Sports Bonuses and Promotions

If you know anything at all about sports betting and don't have any moral or religious objections to having an occasional flutter there is real money to be made by exploiting sign-up bonuses and promotions offered by online bookies.

Forget about slogans and clichés about betting being a mug's game - we are not talking here about throwing good money after bad. Instead we are talking about taking cold advantage of the "catchpenny" offered made to potential new customers by most online sportsbooks to get you hooked on betting. Only the trick is you don't get hooked - you just take the bonus.

Generally speaking it goes like this - when you have opened an account with the bookie and deposited funds you will usually be eligible to receive a small bonus as a welcome present. Ordinarily it will not be large - typically in the region of £10-£50, or a percentage of your first bet - and there will be wagering requirements tied to the offer. This means that should your free bet win, or should the bet placed with free bonus money be successful, you will be required to wager the money again a certain set number of times before it can be withdraw back to your money account.

READ THE SMALL PRINT

Some such offers are unattractive. You have to read the terms - or rather the small print attached to the offers - carefully before you commit. Sometimes even free bets are tailored to make you fail.

The free bet is not a con as such, but rather a loss leader. The hope is that you will develop a habit and become a regular but unsuccessful customer. Making money out of free offers and promotions comes from taking the award (if it is viable) and running, once the terms and conditions have been fulfilled.

Another way of cashing in on free bets is to lay them at a betting exchange such as Betfair. Using this method the amount you will take home will be considerably smaller than the quantum of the free bet itself, but you will be guaranteed to be left in pocket.

Many players make several hundreds of pounds by opening accounts with each of the bookies and exploiting free bets and bonuses. Check with a reliable sports reviewer first though to ensure that the sportsbook is trustworthy.