We rate the Bodog Sports Betting Site – Is it any Good?
While online gambling is legal in most places in Canada, our country doesn't really have a huge number of places to gamble. We suppose the low population doesn't really help on that front. Still, there are some fantastic online sportsbooks in Canada, and one of the best is Bodog. Let's tell you a little bit about it in this Bodog sports book review, shall we?
Is The Bodog Sportsbook Reputable?
Absolutely!
Even if you haven't heard of the Bodog sports betting brand name before, we can tell you that this is a huge company. Bodog is not a singular website, but it is in fact part of a world-spanning collection of online sportsbooks and casinos. This is a company that knows what they are doing. If you gamble with Bodog, then you know that you are in the safest possible hands.
We can assure you that Bodog is licensed to operate in Canada. This means that they go to massive lengths to ensure that their service is secure. They go to even bigger lengths to ensure that they treat their punters with the respect that they deserve.
When you are gambling at a sportsbook in Canada, you need to be sure that the site can legally operate there. If it doesn't, then give them a skip. Yes. We know that there are plenty of sportsbooks in Canada that you can access, but it doesn't mean that you should be gambling at them.
Why Bodog Sports Canada Offers The Best Gambling Experience
In this section, we are going to go through the things that we love about Bodog Sports in Canada. Think of this as a comparison against some of the other sportsbooks in the country, although we are not going to name any of them by name.
You should also be aware that we are not going to be afraid to be a bit negative here. While we genuinely do believe that Bodog is one of the best online sportsbooks in the country, we do not believe that the site is perfect. No site is perfect. We just want you to have a good, solid, overview of what Bodog brings to the table.
Welcome Bonuses
We know that whenever people land at an online sportsbook for the first time, they will make a beeline for the bonuses. We are pleased to say that Bodog sports offer some pretty awesome bonuses.
Now, it is worth pointing out that there are no massive bonuses to be had in Canada. We aren't like the US where we are going to have thousands and thousands of dollars thrown at us just for showing up on a site. However, we like it this way. Gamblers will find it a whole lot easier to reach the limits for the bonuses, and this means reaching the rollover requirements to ensure that the cash can be withdrawn from the account.
At the time of writing, the welcome bonus for Bodog is a 100% initial matched deposit of up to $400. You will then get an additional 50 free spins at their online casino. The wagering requirements are just 5x, which means that you have a pretty decent chance of being able to withdraw any cash that you have won from your bonus. This is exceedingly rare with other online sportsbooks, particularly in Canada.
The only downside is that you will only get to claim one welcome bonus. So, if you are planning on gambling on both the sportsbook and the online casino at Bodog, you need to think long and hard about which bonus you want. You won't be able to change your mind later on.
VIP Bonuses
These are the bonuses that regular gamblers receive at Bodog.
Most of the regular bonuses do seem to be aimed at casino gamblers. However, every now and then, the company throws in some rather cool reload bonuses. You will also likely be taking advantage of the enhanced odds during some of the bigger events of the year.
In addition to this, there is a rewards program. Every time you place a bet on the site, you can collect reward points. These reward points can then be traded in for even more cool bonuses. This means that you have an opportunity to squeeze some more free cash from the site.
Bodog Sports Betting Options
As we mentioned at the start; Bodog is part of a vast network of online sports betting sites. Each of them has a different brand in order to target different markets. However, the sites are linked.
Because the sites are linked, Bodog offers more gambling options than the vast majority of other online sportsbooks in Canada. Obviously, you can gamble on the likes of football, ice hockey, and baseball. However, you can also gamble on some of the smaller events too e.g. beach volleyball, eSporrts, and maybe a dash of swimming.
You aren't just going to be seeing the moneylines here either. Oh no. The site goes to huge lengths to ensure that you have a ton of bets that you can place on any event (even the smaller ones). If there is a big event running, then you may see over 100 different prop bets for it. If it is a smaller event, then you may still be able to see a couple of dozen different options.
One thing that we have really noticed about Bodog and its affiliated network of sites is the fact that the company really listens to what its punters want. While they do not have a request-a-bet section, you can drop them a message. If they get enough feedback on certain bet types that they want their punters to see, it normally turns up on the sportsbook at some point.
Live Betting
If live betting can be offered for an event at Bodog, then you can bet your bottom dollar that it will be available. This means any event that may last for more than a couple of minutes (i.e. you won't be able to bet on horseracing live, but no site is ever going to offer that option so it isn't a massive loss).
We love the Bodog live betting system. Once again, this is where Bodog being part of a major network of sites really does help. Bodog have managed to develop a system that can display all of the information that you need to know. It is easy to read, even when you are trying to look at dozens of different bets. It updates well, and it even works decently on mobile devices (more on that part in a short while).
Gambling Odds
No sportsbook can continue to offer the best odds. If they did, then they would go out of business pretty quickly. This is because odds are carefully balanced to ensure that no matter the outcome of a game, the bookie will always make a profit.
That being said, it does appear as if Bodog has a lower amount of profit (sometimes called the juice) on each bet that they have on their platform. This means that the betting odds on their site are fairly competitive.
We would never advocate that serious sports gamblers limit themselves to a single online betting site. You will never make huge sums of cash like that. However, for the casual gambler, we reckon that Bodog has good enough odds that they would be perfectly content making this their main website.
Mobile Gambling
Sadly, there is no mobile app for Bodog. However, to be honest with you, most sportsbooks in North America do not have a mobile app. Thankfully, this doesn't mean that mobile gamblers are excluded from playing at Bodog.
While there is no app, the site offers a tremendous mobile browser offering. If you load up Bodog in your mobile browser, then it will look just like the main website, just in a shrunken down form. All of the features that you can find on the main website (including live gambling) can be found on the mobile website. It is fantastic!
Honestly, we would go as far as to say that Bodog currently offers one of the best mobile sports betting options in Canada. It isn't even a close race. So, if you tend to enjoy gambling more when you are stat in front of a TV, then Bodog may be a good shout for you.
Banking Options
This is where Bodog does fall apart a little bit, but perhaps nowhere near as much as other online sportsbooks in Canada. You can't really blame Bodog here. It is more the tough legislation that we have in this country.
These are your deposit-only options:
- Visa
- Mastercard
- Bitcoin SV
- Ethereum
Sadly, there are fees of up to 10% on a deposit with Visa and Mastercard, which is virtually unheard of. The two cryptos are free.
You can deposit and withdraw using these methods:
- Interac
- Bitcoin
- Bitcoin Cash
- Litecoin
- Direct Bank Transfer
Somewhat frustratingly, you are limited with the number of withdrawals that you can make. For the cryptocurrencies, you can make one withdrawal every 3 days. For the other options, you are limited to once every 7 days.
For casual gamblers who enjoy gambling on weekend sports, then this is something that should be fine.
However, for those that are heavy into their gambling, it can be somewhat limiting if you are the type of person that likes to funnel cash around.
If that wasn't enough, with almost all of the withdrawal methods (outside some crypto options), you are limited to how much you can withdraw at once.
This means that if you do have some big wins, it may take well over a week for you to get all of that cash out of your account.
Again, it is probably not going to be a huge issue for the vast majority of gamblers. However, if you are lumping down hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars on a winning bet, then you will have to use crypto for your withdrawals.
Honestly, it does appear as if Bodog is all about forcing people on over to using cryptocurrency.
However, this is a trend that we have seen quite often in sportsbooks, so it isn't really limited to Bodog, so we aren't even sure whether we can rate Bodog negatively in this area. They are doing nothing different from countless other websites.
Customer Support
Bodog customer support is mostly via email and telephone. They are easy to get in touch with if you do have any problems with the website.
While it is rare that you will ever need to talk to them (since everything about the site is so wonderfully designed), it is nice to know that they are there if you do end up running into any issues.
We don't think we have ever seen a complaint thrown at the customer support team for their online sports betting options.
Most of the complaints seem to be at the casino side of things, and that is mostly because people don't understand how RTP works…
The Pros and Cons Of The Bodog Betting Site
Read the review? Great! We will still need to sum up the pros and cons of using the Bodog betting site, though.
Pros:
- Great mobile gambling option
- Other betting options available
- Competitive betting odds
- Huge number of sports
- Worldwide reputation
Cons:
- Withdrawals and deposits are a bit limited.
- No mobile app
Conclusion
So, is Bodog a good sports betting site?
Well, yes. There are a couple of negatives about Bodog.
However, having played at countless sites in this mighty fine country, we genuinely believe that Bodog is one of the best online sportsbooks in Canada.
Throw in the online casino that they also offer and you have the complete package.
If you are a casual gambler, then we have absolutely no doubt that Bodog is going to be a great sportsbook for you.
In fact, if you are keeping your bets under $200-$300 at a time, you probably don't need to be anywhere else.
References
https://www.bodog.eu/
https://www.gamblingsites.com/reviews/bodog/