Online Sportsbooks

Sportsbooks were the first online gambling websites. Unlike casino table games, slot machines and poker, sportsbooks did not need noise, graphics and animation. They started out by listing the action and receiving bets, just as in brick-and-mortar books. Now, of course, sportsbooks are right there with other gaming sites, with high definition replays of key events, promotional offers, bonuses, and all the rest.

Like online casinos, sportsbooks can be small and specialized, or large and connected with a network of other establishments. The benefit of specialized books is that they offer action on the specific contests of interest to the customer who seeks them out. The benefit of the larger and more generalized books is that they are strong and financially diversified, and can provide action on events around the world.

Online sportsbooks have created a sub-industry of handicappers. In the “old days,” handicapping was often done by one or more experts physically located at the book in question. Now handicapping services compete with each other to provide the action offered by online books. This presents something of a challenge to the sports betting enthusiast, since his edge is positive only to the extent that his handicapping is better than that implicit in the odds offered. And increasingly it is hard to beat the experts. Of course, there is random variation in all outcomes, but the variation should affect everyone equally.

The best advice when looking for a sports book is to read the online reviews, study the sites themselves, reduce the list of possible sites to just one or two, and then sign up. Make up your own “A” list or start with the “A” list of someone else, whom you trust. Then try out a selected site or two for a short time and draw your own conclusions. Compare them. Key concepts are ease and cost of funding the account, encryption to avoid fraud (almost all have this now), speed of payment on withdrawals and winnings, and clarity and efficiency of the display of propositions and odds. The availability and quality of customer service is another important consideration. Sports books located in jurisdictions that have lax rules or no regulation should be avoided.