Wagering requirements

As we mentioned previously, there is no such thing as a free lunch. Although there are differences between sports and casinos bonuses, all sports and casino bonuses will come with restrictions attached – if a sports book or casino were to literally hand out free money which could immediately be withdrawn, then they would not survive very long.

These restrictions are known as wagering or playthrough requirements and simply require a set level of play before you can withdraw the bonus and we go into more detail about wagering requirements below

In most reputable casinos and sportsbooks, the wagering requirements are ‘relatively low’ so you have a reasonable chance of walking away with a profit. An excellent wagering requirement would be in the region of 20-30x the amount of the bonus (so a €100 bonus with a 20x wagering requirements would require you to place €2,000 worth of bets on eligible games before withdrawing) however 30x – 50x the bonus is more the norm these days and is considered to be acceptable.

What are wagering requirements?

Simply put, wagering requirements are the number of times a player must play the amount offered/deposited as to reach bonus completion and turn bonus funds (non-withdrawable) into real funds (withdrawable)

As an example, in the UK, most of the major operators use a standard wagering requirement of thirty-five (35x) times unless stated otherwise (occasionally some offers come without wagering requirements). This means that your bonus amount awarded must be wagered a multiple of 35x times in the casino to convert your bonus money into real cash that can be withdrawn.

Sometimes a casino will list their wagering requirements as ‘Bonus plus Deposit’ rather than as a multiplier of the bonus – this is often to make the playthrough requirements look smaller. When comparing bonuses, make sure you take this into account as a 100% bonus with a 30x Bonus wagering requirements is better than the same bonus with a 20x Bonus + Deposit wagering requirements (which would be 40x the bonus). Obviously if you are claiming a ‘no-deposit’ bonus, the wagering requirements will be listed as a multiplier of the bonus only.

So it’s important that you read the T&C’s when accepting bonuses. Only after you have met all the wagering requirements, will any potential winnings be converted to real cash.

Lets give you an example of a welcome offer:

Let’s say you are going to deposit €50 to benefit from the welcome offer. You will get another €50 matched as we offer a 100% matched bonus as well as free spins. In total, now you have €100 as funds to play with, however, you can only withdraw your initial deposit of €50 from the amount.

To be able to withdraw the remaining portion (the bonus), you will need to play on eligible games x35 your bonus (e.g. €50 x35 = €1750). Once the €1750 wagering requirement is met, you will be eligible to withdraw any bonus funds remaining.

‘Great, I understand but can you simply specify what is my wagering requirement amount?’

Wagering = 50 (Casino bonus) x 35 (Wagering Requirement) = €1750 (Wagering amount)

What games contribute to the wagering requirement?

It’s important to note that different Casino Games on any given website will contribute differently towards any wagering requirements. As an *example;

• Slots: 100% - note that certain slot games may be excluded from bonus wagering

• Live Roulette and Live Blackjack 10% - note, certain bets may be excluded

• Other Live Casino Games: 10%

• Table games: 5%

• Sports bets, Keno and Jackpot Bets: 0%

* The above is a guideline and may vary from site to site

Important Tips to Remember

• Any withdrawal performed while having an active bonus may (will) automatically forfeit the Bonus.

• If you forfeit the Bonus, all Bonus Funds (i.e. any winnings arising from use of that Bonus) will also be removed

• When participating in a Promotion, any available Cash Balance on your Player Account will be used to wager first (played first). Bonus Funds are only used once your Cash Balance is exhausted or insufficient to meet the stake.

• Only wagers or bets made using Bonus Funds will count towards the Wagering Requirement.

• You can generally only have one Bonus active at a time and you must ‘opt-in’ on all bonuses unless stated otherwise.

• It does not matter if you win or lose with the stake placed!

For example -: You have placed a €2 stake on a game, win or lose on that spin, you will have contributed €2 towards your total wagering requirement of €1750; leaving you with €1748 left to wager to meet the wagering requirement.

• Always check the Terms and conditions of each promotion as these might vary. Keep in mind that certain promotions or offers do come with an expiry date. Also remember to check what is the max bet allowed whilst wagering with bonus money i.e. €5 per spin.