Understand Risk Free Sports Bets

The term “risk free bet” is music to a veteran sports bettor’s ears. To those who often wager at an online sportsbook, seeing a promotion for a risk-free bet is something that gets used almost all of the time.

If you are new to the online sports betting industry, you may be unaware of the meaning of a risk-free bet. Simply put, a risk-free bet is a wager where there is no risk involved on your end.

If your bet wins, then you are good to go. If your bet loses, you will receive site credit in the amount of your original wager.

When Do You Get A Risk-Free Bet?

Often when signing up for a new account at an accredited online sportsbook site, you may receive a welcome bonus in the form of one or multiple risk-free bets up to a certain amount.

About a year ago, the top welcome bonus for new users on the top online sportsbook sites was a deposit match up to a certain amount. Now, however, the risk-free bet is the most popular welcome bonus found for online sportsbooks. There are typically three ways for you to claim your free bet.

New User – As a new user of a popular online sportsbook, there will be offers for either one larger free bet or free bets that total a certain amount. These amounts vary depending on the site and if there are first-time depositing requirements, but the risk-free bet can range from $100 all the way up to $10,000. To claim your risk-free bet welcome bonus promotion, sign up for an account, and make an initial deposit. It should be in your account once the deposit clears. For example, BetMGM Sportsbook has a promotion where new users get a risk-free bet, up to $1,000, depending on how much they deposit.
Promotional – The instance of receiving a promotional risk-free bet is rare but does still happen at select online sportsbooks. For example, a sportsbook may give users, new or current, a small denomination (usually around five dollars) as a risk-free bet to wager on the Super Bowl. The concept is the same, though, if you win your wager, you are all set. If you lose, you will get the five dollars to your account as site credit to use on a future wager.
Getting Older Customers Back – A strategy that some online sportsbooks use to get players who haven’t wagered in a while to start betting again is to give them something for free. In this case, they will receive a risk-free bet in the hopes that they will use it on the site and wager with the sportsbook again. How long since the last time they wagered varies by sportsbook, but it has been a good strategy for churning up business for players who have maybe moved on to another online sportsbook.

How Do I Use A Risk-Free Bet?

Using a risk-free bet first starts with the online sportsbook that you received it from. There are some sites where you are free to use your free sports bet on any sport on the site. This includes sports like baseball, tennis, and even NASCAR if the sportsbook provides odds on it.

However, some sportsbooks may limit what sports you are able to bet on. You may only be able to use your free sports bet on Football, like DraftKing’s current offer. Their risk-free bet only allows you to use it on College Football and the National Football League.

An example of a risk-free bet is if an online sportsbook gives you $100 for a free bet on sports. You see, the odds are favorable for your favorite team, the Baltimore Ravens (+125), going against the Kansas City Chiefs.

You place a risk-free bet on the Ravens Moneyline. Now, should the Ravens win, you win $225 ($100 from the money you put down plus $125 from the payout). Should the Ravens lose, you will receive the $100 back that you originally wagered in free bets to be used on the site.

Risk-Free Bet Terms & Conditions

While they vary site by site, it is crucial that you look out for the terms and conditions related to the risk-free sports bet provided by an online sportsbook. The main one is how the risk-free bet is credited back into your account. Sometimes it will be credited as withdrawable cash.

The majority of the time, however, it will be as site credit. There are restrictions on on-site credit and how much they have to be played through before they can be withdrawn, so be sure to keep an eye on that.

A risk-free sports bet can also have an expiration date tied to it. The date is usually related to when you created your account and must be used within a certain period of time. This is typically a week or month-long period.

Some online sportsbooks also have a minimum odd requirement for their risk-free bets. This means that you may not be able to bet on a game where your selected team has long odds. For example, the limit may be +250 odds at the maximum.

Risk-Free Bet Strategies

The best strategy for utilizing a Risk-Free bet on sports is to scout different online sportsbooks, see which ones offer risk-free bets as a promotion as well as boosted odds, and find a wager where you can bet on both sides in order to come out on top with one of them. While a bit tricky, this is the best way to ensure success with a Risk-Free bet.

For example, FanDuel Sportsbook currently has a promotion for a Risk-Free sports bet. They also have constant promotions for boosted sports odds, allowing you to select a team that may not usually have those odds in order to entice more sports bettors to wager.

In this example, the Yankees have boosted odds at +150 on FanDuel, while at other online sportsbooks, they would be at -250. They play the Pirates, who are already at +150 odds to win on other sportsbooks. So you place your $100 Risk-Free bet on the Pirates and a $100 boosted wager on the Yankees.

If the Yankees win, you win $150, giving you a $250 profit on the wager. And because you used a Risk-Free bet on the Pirates, you now have $100 in risk-free bets in your account. If the Pirates win, you still walk away with $150 in total profit. It’s a true win-win.

Grab Your Risk-Free Bet

Now that you know the ins and outs of Risk-Free betting, it’s time to scour the internet to find your next Welcome promo.

The Risk-Free Sports Bet Welcome Promo is the hottest promotion for online sportsbooks at the moment, and there is no reason not to take advantage of their offers. Just be sure to read each one’s terms and conditions thoroughly!