Last Updated: 23 Nov 2022We've researched and reviewed the best sports betting sites in South Africa. All bookmakers in our list of recommendations are licensed and regulated and offer a wide range of events and betting markets, along with lucrative free bets and promotions.
When it comes to evaluating sportsbooks in ZA, there are many criteria a site must reach before we recommend them to our readers. Our expert team conducts careful reviews on each sports betting business, to ensure the platform ticks all the boxes, and provides a safe experience for bettors in South Africa.
The top South Africa sports betting operators understand what customers want, and offer a juicy choice of sign up bonuses and promotions. These deals allow bettors to sign up, deposit, and receive extra Rands to bet with. We evaluate the sports betting bonuses available across these sites and ensure customers have access to the best bonuses with fair terms and conditions.
During our sportsbook reviews, we look at the odds and pricing to determine how much commission they charge for their services. This allows us to find the bookies with the best odds, so customers can keep more of their winnings.
While reviewing the bookie, our team goes through the most popular sports and looks at the individual betting markets. We only recommend the best sites that give customers the choice to bet on many markets across the top sports, with leading events offering over 100 options.
Live betting offers the best way to enjoy sports in 2023. Customers can use their PC or smartphone to login and place bets on sports matches while they’re taking place. Allowing savvy punters to profit from in-play betting opportunities.
We check to see what special features the bookmaker provides SA residents. This can include a betting exchange to back and lay selections, early cashout, boosted odds for popular matches, prediction competitions, accumulator boosts up to 300%, prize giveaways, multi insurance, risk free bets, and unique sports betting tournaments with prize pools over R$15 million.
Being able to deposit instantly and cashout fast is equally important. We check if the bookmaker offers secure local payment methods in Rand currency, and evaluate their payout speed. The sites we recommend make it easy for customers in South Africa to make instant deposits and fast withdrawals.
We review the sports betting platform and see what type of customer service they offer and the hours they operate. It’s important for players to have easy access to the company if they have any questions. The best brands offer support via email, live chat, and phone, with many operating 24/7.
We understand the importance of regulation and ensure we only recommend sports betting websites licensed by a gambling board in South Africa. This way locals can legally sign up to place bets on the platform, with the peace of mind knowing they are complying with the country's gambling regulations, and can legally bet online and win Rands.
Many South Africa sports betting customers use a mobile phone to bet online. It’s important that the best bookmakers have mobile responsive websites and dedicated apps available on mobile phones. These apps provide the best betting experience, and let customers place bets with a few clicks.
There are many South African betting brands to choose from, and sometimes it may be hard to pick. We’ve made it easier for locals by reviewing the top sports betting brands. They've created easy-to-navigate mobile websites, with thousands of sports events, attractive odds, and the chance to win Rands.
In 2017, Betway entered the South African market and obtained a license from the Western Cape Gambling and Racing Board, with the Bookmaker number 10181496-007. Their gambling site features thousands of domestic and international sports events each month. There are 28 sports, including Cricket, Darts, E-Sports, Football, Formula One, Futsal, Rugby, and Tennis.
The Betway sportsbook features many football leagues to bet on, including the English Premier League, UEFA, DStv Premiership, and The Glad Africa Championship, with top events offering over 100 betting markets to win Rands on. During our review of the Betway sportsbook, we calculated the odds payout on some sports events by comparing the Win-Draw-Win markets across UEFA football matches, and found they offer an average odds payout of 94.85%.
With an active betting industry in South Africa, locals can find appealing online sports betting bonuses and promotions. There are several types of deals available to claim, each offering unique rewards and enhancing the experience.
A common type of promotion at SA sportsbooks is the sign up match bonus. They’re also called a deposit match, and they provide bonus cash for customers to bet on more sports with. Some sites offer up-front match bonuses, while others may provide cash after meeting the qualifications. Sign up bonuses are an excellent way to boost the bankroll and start betting with more Rands in 2023.
Free wagers are loved by ZA punters who appreciate value and enjoy the chance to bet with extra Rands and increase their account balance. There are different types of free bets available for free, including upfront, dedicated for a specific match or sport, or after making a qualifying deposit and meeting the requirements. The best brands in SA offer an excellent choice of promotional deals, including no cost bets available to claim today.
Cashback is an excellent incentive that provides extra bonus rewards after losing at an online sports betting website. For example, Betway's Money Back Boost offer provides rewards based on how many legs of an accumulator have won. The maximum cashback that can be won requires an accumulator with 21 games and 20 winners, resulting in an extra 20x bonus payout.
VIP loyalty promotions are an excellent way to reward users who place South Africa bets. Sports betting companies can reward loyal customers who place bets on their platform. These programs allow users to accumulate points by placing bets and receiving bonus rewards based on their wagering activity.
There are many exciting sports events to bet on from South Africa in 2023. Each day, new competitions are taking place in different leagues across the world. This provides locals with the opportunity to easily find betting markets to wager on and win Rands online.
Rugby is loved with a strong passion in South Africa, and the top betting platforms know this. They offer a huge choice of rugby leagues to wager on, with special markets for Tries, Handicaps, Point Range, Winning Margin, and Totals. Locals can bet on top events, including the United Rugby Championship, Top 14, NPC Cup, Premiership Rugby Cup, Pro D2, and the Women's World Cup.
Football is undoubtedly the most popular sport in South Africa and the sports betting industry. The leading bookmakers have 100s of betting markets across many domestic and international football leagues. This creates a betting bonanza for football fans, with the choice to bet on games in the African Cup of Nations, Bundesliga, Champions League, English Premier League, Europa League, SA Premiership, FIFA World Cup, and other action-packed tournaments. Sports betting operators provide excellent market coverage with options to bet on 1x2, Over/Under, BTTS, Cards, Corners, Futures, Players, and more.
Cricket is one of South Africa’s leading sports, and their national team is currently ranked 6th in the world in the ICC One Day International list. ZA bookies cover the top local and global cricket events, including World Cup, Legends Cricket League, T20 Series, Pro50, Africa, T20 Cup, Sunfoil Series, and more. Local users can win money by predicting the outcome for Match Winner, Which Team Wins The Coin Toss, Team With Top Batter, Team with Top Bowler, Will There Be A Tie, and for a Player to Score 50 points.
Horse Racing is a massive industry in South Africa, and the country has many popular racing tracks like Durbanville, Fairview, Greyville, and Kenilworth. These sites accept bets on local horse races or on worldwide tracks including Brighton, Leicester, Nottingham, Fort Erie, Mountaineer, Canterbury, Sonada, and Happy Valley. SA punters can win Rands by placing bets on Winner, Place or Exacta, Trifecta, Superfecta, and other Exotic bets. These horse race sports betting events are available 24/7 thanks to races taking place in different timezones.
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is a famous American MMA tournament, and the most famous fighting tournament in the world. This league is filled with action, with some of the toughest men and women competing in head to head combat to become the champion. Top sports betting brands in South Africa accept wagers on Match Winner, Total Rounds, and specific outcomes like Knockouts, TKO, and Submissions.
Motorsports deliver an adrenaline-pumping experience for drivers, sports bettors, and spectators. These events feature the best drivers and fastest cars in the world racing around tracks. The most popular Motor Sport to bet on is the Formula One, which takes place in different countries around the world. Leading Formula One sports betting markets in South Africa include 1st Practice Winner, Top 3, Winning Margin, Winning Constructor, Qualifying Winner, Fastest Lap, and Race Winner.
Golf is popular with locals on sports betting websites, and the country hosts the SA PGA championship every year. This event has been running since 1965, and many residents are passionate to watch and bet on local and global players as they head to St Francis Bay to compete. Customers at ZA bookmakers can bet on other international golf events, including PGA, DP World Tour, British Challenge, US Masters, and US Open. Betting markets include Match Winner, Top 5, Top 10, and Top 20.
Esports is one of the newest events to place South Africa bets on, but it’s quickly become a hit with locals. These are live events where two teams of professional video game players battle it out in the most popular online video games, including CS:GO, DOTA, LOL, WOW, Valorant, and Rainbow Six. Locals can bet on who they think will win the match, who gets the most kills, and other unique outcomes to win Rands.
Tennis is a truly global sport, with many games taking place in different tournaments across the world. This makes it the perfect option for sports betting in South Africa, with many options to choose including International Clubs, ATP, Challenger, ITF Men, ITF Women, WTA, and more. Customers can win Rands by betting on Winner, Total Games, Correct Score, Game/Set Handicap, and Odd/Even Games.
The sports betting sites we recommend offer many unique match outcomes that customers can bet on. The best operators provide hundreds of betting markets for popular sports events. We’ve outlined the most types of sports betting options for South Africans.
Point Spread – The point spread is a popular betting market offered by South African bookies. It aims to even the field, by offering outcomes where the favorite has a disadvantage and the underdog has an advantage. Users can wager how much they think the team will win by. For example, betting on a -3.5 point spread would require the favorite team to win by at least 4 points for a successful outcome. On the opposite side, a +3.5 spread bet means the underdog team needs to win or lose by less than 3 points to be successful.
Money Line Bet – Money line bets are the most popular choice at betting sites for sports in South Africa. They offer a simple choice and allow fans to back their favorite teams to win the match. In Football, these bets are commonly called 1x2, because there are three outcomes, Team 1, Draw, or Team 2. Money line bets can offer large odds when underdogs are playing a strong team, and allow fans to potentially win big if an upset occurs.
Over/Under – The Over/Under market is an exciting option for football betting fans. Customers can predict if the game will be slow with a low goal score, or packed with action and loads of goals hitting the net. Alternative lines in this market allow users to wager on options like Under 0.5 or Over 5.5 with big odds, and can come in handy with certain betting strategies and H2H matchups.
Accumulator – The Accumulator lets South African users add multiple events to the one betting slip. Each time a new selection is added, the odds are multiplied. Accumulators can increase the odds payout by combining their sports predictions in the one bet. There are many exclusive sports bonuses for accumulator boosts that offer extra payouts for multi-bets that qualify.
Player Markets – Betting on specific players is common with passionate fans and smart sports betting customers who know their statistics. These markets offer payouts for outcomes involving players, for example first goal scorer, anytime goalscorer, to score a hat trick, first try, and more. These markets can offer large odds depending on which player is picked.
Both Teams To Score – A popular football sports betting market in South Africa is called Both Teams to Score (BTTS). It’s a simple bet that usually offers odds in the 1.50-2.50 range, and players can choose No if they think only one team will score, or Yes if they believe both teams will put one in the back of the net.
It’s important that customers can easily make deposits and withdrawals from their sports betting account. We carefully review the payment methods and speed at bookies, and check they have convenient and secure options for locals in South Africa.
Yes. It’s perfectly legal for South Africans to bet on sports. This type of gambling was first permitted in the National Gambling Act of 2004, which allowed sports betting operators to acquire a license and operate legally. The National Gambling Board regulates the whole industry, while provincial boards regulate businesses in local jurisdictions.
FICA stands for the Financial Intelligence Center Act. This is a South African law that ensures businesses perform KYC on their customers. It was designed to protect the nation’s population by reducing criminal activity, including money laundering, and the financing of terrorism.
Sports betting online can be a safe experience if customers sign up to the right sites. Unfortunately, there are many bookies that offer poor services, so it’s important for customers to only sign up to platforms that have been vetted, have a local license, and secure SSL connections and payments.
South Africa sports betting users can withdraw their winnings in several ways. The options may vary between bookies, but the best ways to cash out Rands are EFT, FNB eWallet, ABSA CashSend, Standard Bank Instant Money, 1ForYou, and Nedbank.
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