What Esports Can I Bet On?
Before the days of the internet, when you wanted to bet on a sport, you had to get cash and visit a brick and mortar sports book to place your bet. Not only that, but this sports book was probably located in a specific city where sports betting is legal, which may or may not be your home town. With the advent of the internet, this has all changed, and now you can easily bet sports from the comfort of your own home thanks to online sports books. And beyond that, the entire roster of what you can bet on has changed as well to include esports. And if you’re a fan of video games, you’re probably wondering just what esports you are now able to bet on.
Sports Video Games
Because you can bet on live sports, it should come as no surprise that you can also bet on video game sports. This genre includes a wide array of games from FIFA, NBA 2K, and Madden NFL. These games are fairly easy to bet on as most of them are operated the same way as the real-world game is. And thus, it should come as no surprise that this is the most popular genre of esports betting, simply because people are more familiar with how it works. Most sports books will allow you to make moneyline, over/under, and top player bets on all sport type games. If you’re looking for something a little more exotic in this space, check out Rocket League, which is a soccer like game, except the players are monster trucks!
Super Smash Bros
Yes, you read that right, you can bet on your childhood favorite, Super Smash Bros. Although bets in this space aren’t as universal as the betting on sports-based games, you’ll find that quite a few online sports books accept both moneyline and over/under bets in the space. And if you’re still trying to get over your shock, it’s also worth noting that sport books will often also take bets for similar games such as Tekken, and Street Fighter.
StarCraft and WarCraft (RTS)
Both StarCraft and WarCraft are real time strategy games which generally feature battle as well as tactical aspects that the player must overcome. These games are much less popular when it comes to the betting scene as others on this list, though they have been picking up speed as the space has been growing. The types of bets you can place on these games are typically moneyline bets, as well as kills bets, where you bet on how may kills a player has, or who gets the first kill of the match.
First Person Shooter Games (FPS)
Considering their popularity in the video game market, it should come as no surprise that betting on first person shooter games is a massive market and extremely lucrative. There are even large-scale tournaments in place which you can bet on in addition to individual games. The games which you can bet on in this space are Call Of Duty, Counterstrike: GO, Overwatch, and Rainbow Six: Siege. These games typically feature a combat battle and can be very intense to watch. Usually the only bets available for these games are betting on who will win the match but some sports books will have additional aspects you can bet on. If you are watching a tournament, you can bet on all the individual matches as well as the outcome of the tournament if you wish to maximize your ability to bet in this space.
League Of Legends & MOBAs
Another very popular game to bet on in the esports world is League of Legends, often times abbreviated as LoL. This is a multiplayer online battle area (MOBA) game where the players play on teams of five people, choose characters, and try to defeat each other using both power and skill. Because of the length and complexity of the game, there are a large number of bets available. Not only can you bet traditional moneyline, but you can also bet on first blood, first dragon, and several other more obscure aspects of the game. Because LoL is so complicated, you generally should not bet on the game unless you know a little something about it.
In the same space as LoL are other games which operate much the same way, most notably Dota 2 and Heroes of the Storm. Both of these games can usually be bet moneyline as well as have specific bets relating to the specific game you are betting on. It should be noted that Dota 2 is the esports game with the largest prize pools (some as large as $40 million) in the industry and its players are typically treated with a degree of prestige.
Fortnite
Fortnite has taken the gaming world by storm, so much so, that most non-gamers even know what the game is about even if they don’t play. Thus, it’s only natural that it has its own betting market which is quickly growing. Fortnite is a battle royale game where a bunch of players start, then they must do everything they can to survive to be the last man standing. These types of games include several different aspects from hunting, exploration, and collecting items. If you wish to bet on a Fortnite game, you’ll be able to bet on who you believe the top player is, as well as the player who you believe is going to have the most kills. Some sites offer additional bets, such as betting on which player you believe will draw first blood in a match.
Of course, these aren’t the only esports which you can bet on. And if you go to a sports book and browse their esports options, you may just be surprised by some of the bets you are able to make. If you are new to the esports space, it is generally advised that you start by only betting on the overall outcomes of games, as team stats can easily be researched and compared. It’s also advised that you only bet on esports which you are familiar with, so do your research before heading over to the sports book.
But if you’re just looking to have a little fun with your money by betting on something new which you’ve never bet on before, have at it. Who knows, you may just find you have a special talent when it comes to betting esports.
