Free Bets and Betting Offers

A free bet can come in many different forms and can be claimed by both new and existing customers, but generally speaking, if you hear an operator or affiliate referring to a free bet, they are normally talking about the welcome bonuses being away to new customers.

Free bets typically come in a “bet and get” format, so you deposit and bet £10 for example, and you receive £30 in free bets. These free bets would then be subject to certain terms and conditions, which vary depending on the operator.

There are many different free bet offers on the market, and if you are not sure what you are looking for, it can quite difficult to pick between the best options. While we believe all our partner offers meet these requirements, these are the non-negotiables you need to look for when picking a betting offer.

• Is there a minimum deposit and is it an amount you are happy with?
• Is the minimum bet amount one you are comfortable with to earn your free bets?
• Is there a minimum odds requirement for both the qualifying bet and for the free bets you will receive?
• Are the free fets you receive unrestrictive or if not, can you use them on your favourite sport?
• When will your free bets expire?
• What is the turnover requirement on your free bets before you can withdraw?

Once you have looked into these questions and are satisfied with the answers, you can then take advantage of the free bet offer knowing you have checked up on the key requirements and know exactly what you are being offered.

No. Free Bets are exactly what they say they are. You are being given a free bet by the bookmaker. As an example, they may give you £10, and you can use that, instead of cash, to place your bet. This cannot be exchanged for real money, therefore you cannot withdraw it straight away into your account, without using.

Additionally, when using these free bets, any winnings will exclude your free bet stake as well. So normally if you were to place a £10 real money bet on a 3/1 shot, you would normally win £30, and your £10 stake would also be returned, which means your total returns would be £40. With a free bet, because you didn’t put your own £10 in, you would simply win £30, as the stake is excluded for the winnings.

First, we should break it down into two categories, free bets for new customers, and free bets for existing customers. Here are the most common new customer betting types.

• Bet and Get – The first type of free bet we will cover is the Bet and Get. This is the most common new customer offer you will see, as bookmakers tend to offer promotions like Bet £10, Get £30 or Bet £10, Get £60 for example. The most common minimum deposit and bet for this type of free bet offer is £10, but you also see things like Bet 5p, Get £40 in free bets and Bet £5, Get £30 in free bets, so it’s always worth checking out the latest offers each month
• Odds Boost – When it comes to big Horse Racing meets like Cheltenham, bookmakers will often try and entice you with a huge odds boost on a particular horse or event happening. A recent example is when Sky Bet offered 60/1 odds on an Irish-trained winner at Cheltenham. Others have included Paddy Power boosting Constitution Hill to 50/1 to win
• Money Back – Some bookmakers go down the route of giving you your money back if your first bet loses. Some will return your stakes as cash, others will provide you with a free bet if you lose. These offers are good if you have a horse or event you particularly want to bet on, and plan on using that bookmaker again the near future, especially when your stake is returned as a free bet
• Deposit Match – Another option bookmakers tend to offer is a Deposit Match. This is where they simply reward you for making your first deposit, normally with a 100% match. So for example, if you made a £50 first deposit, they would give you an extra £50 in free bets

Now we know the different types of free bets new customers receive, let’s see what existing customers may receive during their betting journey.

• No Deposit Free Bets – The best type of free bet offers available to existing customers, is the no deposit free bet option. This is where bookmakers reward their loyal customers with free bets, without the need to deposit. This would typically be available in your account via opting in through a promotions page, and could be for example “a completely free £5 bet for Cheltenham” or along those lines. The value of each free bet varies per customer
• Matched Free Bets – Bookmakers will also give away free bets when you bet certain amounts on a specific event. For example, if you bet £10 on the Grand National, you will receive £10 in free bets. These are generally quite limited, and are reserved for a big event, but you may see this type of offer on your account
• Money Back as a Free Bet – While it’s new customers that generally receive money back offers, there are times when customers can bet on a certain race and get their money back if they lose. This could be, “Get Your Money Back as Free Bet if your horse finishes 2nd or 3rd” or could be “Money Back as Cash if 2nd” in specific races

Sometimes bookmakers dictate what you can bet on, for example implementing minimum odds terms or getting you to bet on certain events or sports. Generally speaking though, you will be given free bets to use across the sites, so you might get 3 x £10 free bets to use on anything of your choice, if you received £30 in free bets. This would mean you could then use one of your £10 free bets on the 13:50 at Newmarket, and another on the 16:55 at Kempton, for example.

Here is a list of the bookmakers we work with here at the Jockey Club. All of these trusted partners provide excellent sign up offers to new customers and offer excellent betting platforms for horse racing, and all your other favourite sports.

• bet365
• Sky Bet
• Paddy Power
• Betfair
• William Hill
• Betfred
• BetMGM
• Ladbrokes
• Coral
• Unibet
• Tote