Live stream betting feature has become a nice perk that online betting sites offer to their clients. It is a feature that improves the overall betting experience and allows bettors to watch sporting events live, and the sportsbooks are looking to attract customers by providing them with this opportunity. Check out the list of sports betting sites that offer the live streaming feature to their customers, read our expert reviews, and find the ones you like best.
Advantages of Live Stream Betting Sites
Punters appreciate the live streaming option on a sports betting site, especially those who don’t have the possibility to watch live sporting events on TV. It is a feature that improves the experience of in-play betting by allowing bettors to watch the action live as it unfolds, giving them a better chance to predict what will happen next.
To include live event streaming on their website or mobile app, sportsbooks need to buy broadcasting rights for sporting events, leagues and competitions. Depending on the event or franchise, that can be very costly, so not every sportsbook can offer a wide range of live-streamed events on their websites.
Having the option to livestream an event is particularly important for events that are not widely available on TV and those popular for in-play betting.
Requirements for Watching a Live Stream on a Betting Site
The live streaming feature is not available just to anyone on a sports betting site. Sportsbooks have their requirements when it comes to allowing their customers to use this feature, as securing the rights to live-stream events doesn’t come cheap. Also, it is nice to give customers a sense of exclusivity when they stream popular sporting events they can’t watch otherwise.
Another reason to set requirements for customers to access live streams is to incentivise them to bet on select events they wish to stream.
These are some of the most common requirements sportsbooks set for bettors who wish to live stream events:
- You must have an account with the sportsbook, meaning you need to be a registered customer.
- Sportsbooks typically require that bettors have a fully funded account or make a qualifying deposit to get access to this feature.
- Sometimes, there’s a minimum bet for certain sports or events, especially if you wish to watch a horse racing or a greyhound racing event. These are usually small bets, and you’ll need to bet around £1 to access these events.
- For other sports, like football, rugby or tennis, having placed a bet in the last 24 hours should be sufficient to watch a live stream of an event. Some sportsbooks don’t even require that, and it’s enough to have sufficient funds in your account.
- You will also need to fulfil some technical requirements, like having a stable internet connection, Flash player or HTML5 technology on your computer or mobile device, and so on.
How to Pick the Right Betting Site With Live Streaming
Just like picking any other sportsbook, your initial criteria when choosing the right betting sites with live streaming for you should be their licence and safety protocols. Once you are sure that the sportsbook is licensed and secure, you can look into other crucial aspects, like the odds, available sports, markets, payment methods, different betting features, etc.
When you check all those off the list, here’s what you need to look into next:
- Streaming quality: If you have the technology to support an HD stream, that’s what you’ll want from the sportsbook: to provide you with a high-quality stream of sporting events you wish to watch. There should be no lagging, and the streams should be stable.
- Sportsbook’s requirements: These should be listed under the terms and conditions that the sportsbook has set for accessing live streams. If you can’t find them there, our advice is to contact the customer support team.
- Available sports and events for live streaming: Sportsbooks might offer two or five sports to watch live, but the betting sites with live streaming with 10+ available sports are more likely to provide access to less popular sports for online betting and niche events.
- Range of markets: We have already mentioned this as a general factor for choosing a sportsbook, but it’s also important to mention the range of available markets in the context of in-play betting. Live streaming is a popular feature for punters who enjoy betting on live events, and a good sports betting site will provide a wide range of in-play betting markets for these bettors.
- The overall experience: When we say this, we don’t mean just the live-streaming but the overall experience with the sportsbook. That basically means that most, if not all, of the factors above should combine and deliver a wholesome experience for the bettors.
Most Popular Sports for Live Streaming
There is not much room for surprises here as football is one of the most popular sports to bet on and watch via live streaming. The best betting sites with live streaming will provide the possibility to stream some of the most popular national leagues and international competitions.
It is, however, interesting that sportsbooks in the UK are not allowed to stream Premier League matches because Sky Sports, BT Sport and Prive Video have exclusive broadcasting rights.
Apart from football, bettors enjoy streaming basketball games, especially the best competitions. Tennis is also a popular sport to stream, as bettors often place in-play bets on tennis, and things can change quickly in a tennis match.
Other popular sports for live stream betting are definitely horse racing and greyhound racing, with bettors wanting to use that rather short window when they can bet live on these events. Let’s not forget cricket, which attracts millions of viewers and bettors worldwide, and, of course, other popular American franchises.
Finding a bet live stream could be a bit more complicated if you enjoy betting on niche sports, but it’s not impossible, as some sportsbooks offer the opportunity to bet on less popular sports and even stream events on their platforms. Make sure to do your research and find those sportsbooks so you can enjoy the immersive sports betting experience that live stream betting provides.