Best Sports Betting Sites in South Africa 2024

Ready to explore sports betting in South Africa? PlayCasino offers a comprehensive guide to the top online bookmakers in the country, making it easier to find the best options for your bets. Keep reading to discover key insights and tips for betting on soccer, rugby, cricket and more. ⚽️🏉🏏⛳️🎾

Types of Sports Betting Bonuses

These different sportsbooks offer many different bonuses and incentives to sports betting South Africa players. Below, we will explain the terms and how these work:

Welcome Bonus

These offers traditionally welcome players to the online sports betting site by matching their first deposit by a certain percentage. So, for example, if you deposit R1,000 into your newly opened sports betting online account and the offer is a 100% match bonus, the site will reward you with another R1,000 into your account – giving you R2,000 to place on events of your choice.

Sign-up Bonus

These are sometimes another name for a welcome bonus or match bonus. Other times, a sports betting site will offer players a no deposit bonus. This means free credits to players who sign up at the site without the need to make a real-money deposit initially.

Free Bets

One of the most lucrative offers at a sports betting site is free bets for new players. Use the free bets to explore the site, check out the odds and enjoy all the online sports betting site offers. You can even keep some of your winnings!

Money Back

Money-back offers ensure that part of your bankroll is always kept secure. The mobile betting site promises to pay back a certain percentage of your losses. For example, if you lose R200, a 20% money-back offer will ensure that R40 is automatically returned to your account as credits to use at the site.

Other Promotions

Online sports betting sites regularly run other types of promotions, e.g. around important sports events such as the World Cup, weekend specials, etc. Also, look out for refer-a-friend offers that reward you for promoting the site to friends and family and getting them to sign up for an account.

Sports betting online means placing a wager or a bet on the outcome of a particular sports event. The odds are posted on the app and you make your bet and then wait for the event results to see if you’re a winner.

Live betting takes sports betting one step further: It essentially entails placing a wager while the game is being played out. Live betting is also known as betting in-play and is offered on sports such as football, boxing, rugby, cricket, tennis and horse racing.

To make your visit to their mobile apps more exciting, sports betting sites complement their sports wagering with other types of entertainment. When you’re in the mood for a fun respite or after another way to earn some rewards, check out the other betting and gambling options at online sportsbooks.

These are some of the more popular options available:

Esports

This is a form of sports competition using video games. Sports betting sites let you bet on esports, which is exactly like betting on traditional betting events. After studying the odds, place your wager on the esports team that you think will win the match, and then wait to be hopefully paid out after the event.

Lucky Numbers

Bet on the outcome of various local or global lotteries and number draws. Sportsbooks usually have coverage over hundreds of lottery draws from all around the world.

BetGames

Sports betting sites invite you to bet on high-frequency racing games, offering a range of bets. Another type of bet game found online at South African sports betting sites is the Mega Winner – a win-and-spin game where players bet on a fixed-odds betting market.

Live Games More Sports Betting

We touched on live betting above, but it’s important to remember that this is a great addition to regular sports betting entertainment. This option allows fans to bet on in-game outcomes while the game is still being played out. Most online and mobile sportsbooks offer live betting lines on sporting events happening worldwide every day.

There are many sports events that one can bet on. All of these function in different ways and have different probabilities of occurrence. Here is more information for any of you punters.

The odds offered on a sports event are calculated according to the risk associated with the event happening or not. For example, the chances of England winning the Rugby World Cup, or the chances of a horse coming in first place in race.

In the case of Live Betting, in-play betting and in-game betting odds are calculated differently. In the case of in-game betting, players wager on the game while it is happening. Odds usually change during a commercial break or a timeout. Odds for in-play wagering change after every play or possession. Players can place in-play bets via their mobile betting devices. They need to be very focused on the game as the odds change fast – sometimes within seconds. In-play odds are calculated according to what’s happening in the game in the immediate present.

Cashout options allow you to get money back on your wager before the event actually takes place. The amount that you get will be determined at the time of cashing out, as well as the likelihood of the bet winning. A cash out is usually offered as part of in-play betting. As the chances of winning change, an offer for cash out will increase or decrease (or be removed altogether) accordingly.

According to the National Gambling Act of 2004, sports betting is legal in South Africa, as long it is done with a licensed South African bookmaker. A company needs to acquire a license from one of SA’s nine provincial gambling and racing boards. Sports betting is also legal online, as long as the bookmaker has been licensed. Many international bookmakers have licenses to operate in South Africa, including major brands.

Soccer

Betting on soccer is one of the most popular forms of sports betting in the world. In South Africa, association football is the most popular sport in the country. The top South African Premier Division has a huge following, while betting occurs mainly in main cup competitions. There are a number of ways to bet a side and total in matches, including backing the double chance, three-way money lines, and others.  Bet on events such as league matches, the World Cup, etc.

Soccer World Cup Betting

The World Cup, a competition for international soccer teams, will take place in Qatar, starting on 20th November. The event will take place at the eight stadiums in Doha, the nation's capital, and surrounding areas. As this competition is around the corner, the excitement is building up and the top South African sportsbooks are open for bets. To learn more about this year's World Cup schedule, predictions, odds, where to bet, and much more, read our in-depth guide on the Soccer World Cup.

Racing

People have been betting on horse races since the beginning of time. Today, millions bet on the outcome of formal horse races around the world, especially via mobile apps, as part of the multi-billion-Rand industry. Saftote is the body in charge of keeping horse racing betting within stipulated regulations. Try your luck on a multitude of bet types, including Show, Place, Win, and Quinella.

Rugby

Betting on rugby is understandably hugely popular in the Land of the Boks, although there are options to bet on games that take place every day around the globe.  If you’re a rugby fan, you can choose from a wide range of different betting types, including match betting, handicap betting, tournament and season bets, and even individual player betting. The game of rugby has done a lot to bring South Africans together (think of the euphoric national feeling after the Rugby World Cup in 2019), and it’s only natural that this game features high on the list of favourite betting markets for South Africans.

Other

The best South African sports betting sites don’t only focus on popular sports such as rugby, soccer, and racing. They aim to provide an entire range of betting options, from the most popular, to the most obscure. In between, there are many other betting markets out there, and odds are provided on tennis, cricket, hockey, basketball, golf, boxing, etc.

The sports calendar is filled with events in every imaginable sport. Players can bet on local leagues and competitions or look abroad for their choice of literally thousands of options. These are just some of the local and international sports events that run.

Local

Soccer: Telkom Knockout Cup, Premier Soccer League, First Division

Cricket: SuperSport Series, The MTN Domestic Championship, T20 Challenge

Rugby: Currie Cup, Vodacom Cup, Varsity Cup

Golf:  Sunshine Tour, The Nedbank Challenge

Racing: Summer Cup, Vodacom Durban July, J&B Met

Athletics: South African Athletics Championships

Boxing: >SANABO Elite National Championships, SANABO Boxing League

Motorsport: South African Rally Championship

Tennis: South African Open

International

Athletics:  World Championship every two years, Athletics World Cup

Badminton: Badminton World Championships

Baseball: World Baseball Classic, Premier12, Baseball World Series

Basketball: World Cup, NBA Finals

Boxing: Boxing World Championships

Cricket: ICC World Cup, World Twenty20

Cycling: UCI World Championships, Tour de France

Golf: Ryder Cup, Presidents Cup, British Open, US PGA, Masters, US Open

Equestrian:  EI World Equestrian Games

Gymnastics: Artistic Gymnastics World Championship, World Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships

Handball: World Championships

Hockey (ICE): Stanley Cup, World Cup of Hockey, Ice Hockey World Championships

Hockey (Field): World Cup

Football (American): Super Bowl

Football (Soccer): World Cup, FA Cup, Asian Cup

Motorsports: F1 Grand Prix

Netball: World Championships

Rowing: World Championships

Rugby Union: Rugby World Cup, Six Nations, The Rugby Championship, World Cup Sevens

Rugby League:  World Cup

Sailing: Americas Cup

Swimming: FINA World Championships

Surfing: World Surfing Games

Table Tennis: Table Tennis World Championships

Tennis: Wimbledon, US Open, Australian Open, French Open, Davis Cup, Hopman Cup, Federation Cup.

Triathlon: World Triathlon Series

Volleyball: World Championships

Weightlifting: World Weightlifting Championships

These sportsbooks offer various deposit and withdrawal options in a great variety of currencies. You can find the latest information in this section.

Banking Methods

The best online and mobile sports betting sites for South Africans make sure that the entire banking and payment process goes as smoothly as possibly. To this end, most accept the following banking methods:

• Bank Transfers,

• Debit Cards,

• Credit Cards,

• Easy EFT,

• SID Instant EFT,

• Skrill,

• ecoPayz,

• Neteller,

• Bitcoin,

For more information about SA-friendly banking methods, feel free to check out our comprehensive Banking Methods Guide.

Accepted Currencies

The best sports betting sites accept a range of currencies to cater to players from all around the world. South African online betting sites accept ZAR (Rands) as a form of currency, as well as other currencies such as NGN (Nigerian Naira), Kenya Shilling, US Dollars, Euros, UK Pounds, etc.

Improvement in mobile technology in recent years has led to a significant spike in the number of South Africans who bet while on the go.  Gone are the days when navigating around betting sites was difficult and unintuitive. Today, you can guarantee yourself an unbeatable sports betting experience in the palm of your hand.  Most bookmakers today make it possible for players to navigate their sites on their mobile devices, but the vast majority of them also have dedicated mobile betting apps.

Sports betting fans, as a rule, prefer sports betting mobile apps since they make for faster and smoother navigation.  Mobile betting is also incredibly convenient, allowing you to make a bet anywhere and at any time – as long as you have a signal. Lastly, mobile apps make in-play betting so much simpler and more enjoyable.

Of course, players can do other things using their mobile sports betting apps, besides betting on sports. They can open an account, redeem bonuses, transfer funds, request payouts and contact customer support – in fact, anything that they’d be able to do on a desktop sports betting site.

The best sports betting sites have dedicated betting apps that can be downloaded to your mobile devices. This gives you the opportunity to wager on your favourite sports from wherever you happen to be. Gambling on the go has never been so entertaining or rewarding.  Place bets from your smartphones or tablets and put yourself in line to win significantly.

Android mobile devices such as Galaxy Nexus and Google Pixel allow you to download Android betting apps fast and free.  Head to the Google Play store, enter the mobile sportsbooks’ name and download the app onto your device.

The majority of bookies offer a mobile site that is compatible with Apple iPhones and iPads. However, dedicated Apple betting apps may offer a better quality of play.  Download betting apps for iPhones and iPads from iTunes and from all major online betting sites.

Betting on sport can be a fun and entertaining pastime, but it’s important to understand that it has the potential to become an addictive one if you don’t gamble wisely. If you reach the point that you feel that you are about to develop a problem, or you have already, it’s important to seek help as soon as possible.

Here are a few free resources available to you:

• The National Gambling Board Programme has a problem gambling counselling line that operates countrywide, 24/7 – 0800 006 008 or WhatsApp/SMS HELP to 076-65-0710

• Gamblers Anonymous South Africa – 078-789-0868

Why Trust Our Online Sports Betting Suggestions?

We have very strict criteria when it comes to selecting our recommended online and mobile sports betting apps. Before anything else, the site has to be legal, regulated and secure. It needs to offer a good range of events to bet on, with fair odds and good payouts. We also require that the sports betting sites on our list accept ZAR as currency and that the payment options are accessible to South African players.

We take care to cover various aspects of a sports betting website, highlighting both its selling points as well as its imperfections. We also update our reviews to reflect the latest changes, such as potential problems with the betting site, changes in payment methods, or simply updating our review with the latest welcome offers and bonuses for new and existing players. You can find all of this information along with other useful information about the best betting sites and sports betting in South Africa in our in-depth guides and reviews.

Sources Used in Our Content

Recognizing the importance of trustworthy information, we have curated a reference list of the credible websites and sources we have used to write this content. Each source has been meticulously vetted to ensure its reliability and relevance.

• Casino Association of South Africa

• South African National Government

• South African National Gambling Board

• Western Cape Gambling and Racing Board

• TGM Gambling and Sports Betting Survey in South Africa | TGM Research

• South African Responsible Gambling Foundation (SARGF)