Best Esports Betting Sites in the UK for 2024

League of Legends Betting

League of Legends (LoL) betting has exploded in popularity in recent years. In the game, two teams of five face off in an attempt to outmanoeuvre their opponents and take down their base. From Aatrox to Zyra, there are over 140 characters – or champions – making for countless team combinations.

It’s not hard to find a LoL tournament, as many are held across both Europe and Asia. Elite players compete in the annual LoL World Championship, which attracts millions of viewers around the globe, and you can bet on many other LoL tournaments at esports betting sites in the UK.

CS:GO Betting

There are several versions of Counter-Strike, including the original Counter-Strike, Condition Zero, and Source. But the one which is the most widely played in professional circles is Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, usually shortened to CS:GO. It’s a first-person shooter in which two teams (the Terrorists and Counter-Terrorists) face off, striving to kill one another while planting and defusing bombs.

CS:GO entered a golden era from 2002-2007 as the game really took off, resulting in a range of CS:GO betting opportunities via increasingly popular competitions such as the Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Major Championships, CS:GO S-Tier Events, and CS:GO A-Tier Events.

Dota 2 Betting

Another popular title at every esports betting site is Dota 2, a multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) game from Valve – the same company responsible for CS:GO, Half Life, and Left 4 Dead.

Two teams of five compete against one another, trying to defend their own bases. Dota 2 betting attracts plenty of interest, especially when The International kicks off. It’s the annual esports world championship tournament for Dota, which now boasts an eye-watering eight-figure prize pool.

FIFA Betting

The FIFA video game series first launched in 1993 on the Sega Mega Drive and has gone on to become one of the most popular video games around, selling over 325 million units up until 2021.

FIFA esports betting is relatively simple to find and easy to understand for beginners, working in a similar way to normal football bets. Clubs such as Manchester City have their own esports kits and sign players who participate in elite competitions such as the FIFAe Club Series, FIFAe Nations Series, FIFAe World Cup, and FIFAe Continental Cup.

Call of Duty Betting

The original Call of Duty (CoD) was released in 2003. The first-person shooter proved so popular that it became a household name, spawning a franchise with titles such as Black Ops and Modern Warfare each selling tens of millions of copies around the globe.

CoD betting exploded in 2008, when Major League Gaming (MLG) hosted a Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare event which drew huge crowds and attracted a lot of media interest. Nowadays, you can bet on Warzone events based on the battle royale game mode, or the Call of Duty League (CDL) – a league comprising 12 city-based teams from the UK, US, Canada and France.

Rocket League Betting

Released by Psyonix in 2015, Rocket League is a futuristic sports-action game which fuses football and cars. With over six million users from around the globe logging in to play the high-octane game every day, it should come as no surprise to learn that Rocket League betting has exploded in recent years.

The first Rocket League Championship Series (RLCS) took place in June 2016 with a meagre $55,000 prize pool – a figure dwarfed by the $6 million up for grabs in the RLCS 2021/22 season. The best esports betting sites accept bets on every regional event, and each international major which helps teams accumulate points for the end-of-season Rocket League World Championship.

Esports Betting Sites

Firstly, the type of esports betting site you choose is important. Some sites focus primarily on sports such as football, tennis and basketball, and only offer a handful of markets on the most popular esports. Elsewhere, you’ll find sites dedicated to esports with hundreds of markets across dozens of games. You can find the best betting sites for esports in the table at the top of this page.

Make sure you join one of the top esports gambling websites, as they cover esports such as League of Legends, Dota 2, CS:GO, and virtually every other competitive gaming title you can think of. It’s easy to join an esports betting site – sign up and enter some personal details, then add funds to your account and navigate to the esports section. Simply pick an esports bet and confirm how much you wish to bet.

Skin Betting

Back in 2016, skin betting was one of the most popular forms of betting on esports (one study found over 92% of esports betting used this format), although it’s less common now that traditional esports betting is more readily available. A skin is a digital item which alters the appearance of your characters. You can get your own skins by playing yourself for in-game item drops, via special events, by buying them on secondary markets and more.

Once you have some skins, you’ll be able to deposit them to an esports betting site as a form of currency. Depending on the rarity and value of the skin, you’ll receive a local currency amount for it – or you may just be able to bet with it as is. If your bet lands, you’ll get your skin back alongside your prize, which could be other skins.

Fantasy Betting

If you follow traditional sports such as American football or basketball, you’re probably already familiar with fantasy sports betting. It’s an increasingly popular format where you can select your ‘ultimate team’ by picking players from different clubs using a set budget. In 2018, a study found that 19% of American adults were playing fantasy sports – so roughly one in five.

In addition to the season-long fantasy teams, you can also try daily esports. This is perfect for games like CS:GO and Rocket League. You can put together your dream team and watch them accumulate points for the day, or the weekend. If you score enough points or meet the specified criteria at the esports betting site, you’ll win a cash prize.

Social Betting

Social betting in esports is exactly what it sounds like – creating bets with friends, family, and online acquaintances. This can be especially useful when you want to bet on a market which isn’t commercially available, so instead you create your own.

You can place social bets in an informal manner, but many of the leading esports betting sites will also create a social betting pool for key events to make it easier (and safer) for you to place bets against other people. The stakes are flexible, ranging from fiat funds to cryptocurrencies and even skins.

Tournament Winner

If you want to place one bet that has the potential to last until the very end of a competition, the Tournament Winner market may be of interest. Back the player or team which you think will win overall. If you choose the favourite, you won’t receive huge odds, but it’s still an interesting bet which is ideal for those of you who are just starting out in esports betting

Region of Winner

If you can’t decide between several teams that might win a game or event, but your hot picks are all from the same region, you can simply bet on the region of the winner. Teams from Europe or Asia may have a stronger history in certain games, so it can be a good way to hedge several teams at once and give yourself a bigger chance of winning.

Match Winner

The simple match winner market allows you to place a quick bet on who will win the next game. This works just the same as it would if you bet on one football team to beat another. As always, betting on the underdog will lead to bigger esports betting odds.

Handicap

Sometimes, the odds on your preferred player or team will be so low at esports betting sites that it’s hardly worth betting on them. That’s when handicap betting could come in useful. Handicap bets add a make-believe advantage to one side.

For example, in Rocket League, the weaker team may start with a one- or two-goal head start. Your team will then have to overcome this deficit to win the bet. So, if the other team starts with a 1-0 lead, your team must win by two goals or more to win the bet. The advantage of this is that it allows you to bet on the favourite and get biggeresports betting odds.

Over/Under

Much like the NFL and other major US sports, an over/under market can often be found for esports betting. A line is set by the esports betting site. For example, the total number of deaths in PUBG or CS:GO – and you can predict whether the final tally will be above or below the bookies’ number.

First Blood

It’s often tough to predict who will die first in esports shooters, but first blood is still a popular market because it can be exciting and yield quick results. Simply bet on who will land the first kill in the match. Read our esports tips on this page to increase your chances of guessing correctly.

Multiplayer Online Battle Arena (MOBA)

Multiplayer Online Battle Arena (or Massive Online Battle Arena) titles, sometimes referred to simply as MOBA, involve teams of esports pros facing off against each other. Often, this is in a 5v5 format. Players must communicate well and work together to protect their own base and destroy those of their opponents.

With MOBAs, it’s always important to keep up to date with the meta when placing esports bets. Tactics and strategies change frequently, and anybody who doesn’t keep up will suffer in their results.

Best MOBA esports titles: LoL, Dota 2, Arena of Valor, Smite, Heroes of the Storm

First-Person Shooter (FPS)

First-person shooters are games with a first-person view where the objective is to shoot down your opponents. It’s a classic genre for both casual gamers and professional esports players.

It’s easy to find a wide range of FPS markets at esports betting sites like total deaths under/over, first blood, and all the usual favourites such as tournament winner, match winner, and so on.

Best FPS esports titles: CS:GO, PUBG, Apex Legends, Overwatch, Call of Duty: Warzone

Battle Royale

The battle royale genre really burst onto the scene with the emergence of Fortnite, which had racked up approximately 3-4 million users by early 2022. Although this is what exposed battle royales to mainstream culture, there were plenty of big titles around long before that.

One thing which makes battle royale titles very appealing for esports betting is the odds. When you have 100 players trying to kill each other, it’s very difficult to accurately predict who will win – which means you’ll get decent odds even when betting on the favourites.

Best battle royale esports titles: Fortnite, Apex Legends, Fall Guys, Valorant, PUBG

Real-Time Strategy (RTS)

Some strategy games in esports betting involve players taking turns, but real-time strategy titles allow the players to play in – as the name suggests – real time. This means faster action with more twists and turns, which is great fun for those of you betting on it, and it also presents various in-play opportunities at the best esports betting sites.

Blizzard is one company which is prevalent in the RTS genre, and competitive RTS esports have been around for more than 20 years. If you’re into the psychological and strategic side of sports, this is a great genre for you.

Best RTS esports titles: StarCraft, StarCraft II, Warcraft III

Sports Games

Just because esports are entirely digital, it doesn’t mean there’s no room for traditional sports. You’ll find plenty of action on games replicating football, basketball, and other fast-paced sports.

On top of that, there are some games which involve made-up sports, like Rocket League. On a basic level, it’s a game of football – but instead of normal players, participants drive high-powered jet cars to smash the ball into the opponent’s net.

Best sports esports titles: FIFA, Rocket League, Madden, NBA 2K, Pro Evolution Soccer

Card Games

Card games blend many of the aspects which make esports betting so appealing: strategy, mind games, and unforeseen twists. This helps explain why you’ll find plenty of markets on card games at the top esports betting sites.

Card collecting is a big hobby in certain circles of esports, which means this will always be a genre which thrives. Games like Hearthstone from Blizzard have attracted huge interest, and even tempted over a few poker pros – such as Bertrand “ElkY” Grospellier, who plays for Team Liquid.

Best card esports titles: Hearthstone, Magic: The Gathering Arena, Shadowverse