The gambling industry is continuously changing, but one other thing always stays the same. New Zealanders like sports! Besides that there are also many people that love to gamble. So why not combine both? Going to watch the game of your favourite team? Then boost the excitement with one or more bets on the outcome. Watching a boring game in the pub? Then increase the excitement by placing some high risk bets on for example the score, the first scorer or the standings during the break.
And betting on sports is not only fun. It can also be pretty lucrative if you know what you are doing. By placing high risk bets or combining multiple bets you can multiply your stake in a matter of hours. Want to learn more about sports betting? Then continue reading on this page!
BEST SPORTS BETTING SITES
In the table below you will find some very popular sports betting websites for New Zealanders. A few upcoming brands are Bethard and LV Bet. Other well established popular sportsbook are BetVictor, 10Bet and Betive. Sign up your free account today and collect a generous welcome bonus. With these bonuses you can easily for example double the first deposit you make. In this way you can start betting with a head start. Curious and ready to learn more about a certain bookmaker? Then have a look at our review!
Not everyone is familiar with the way how (sports) betting works, but the basics are fairly easy. During (sports) betting people place a wager (a bet in money) on the outcome of a (sports) event. This can be a football match or a tennis tournament, but also a non-athletic event such as national elections, horse racing or illegal organized events like dog fighting. Depending on the sport or event, people will be able to bet on a few things, tens of factors or maybe even hundreds of things that can happen during an event. For example; during football you can bet on the winner, the standings during the break, the amount of cards, the amount of goals, the first corner of the scorer.
How often, and how much money people bet, on sports or events strongly depends on the culture of the country where they are living. Besides that the country also has a strong effect on which sports or events they are betting. For example; A lot of European people are more likely to bet on football, the Tour the France or tennis, but American people are more likely to bet on ice hockey, basketball, the Super Bowl and baseball.
WHAT ARE BOOKMAKERS?
Bookmakers are companies that function as a market maker for sports wagers. You can place bets at bookmakers, and they make a small profit on events regarding the outcome of the wager. If you win a bet, you will of course also make a nice profit. Most of the times bookmakers have an 11-10 advantage over their customers, which means they will always make a small profit on the long term. Because of these small margins most bookmaker tend to focus on getting as much customers as possible. The more customers they have, the smaller the chance of losing money on events.
HOW DO ODDS WORK?
When you want to bet money on sports then you will need to find a bet you like, and have a look at the odds. The higher the odds are, the higher your return will be. Most of the times high risks bets have high odds. With these bets you will have a smaller chance of winning, but when you win, the money you will win will be more interesting.
When for example a very good team will play against a less good team then the odds of winning will be in favour of the good team. When you bet on that team, you have a good chance of winning. But when they win, the return will not be very spectacular.
When you place bet you can most of the times also combine multiple bets in one bet. By doing this you can turn a few bet with a low return into one bet with a higher risk profile, but a way higher return rate.
Most events will have different odds at different bookmakers. Because of this it can be interesting to have account at multiple bookmakers. Why? Because then you will be able to place a bet a the bookmaker that offers the best odds.
While browsing odds at an online bookmaker you will most of the times see a decimal odds (European) or fractional odds (United Kingdom). Decimal odds are the ratio of the full payout in reference to the stake, in a decimal format. When you place a bet a odds of 2.00 you will place an even bet. Why? You will win 1 time you stake when the bet holds up.
If you find fractional odds on a website you will need to work a bit different. Fractional odds are British and show the ratio of the amount won to the stake. This means a 1/1 bet means you are placing an even bet. When you bet a 3/1 bet you will win NZ$3,- for every NZ$1,- you bet.
Some bookmakers also show different odds for players from New Zealand or Asia. At most online bookmakers you will also be able to switch between different odd formats. This might be important while looking for a new sportsbook for some players.
POPULAR SPORTS TO BET ON;
At the moment there are a lot of sports where you can bet on online. Most popular sportsbook now offer 50+ different sports to bet on. Some are very popular, and some have less events and less possibilities. One of people’s all-time favourites is football. Especially during the World Cup and Champions League more and more people tend to place bets on the outcome of games. Most of the times this is since they like to raise the excitement during the games they really watch. Besides these regular events there are also a lot of New Zealanders that bet maybe weekly or monthly on matches in national leagues like the English Premier League, the Italian Liga 1 and the German Bundesliga. They might bet on their favourite team, or a match that offers really interesting odds. Besides football some other popular betting sports are Tennis, Basketball, Golf, Rugby, e-Sports and MMA / Boxing. Why? All these sports offer multiple events and a lot of different betting options. Below we will highlight some of the most popular sports and betting types that you can use while betting on these sports.
BETTING ON FOOTBALL
The most popular sports to bet on is football. Why? One of the reasons for this is the fact that football is the most played sport worldwide. Especially in Europe and South America football is the number one sport. But also in other parts of the world more and more people start playing and watching football. Some of the most upcoming football countries are Asian ones like China, some Middle Eastern countries and multiple countries in Africa. And because more and more people play and watch football, more people start betting on this sport.
A second reason why a lot of people bet on football is the fact that a lot of major clubs get sponsored by betting companies. For example; BetVictor is Liverpool’s Principal Betting Partner, Betway sponsors West Ham United and Bet365 sponsors Stoke City. On top of that Zlatan Ibrahimović now promotes the launch of Bethard in the UK! And this doesn’t only happen in Europe, there are also a lot of big football clubs that already have betting contract with large Asian bookmakers and casinos.
A third reason why a lot of people bet on football is because the are used to bet on games. Why? We used to compete at home in order to win a small amount of money. And at work also a lot of people like to fill in a prediction for all the World Cup games. On top of that many UK stadiums offer betting facilities around the field. Besides that you will find bookmaker offices in most streets in large cities.
The last reason why a lot of people like to bet on football is the fact you can choose and combine a lot of betting possibilities. At some bookmakers you can place up to 1700 different bets on one singe match. Because of this many people feel like they can pick bet which they think they will win. Some of them are for example the winner of a match, the first goal scorer of the player to score 2 or more goals.
BETTING ON TENNIS
A second, in New Zealand, very popular sport to bet on is tennis. Since the launch of online sports betting tennis has been one of the most popular sports to place bets on. There are multiple reasons why this is one of the most popular sports to bet on. One of them is that tennis is becoming more and more popular as a sport to watch in the stadium or on TV. At the moment almost all countries have a national TV station that broadcasts live footage of the Grand Slam tournaments. But besides the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open also smaller ATP tournaments get more and more TV exposure. With this growing attention more and more people start betting on the sports to raise the excitement and fun.
On top of the growing popularity of the sports also big stars like Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal boost the game of tennis. The high competitive element in the game and the sometimes role model athletes attracts a lot of new watchers. And while Tennis doesn’t offer loads of betting options, the live betting options for the game can be very exciting. While betting live you can place money on every action in the game. Who will win the next point, in how many games will the match be finished, who wins the current set, or will an Ace or Double occur? You can place (low) bets on all kind of things in order to keep the match even more exciting.
BETTING ON DARTS
During the last few years the sports of darts really exploded. It is only maybe 5/6 years ago that almost nobody watched darts, and that no TV station would broadcast any events. But since the last few years the sport of darts really got a place in many people’s hearts. Why? Because the game is very exciting, fast paced, there are a lot of colourful players and the show element is very high. During all major tournament you will see darters entering the arena with their own song, brand shirts and their own brand of darts. On top of that the crowd will be filled with dressed up people that sign songs, shout the names of the darters and drink and enjoy their evening. This makes the sports very attractive to watch, and to bet on.
At the moment loads of events are broadcasted live on the internet and TV. Every week there are (sometimes multiple) large tournaments across the globe. On top of that all top players compete in a League (PDC), the Premier League of Darts. With the rise of darts a lot of heroes appeared on the stage including Michael van Gerwen (MVG / Mighty Mike), Phil Taylor (The Power), Gary Anderson (The Flying Scotchman), Peter Wright (Snakebite) and of course Raymond van Barneveld (RVB). These heroes, and the tournaments, get a lot of attraction of sponsors that want to promote their products. And of course there are also a lot of sports betting companies that sponsor Darts events. At the moment you have the Unibet Masters, the Coral UK Open, the Unibet Premier League, the bwin Grand Slam of Darts, the BetVictor World Matchplay and more. The sponsoring of these tournaments made darts a very popular sport to bet on.
At the moment you will be able to bet on darts at all major sportsbook. During darts you can bet up front or live. During these bets you can for example bet on who will win the match. On top of that you can also combine multiple match winners to increase the return. Besides these bets you can also bet during a game (live). Because of this you will for example be able to bet on the player who wins the leg or set. On top of that you can bet on for example a nine darter, the first 100+ check out, the highest checkout and the player with the most 180’s.
Curious on which events you can bet in the coming days? Then have a look at the tournament calendar of the PDC.
BETTING ON E-SPORTS
E-Sports maybe is one of the most upcoming sports to bet on. With e-Sports you can bet on players or teams of players who play games during events on a competitive level. A few popular e-Sports to bet on are Counter-Strike Go, Hearthstone, King of Glory, Rocket League, World of Tanks, League of Legends, Heroes of the Storm, DOTA 2, Starcraft, Starcraft 2, Overwatch. And with more and more people playing games online we expect that betting on e-Sports will become more popular very quickly.
A few reliable bookmakers that offer betting possibilities on e-Sports are LV Bet and Bethard. Both these website offer odds for most of the games mentioned above. While betting on e-Sports you will be able to bet on for example the winner of a match or a winning team. On top of that you will sometimes be able to bet on some other factor but these are most of the times still limited. The extra factors are most of the times events or accomplishments that can happen during the game.
BETTING ON VIRTUAL SPORTS
Although you can probably bet on sports around the clock there are also a lot of New Zealanders that like to bet on virtual sports. Why? Because there are not always interesting matches or events on the schedule. When this happens virtual sports can be a very nice solution. During virtual sports you will be able to bet on virtual race between for example horse or dogs. These races start around the clock and most of the times in a row. Because of this you can for example place bets on the horse race, watch and then continue to the greyhounds race. One this race is finished you can head over to the next virtual sport. Other popular virtual sports are speedway, cycling and trotting. Based on the odds and the form of a racer you can place bets on virtual races in order to win money. This may sound a bit crazy, but a lot of people really like it.
Golf is getting more and more popular in New Zealand. Each week there are golf events across the world and a lot of them are broadcasted live on TV. There are broadcasting companies that show whole events on their golf channels. Every week you can follow the events from Thursday to Sunday. Most events are shown from the second half of each event day. Except the majors. You can watch the majors from start to end. That means a lot of live golf each weekend.
When there is live sports there is betting. Golf is an interesting sports to bet on because there are a lot of players that can win events. With more possible winners the odds are very high. When there are a few top favorites the odds on these players are very low. But at golf there are on average 10-20 players that can win a certain event. Odds on these players are most of the time higher than NZ$10.00 or even NZ$20.00.
With one single bet you can choose more players to spread your chances. Of course you win a bit less money when you spread your chances. But you can simply increase your winning chances. At golf it is very interesting to do some live betting because standings change every day.
On our website you find betting tips and predictions of every golf major and the Ryder Cup. We give you predictions to increase your winning chances and we also show you the best odds at reliable betting partners. For an example you can check our lates predictions on The Open in Carnoustie. We also show you predictions for The Masters, US Open, The Ryder Cup and the PGA Championship.
BETTING ON ROAD CYCLING
Every year the best road cyclist compete each other in great events. The 3 most important events are the Tour de France, Giro de Italia and the Vuelta. Road Cyclists also compete during the Summer Olympics every 4 years. Cycling is a very popular sport and there are a lit of amateur cyclists across the world. Millions of tourists travel to the Alpes, Pyrenees and The Dolomits to ride the famous mountains. Every amateur cyclist wants to feel like a pro and wants to know what the professionals have to do to win cycling events.
It is a kick when you reach the top of famous mountains like the Tourmalet, the Mont Ventoux, Stelvio or the Gavia. Amateur cyclist feel a band with the professional riders and they like to watch the live events on TV. And of course it is fun and exciting to place bets on the major events. At our reliable betting partners you can bet on complete events or you can bet on single stages of an event. When you think you know who will win a certain event or stage you can bet on it. And the odds on road cycling are very interesting because a lot of different riders can win. The more riders who can win the higher the odds are on single riders.
I always recommend to bet on a few riders you think can win the event or stage. Spread your winning chances. It makes watching the stage on tv more exciting and fun. Keep an eye on our website for the best betting tips and our predictions on each major cycling event.
SPORTS BETTING AT ONLINE CASINOS
On our website you will find various well-known casino brands that offer sports betting possibilities for gamblers from New Zealand. Some only focus on sports betting, and other also offer for example casino games and live casino games. One of the most popular brands at the moment is LeoVegas Casino. LeoVegas is your one-stop shop for Live Casino Games, Casino Games and Sports Betting. Looking for a more sports orientated online casino? Then you might want to take a look at Bethard, Betive, BetBright or BetVictor. All these brands have a strong focus on sports betting.
SPORTS BETTING APPS
Most of the larger Sports Betting Casinos offer mobile casino and apps for Android or iOs. With these smartphone apps customers from New Zealand have a full sports book on their thumb wherever they go. Some of these apps work better and more user friendly than others. The BetVictor App and the 10Bet Sports App are both rated good by most users. Besides that also the Bethard and BetBright apps get a decent rating in the app stores.
By using the special smartphone or tablet app you can easier place bets while in the pub, on the road or in the stadium. Besides that the apps are very convenient to quickly check the odds or starting times. Basically the apps are essential for every starting and experiences sports better.
OTHER SPORTS BETTING OPTIONS
Although many New Zealanders love to gamble online or though apps you will also still be able to place bets in land based bookmaker offices in for example England. These bookmaker offices are still very popular and widely available in most cities. Most major bookmakers still have many brick shops where you can place bets on a lot of sports. Some of the bookmakers are thinking about closing down all or a part of the shops but most of them think that risk is still too high.
Besides these shops you will also still be able to place bets at a lot of stadiums. At these offices you can bet with a piece of paper and a pen on the match that is about to start. This can be very fun and enhance the experience of watching sports at a local stadium.
One form of sports betting I like is betting with friends, family or at work. Why? it is competitive, you don’t risk a lot of money and it is very fun. Especially when you are doing good you can tease people with their bad results.
On top of these options there is one option we don’t recommend, and that is betting at a illegal local bookmaker. By betting at unregistered bookmakers you will take risks which you wont have to take while betting online at a safe and reliable bookmaker.
Last but not least you can also decide to just watch your favourite sports in New Zealand without betting at all. In the end sports is all about the game, and not about betting.
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