A trusted guide to online betting for NZ sports fans

Looking to gamble at an online sportsbook for the first time? While it isn’t necessarily a difficult thing to do, you might need somebody to walk you through the process. That’s what we’re here for. We’re going to give you a quick but informative guide to online betting in New Zealand. There’s quite a lot to cover, so we won’t beat around the bush. Let’s just dive in.

Is sports betting legal in New Zealand?

Sports betting is 100% legal in New Zealand. You don’t even need to gamble at New Zealand-based sportsbooks.

New Zealand does have an online sportsbook licensing system. If a sportsbook wants to operate from within New Zealand, then it needs to be licensed. If you’re gambling at these online bookmakers, then you’re safe. The licensing system protects you.

Unlike other countries, New Zealand won’t prohibit you from gambling at overseas sportsbooks, either. As long as a platform is located outside of New Zealand, it does not need to be licensed – well, as long as it’s not advertising too heavily to Kiwi players. However, you are at more of a risk when you gamble at these places. The lack of New Zealand licensing means that you don’t have as much protection if something goes wrong. This means that you should do as much research as possible before opting to gamble somewhere.

Finding an online sportsbook in New Zealand

There are countless online sportsbooks in New Zealand. We could write an entire guide to help you choose the right place to gamble. However, we’ll sum everything up in a few quick tips:

• Choose a reputable online sportsbook. There are hundreds, if not thousands of sportsbooks that offer services to Kiwi gamblers. Don’t just choose somewhere that looks ‘fancy’. Choose an operator based on their reputation. This can include both brand recognition and through reading reviews. Read more here about some of the top online sportsbooks in New Zealand.
• Look at the casino site bonuses. We’ll discuss that more soon.
• Look at the betting odds. Sportsbooks will never have the best betting odds every single time. If they do, then you can be sure that something dodgy is afoot. However, if they have decent betting odds most of the time, that’s good.
• If you’re planning to gamble via your mobile device, make sure that a mobile version of that bookmaker is available.
• Check the available sports. You want a bookmaker that lets you gamble on the sports you want to gamble on, like the All Blacks in rugby. If you’re planning on gambling on top New Zealand sports, this shouldn’t be a major issue.
• Look at the ways to get money in and out of your account. See if there are any fees associated with it.
• Check that customer support is available. We avoid all platforms that make it tough to get help.

Just what are sports betting bonuses?

One thing that you’ll encounter a lot when betting in New Zealand (or anywhere, for that matter) will be bonuses. For example, a site may offer to give you free bets if you register, or extra cash when you make a deposit. It is important to remember that this is a promotion. Most of the time, you’re not going to get real cash that you can withdraw from the bookie. You must read the terms and conditions of any bonus.

This will tell you:

–       How to claim the bonus. Some bonuses will be applied automatically to your account, while others will require you to tap in a bonus code.

–       What you must bet on with that bonus cash. Normally, you’ll be limited to gambling at certain odds and on certain sports.

–       Any rollover requirements. This is where you will likely struggle to withdraw cash from your account. When you win using bonus cash, 99% of the time, that bonus cash can’t be withdrawn from your account right away. Instead, you will need to play through the winnings several times. The number of times that you need to play through those winnings is known as a ‘rollover requirement’ (some sportsbooks may give it a different name). If the terms and conditions of a bonus say a 7x rollover requirement, then it means you need to play through any winnings from the bonus cash 7x (meaning winning 7x) before you can withdraw the cash bonus – quite a hefty requirement.

–       Anything else relevant to a particular bonus.

The betting markets

Whenever you land at an online sportsbook, have a look through the betting markets. Not just in terms of the sports available, but the individual markets for each event. One of the cool things about gambling online is the fact that you’re not just limited to betting on the winner of an event. You’ve got a load of different bets you can make. For example, if you’re watching cricket, you can bet on the number of runs, the highest-scoring player, who will bowl out the most players etc.

Get familiar with the markets. They will provide you with guidance on what to bet on.

Live betting markets

Most bookmakers now let you bet on live events –  that is, you can bet when the action is happening. This is fun if you’re watching the event at the time. Check out some of the live betting markets to see how they work. You’ll notice the betting odds change on a near-continual basis.

Placing your first bet

Let’s wrap up by giving you a quick overview of the steps you need to take to place your first bet:

1. Register for an online bookmaker (don’t forget to do your research into the best ones!).
2. Deposit money into your account. If you’re taking advantage of a sports betting bonus, make sure that you read the terms and conditions for the bonus.
3. Go through the available betting markets. Research which bets make the most sense to you. This means checking odds, betting news and sports news, and reading stats.
4. Select the bet you want to make. This includes choosing how much to gamble. Remember, only gamble what you can afford to lose.
5. Place your bet, and hope you get lucky.
6. If you are lucky, withdraw the cash!

Honestly, that’s all you need to know about gambling at an online sportsbook in New Zealand. Do your research into the right online bookmakers and you should be fine. It isn’t too different from gambling at a physical location, the only difference is more betting options and access to betting bonuses.