet online through a number of reputable companies which is why we started this sportsbook review site.
There are some big advantages that you get betting at an online sportsbook, as opposed to betting with your local guy or the Vegas books.
1. Value Lines. Usually much better lines as standard. Where Vegas and your bookie will go -110, online sportsbooks will regularly go between -105 and -110.
2. Reduced Commission. Special promotions such as "reduced vig" and even "no vig" (vig is the commission charged by every bookmaker) days, where lines could be
-102, -103 or even +/- 100 (even money) and importantly with the same comparative pointspread as the other Vegas and independent sportsbooks.
3. Sign Up Cash. Sign up bonuses are generally offered as standard by online sportsbooks. There is nothing suspicious about this, these bonuses aren't designed to lure you in to steal your money, they are legitimate offers just like a store might offer you cash back for goods, or an auto dealer may reduce the price of a vehicle as an offer to customers. Sportsbook bonuses generally run into hundreds of dollars but can reach the thousand dollar mark and are often based on a percentage of your deposit. You will generally need to 'bet' the bonus a few times, in terms of turnover, before withdrawing.
The sportsbook review section on our home page offers more detail.
4. Overnight lines. You could probably get some 'overnights' in Vegas or even with your local guy, but the great thing about being with an online sportsbook is that you can put your bets on late at night and then drop straight into bed - which isn't so easy with the mainstream options. You will also get much better value online. One of our bookmakers in our sportsbook review section, regularly offers
5c overnight lines on baseball, which is tough to beat.
5. Casino, Poker and Racebooks. Can't get to a casino, poker game or race track ? Online sportsbooks all have casinos which more than compete with the stand alone online casinos in terms of bonuses and house edge. Poker rooms too attract a lot of players as you get 'cross-over' action between sports players, casino players, horse bettors and sports bettors. Not all sportsbooks offer horse betting, but even those that do not do so on a daily basis, will sometimes cover the big events like the Kentucky Derby or the Breeders Cup.
6. Competitions. Has your local bookie ever offered you the chance of winning 100K in an NFL, NBA, NHL or MLB Bracket? I doubt it. You won't find Vegas offering it much either. Online, these fun, free to enter competitions, spring up every season. Prizes vary from large cash sums to 'all expenses paid' prizes to big events such as Super Bowl.
7. Information. Need to check up on a few game facts before the game starts? Ok you can find this information relatively easily these days online, but the majority of sportsbooks offer stats packages for free on their site - so you can do the research on the same site as you do your betting. It never used to be that way, but sportsbooks soon realized that if they didn't offer the information, then the player would simply go elsewhere to find it anyway - so they prefer to keep the player on their page rather than someone else's.
8. Rewards. Many online sportsbooks offer rewards schemes for loyalty. These can be redeemed for cash / bets or even gifts.
9. Mobile betting. Most of online bookmakers now offer mobile platforms so you can bet via your cell phone over the web.
Take a look at our
sportsbook review section for more information.
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