Betting Sites With Welcome Bonus – South Africa

Is Online Betting in South Africa legal?

Yes, online sports betting is legal for residents of South Africa to partake in. There are a couple of vital points to remember, though. Make sure that whichever site you sign up to holds the correct licence awarded by the Provincial Licencing Authorities, who are in turn overseen by the National Gambling Board.

You can find an operator’s licence information on their website. For clarity, all betting sites we feature are legal and regulated by the appropriate authorities.

Online betting is available to all South Africa residents, as long as they’re 18 years of age or older. Some sites also only allow one account per household.

What is a Welcome Bonus?

Welcome offers are available at almost every online bookmaker you’ll come across. They’re used to entice new customers into signing up to a particular site. There are different types of welcome bonuses, which we’ll look at a little later in this guide.

While a welcome bonus can be attractive, note that they all come with a series of terms and conditions. These can include wagering requirements as well as minimum deposits, stakes and/or odds. Time restrictions can also apply. While generally the terms of a new customer offer can be reasonably easy to meet, it’s important you read and understand all associated t’s and c’s of the particular offer you want to take before you attempt to claim it.

Top 3 Betting Sites with Welcome Bonus in South Africa

We’ve been impressed with many betting sites available for residents of South Africa. There’s a good range to choose from, from which we’ve developed our top three list. The sites in this section not only offer enticing welcome bonuses, but provide an all-round user-friendly experience, existing customer promotions and a variety of sports and markets.

888Starz

One of our favourite South African sites, 888starz offer a Double Deposit new customer offer, up to 1736 ZAR. They offer odds and markets on a huge range of sports and events, from popular sports such as football, rugby and cricket, to less common events like netball, kabbadi and lacrosse. Horse racing is also available from the main sportsbook, along with greyhound racing and trotting.

In total, there are 50 different sports and events available to bet on, a much higher number than many of their competitors. For those who enjoy betting via their mobile device, an app is available although currently only for Android users. Mobile betting is still available to iOS bettors, simply visit the site using your mobile browser to access your account.

In addition to their pre-event betting facility, 888starz also offer a comprehensive in-play service. Find live odds on a range of sports throughout the day, including football, volleyball, basketball and cricket. Live streaming is also an option for many events.

There are also some tasty promotions accessible once you’ve signed up to the site. These including winnings boosts and cashback offers.

Customer service is accessible via live chat and email. There is also an FAQ section available on via the operator website.

In addition to their Sportsbook, 888starz also offer casino, live casino, games, bingo and poker.

MegaPari

Another site we’ve been impressed with is Megapari. An award winning online bookmaker, new customers at this site can qualify for a welcome bonus of up to 3900 ZAR across their first two deposits.

As with 888starz, Megapari also offer upwards of 50 different sports and events to bet on. This number includes horse racing, greyhound racing and trotting, available from the main sportsbook. Another impressive aspect to Megapari is the sheer number of odds and markets they have available on the most popular sports. For example, a typical European football match can have upwards of 1000 separate betting odds attached.

In-play betting fans are also well catered for. There’s a comprehensive live betting facility available, featuring odds on football, basketball, cricket and tennis to name just a handful. Live streaming is an option on many of these sports, too. The streams become active once you’ve logged into your account.

There’s a fantastic range of existing customer promotions available, too. In addition to cashback, boosts and free bets, there are also sports-specific bonuses that are accessible once you’ve created your account, including basketball’s Free Bet Basket and ice hockey’s NHL Mega Season offers.

Customer service is accessible via live chat, email and Megapari’s social media channels.

As well as their Sportsbook, Megapari customers can also access casino, live casino, games, bingo and scratchcard facilities.

PariPesa

Another option for bettors in South Africa is Paripesa. New customers at this site can qualify for a welcome bonus of up to 2000 ZAR on their first deposit.

As with the previous two sites we’ve examined, Paripesa offer an incredible range of sports and events to bet on. As you’d expect, popular sports like football, basketball, cricket and rugby are well covered, but bettors can also place wagers on events like arm wrestling, padel, figure skating and curling. Outright betting is available on almost every sport listed on the site. Horse racing, as well as greyhound racing and trotting, is available via the main sportsbook.

There is an extensive live betting facility available at Paripesa. In addition to live odds, this facility features a range of statistics and commentary designed to help you follow all the action of your chosen event. There is also an Odds Movement Chart available on the majority of events.

Once you’ve created your account, you’ll be able to access a range of existing customer promotions. Daily bonuses, cashback and boosts are available on a variety of sports and events. Paripesa also offer an Invite Friends promo.

Mobile betting is available via the mobile version of the site. Alternatively, customers can download the dedicated Paripesa app, available on both Android and iOS operating systems.

Customer service is available via live chat, email and social media channels.

Types of welcome bonuses available

New customer offers come in all shapes and sizes. While deposit match bonuses have featured heavily in this guide, with our top three betting sites all offering a 100% match deposit bonus for new customers, there are other types that are available.

Just a quick point to make about any welcome offer. The terms and conditions of any offer, even if they fall into the same category, can vary wildly from bookmaker to bookmaker. It’s critical you read and understand the terms of the exact offer you’re looking to qualify for before you try and claim it. A particularly common sight in terms and conditions is wagering requirements. Rollover requirements, as well as qualifying bet types, time limits and minimum deposits can also apply.

Deposit Match

As you’ll be able to tell from the bookmakers featured in this guide, Deposit Match bonuses are incredibly common. Most deposit matches are 100% matches, in other words the operator will fully match the amount of your qualifying deposit, up to a specified amount.

On occasion, you might come across a 50% deposit match, where the operator will reward you with half of the amount of your qualifying deposit.

Enhanced Odds

Enhanced Odds offers were an incredibly common sight in the past few years. While their appearances as a welcome bonus might be limited at this time, there are still some operators who offer Enhanced Odds promos to attract new members to their ranks.

Let’s look at how an Enhanced Odds offer works. These offers can dramatically increase the price of a particular event occurring. Usually, the chosen market has incredibly short odds to begin with, which makes the lengthening of the price all the more attractive. For instance, in horse racing, Intense Raffles might be the favourite to win the Grand National with odds of 6.0. An Enhanced Odds offer could increase the price to something like 41.0.

Usually on winning Enhanced Odds bets, the bet is paid out at the original odds in cash, with the enhanced part paid in free bets.

Price Boost

A Price Boost is similar to an Enhanced Odds offer, but provides a much less dramatic increase in odds. Generally, operators use Price Boosts to provide better odds on particular events than their competitors.

For instance, odds on Kaizer Chiefs to beat Golden Arrows in the South Africa Premier League might be 2.0. A Price Boost offer could increase these odds to 4.0.

For this type of offer, there’s usually a maximum stake stated.

Free Bet

Free bet offers are often found as part of a welcome bonus. Most of the time, you’ll find free bet promotions accessible when you sign up and make a deposit and/or bet of a specified amount.

As an example, you might come across an offer like Deposit 100 ZAR and get a 500 ZAR free bet, or Bet 200 ZAR on the South Africa’s T20 Cricket League and receive a 1000 ZAR free bet.

Free bet stakes are generally not included in any potential returns.

No Deposit Bonus

While most commonly associated with casino betting, there are some Sportsbooks that sometimes offer a No Deposit Bonus. With this type of new customer promotion, a member isn’t required to make a deposit or place a bet. Instead, all that is required is a successful sign up.

The bonus for this type of offer is usually a free bet that can be used on any sport or event.

Sports-Specific Bonus

When the world’s biggest sports events are taking place, many betting sites will provide welcome bonuses specific to that event. For example, when events such as football’s World Cup or Africa Cup of Nations are about to start, you can expect to find specific offers based on these events available for new customers, such as offers on a particular team to win the competition outright.

Horse Racing events are commonly used for sports-specific bonuses. You can often find new customer offers on major horse racing events like the Kentucky Derby or Dubai World Cup.

Risk Free Bet

Some operators will offer potential new customers a risk free bet. With this type of bonus, you can receive your stake back either as a free bet or as withdrawable cash if your qualifying bet loses.

Often, this type of promo is referred to as a Money Back offer.

Terms and Conditions

As we touched upon earlier, all welcome promotions come with a set of terms and conditions that must be adhered to in order to qualify for or use the bonus. Below, we’ve listed the most common terms you can expect to see for most new customer bonus offers.

• Wagering requirements. While often found in casino betting, many sportsbook promotions also come with wagering requirements. This means your deposit and/or bonus amount must be played through a specified number of times before the bonus itself is unlocked.
• Time limits. When you sign up to a betting site, the current welcome bonus is displayed and can be selected on the registration form. While at some betting sites you need to choose the bonus during sign up, there are many occasions when you can select the bonus after you’ve finished registration via the Bonuses or Promotions page. Generally, you’ll have a set amount of days in which to accept the bonus, and another time limit in which to meet the requirements and/or use the bonus.
• Minimum deposit. With the obvious exception of no deposit bonuses, almost every new customer offer will have a minimum deposit amount stated that must be met in order to activate the bonus offer. Usually, the deposit amount is reasonably small in order to be as attainable as possible for potential new customers.
• Minimum stake. For bonuses that require a bet to be placed, there is usually a minimum stake amount applied. As with minimum deposit terms, this amount is usually pretty small.

How to Register at a South Africa betting site

While there might be slight differences in the registration processes of each betting site, they’re generally very similar. Note that verification of your identity will be required either during the sign up process or once you’ve completed your registration.

1. Head over to the site of your choice and click on the Join Now or Register button
2. Select your welcome bonus when prompted
3. Enter your personal details, including your full name, date of birth and mobile phone number
4. Complete the Personal Profile or My Account sections
5. Confirm your account

How to make deposits and withdrawals

Once you’ve completed your sign up and verified your new betting account, you’ll be able to make a deposit. Again, the process might slightly differ from site to site, but following the steps below should describe the process no matter who you’re betting with.

As we’ve discussed in this guide, very often only specific deposit methods can be used to qualify for welcome bonuses. Make sure you read the terms and conditions of your particular offer to learn which methods qualify.

1. Hit the Deposit or Payments icon, usually found in the top right of the webpage
2. Click on which deposit method you want to use
3. Enter the required information, such as your card information or bank details
4. Enter the amount you want to deposit
5. Confirm the transaction

The Withdrawal option can usually be accessed via the Deposits page or by using the My Account menu. The process is similar - choose which method you want to use, enter your information and the amount you want to withdraw, and confirm the transaction. Note that usually, you can only make a withdrawal using a method you’ve used to make a deposit previously. Also, if you haven’t verified your account by the time you attempt your first withdrawal, this will be required before your withdrawal request will be processed.