Interested in diving into the world of sports betting in West Virginia? Join the millions of other Americans who have started to bet online on sports on a near-daily basis. It has become a form of entertainment that is accepted as going hand in hand with being a sports fan, and more a part of mainstream media. Although sports betting is gaining momentum in states like New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and even Rhode Island, West Virginia is quickly carving out its position in the industry as well. This is the ultimate West Virginia Online Sports Betting Beginner’s Guide to help you navigate the wide world of West Virginia sports betting, from signing up for online accounts to actually getting into the action and placing your bets.

Sports betting officially became legal in the state of West Virginia in March 2018 and thus far has thrived as a new state to the industry. In 2019, the first full year of legal sports betting, the state took in over $19 million in revenue. This for a state with under 2 million residents, and you can see why sports betting is such a tremendous source of revenue for the local governments. Unlike Rhode Island, many of the bigger names in the industry have already moved into West Virginia such as FanDuel and DraftKings, who have both partnered with local casinos to build up their sportsbooks.

Currently, there are five legally operated sportsbooks in West Virginia, with many of the major ones still operating out of casinos to allow for sports betting in person. Don’t bother trying to enter one if you are under the age of 21 though, as West Virginia has taken a hard stance against underage gambling, especially with the popularity of sports amongst a younger audience. For anyone over the age of 21, West Virginia is a great place to be for sports betting, especially during bigtime events like March Madness or the Super Bowl. After reading this West Virginia Sports Betting Beginner’s Guide, you will be fully equipped to jump right into the action and join in one of the fastest-growing entertainment industries, not only in America but the world.

You’re in the right place if you have made it this far and are now wondering what sportsbook you want to sign up with! With so many online sportsbooks out there, it is a daunting task to filter through all of them and decide which one is best for you. Remember, you should never feel you need to be loyal to a certain sportsbook or brand. Many sports bettors have multiple accounts to maximize the welcome bonuses as well as something called line shopping, which is comparing several different sportsbooks to find the best odds for the match that you wish to place a bet on.

So where do we suggest you start? Check out online user reviews for these various sportsbooks. If there are some negative reviews and complaints from customers about things like slow payouts or bad lines/odds for games, then it probably is not a company you should trust your money with. So do some research into some sites you are interested in signing up for. If you use the analogy that many sports bettors use: that sports betting, when done right, is more like investing than gambling, then you should look at sportsbooks like you would banks. If a bank had a reputation for customer dissatisfaction and shady practices, you probably would not feel great leaving your money with them either. The same should apply to your sportsbook.

The welcome bonus is something we recommend taking advantage of for new players to get a good start on their bankrolls. These welcome or sign up bonuses only happen once so it is something you are definitely going to want to maximize. There is various sign up bonuses that are offered and we will go into detail about how each one works.

Sign Up Bonus: The easiest and most widely offered bonus for new players is the Sign Up Bonus.  Usually these are paid out as a percentage of your initial deposit and are almost always paid out using a rollover system. The rollover system is just a way for sportsbooks to ensure that customers are not signing up for an account to receive a lump sum of cash. The way the rollover pays out, a player needs to place a certain number of bets, before the customer can cash out their winnings. Here is an example:

Sportsbook offers a 50% Sign Up Bonus with a 3x rollover. 

Player deposits $200 and receives the $100 in Bonus from the sportsbook. 

The player must wager $900 or ($200 + $100) x 3, before being able to cash out any winnings. 

Deposit Match: Most sportsbooks will also offer a Deposit Match as well where they will match what the customer deposits into their account, up to a certain amount of course. For example, a sportsbook may offer a 100% Deposit Match up to $500, with a 2x rollover once again.

Sportsbook offers a 100% Deposit Match up to $500.

Player deposits $500 and receives the $500 in Bonus from the sportsbook.

The player must wager $2000 or ($500 + $500) x 2, before being able to cash out any winnings. 

These are the two most common types of Welcome Bonuses that almost every online sportsbook will offer, and players should definitely try and maximize these offers when signing up for a new account. There are further bonuses offered by sportsbooks to reward a customer’s loyalty over time as well including things like Free Bets, Enhanced Odds, and Reload Bonuses. While these are great bonuses to receive, they pale in comparison to how lucrative the initial Welcome Bonuses can be.

Once you have chosen the sportsbook or sportsbooks you want to bet with, it is time to think of a strategy that should match what type of sports bettor you envision yourself to be. Like any new endeavor, especially one that involves money, you should set out some limits to ensure that you are able to remain in control while betting. We can’t tell you how to manage your bankroll, but we are going to provide you with some tips on how to succeed.

• Bankroll Management: The golden rule in sports betting! Control the amount you bet and learn the skill of being able to walk away when you are winning or losing. Set a limit as to how much you can afford to spend in one day, one week, even one month. Always remember that this should not be your ‘get rich quick’ plan. Sports betting should be a controlled form of entertainment and played with money that you can afford to set aside.

• Bet on What You Know: Make bets on the sports that you know and understand. If you understand the rules of the NFL, bet the NFL. If you understand the rules of NBA basketball, be the NBA! Learn to only play the types of bets that you are good with: if you can learn to read spreads well, then bet spreads. If you aren’t as sharp at point totals, then steer clear of point totals. Here are a few examples of bet types to get you started:

• Money Line: The simplest bet there is, pick the winning team of the game you want to bet on. Keep in mind that the odds for money line favorites can be quite low depending on how lopsided the matchup is perceived to be.

• Point Spread: Probably one of the more popular ways to bet on a game, the point spread is betting on the difference in points in the final score. For sports like the NHL or MLB, these can be called puck lines or run lines, but point spreads are most commonly used in basketball and football. Here is an example:
  • Baylor @ WVU -3
  • The Mountaineers need to win the game by more than the three-point spread for bets to cash.
  • If you bet for Baylor, they need to finish within three points or win the game outright for bets to cash.

• Over/Under: Pick the total points scored over or under this mark. This can be for the total game, a period, a quarter, or a half.

• Futures: Think you have insight on what will happen in the future? Picking division winners, conference winners, and even championship winners is a popular bet for many sports bettors as you can get some high returns on the odds for some teams. There are also futures bets available on individual player accomplishments, statistical totals, and even end of season awards. The only drawback with these bets is you usually have to wait until the end of the season, so your money is tied up for several months.

• Learn the Odds System: Take the time to do your due diligence and learn the vocabulary of a sportsbook and the sports industry in general. Jumping in blind and betting parlays or yankees is a sure way to burn through your bankroll faster than you can deposit. Figure out which type of odds you like to read that make the most sense to you: decimal odds, American betting odds, or fractions. Learn how these odds are calculated across the different systems: American Betting odds of +200 is not the same as decimal odds of 2.00.

• Watch the Games: Sounds easy enough since you are most likely already a big sports fan, but it’s always surprising how much we can learn from watching the actual games. The more games you can watch, the more you can understand how games are handicapped, and you may even be able to begin to formulate some transparencies and values in the lines and odds. For example, you may begin to see that a certain team plays better in night games or gets off to slow starts when on the road. Anything you can educate yourself with will help you when it is time to place bets. All of the information and resources are available to you, it is a matter of making the effort and taking the time to learn.

Pick the Sport you want to bet on, learn the dynamics of the games, and tap into the best betting strategies developed over the years. Can you build that elusive hot streak? There’s only one way to find out. Always remember, Bet Responsibly, Bet Greatly:

West Virginia is a little like New Jersey or Nevada where you can go right directly to a brick and mortar casino and deposit to your sportsbook account. Of course, if you are using an online sportsbook, it is always easier and much faster to just deposit directly from your computer or mobile device. Let us go over the most commonly accepted ways in which you can deposit to your bankroll at an online sportsbook.

Credit Cards: By far, the easiest and most commonly used method that players use to deposit funds right into their accounts. Most major credit cards are accepted including Visa, Mastercard, and American Express. Keep in mind that some credit cards do not allow the cardholder to make purchases on gambling sites, so be aware of any such issues before reaching for that credit card.

Debit Cards/Bank Transfer: Similar to credit cards and just as simple to use. A bank transfer is a direct debit from your personal bank account and is just as fast as paying by credit card.

PayPal: PayPal is another popular money transfer company, but you do need to sign up for an account and link it to a bank account before you try and use it at your sportsbook. It is safe and easy to use though and has become increasingly used at online sportsbooks as a method of payment.

Other eWallets: PayPal is probably the most well known of these, but there are other smaller eWallets that are starting to become popular as well like Skrill, WorldPay, and Sage. All of them work the same way, and it is definitely easier for a player to set limits on their spending if they use a secondary account like these.

Bitcoin/Cryptocurrencies: Cryptocurrencies are also becoming more commonly used, especially at online-only sportsbooks. Similar to an eWallet, a player would link up to their Bitcoin or Crypto wallet and use the funds from there to place bets on the site. Using cryptocurrencies is not for the faint at heart as daily fluctuations in the value of something like Bitcoin can have a positive or very negative effect on the value of your bankroll.

If you ever do find that you have any questions or concerns about something that happens at the online sportsbook, there are always customer service representatives available to help you. Because online sportsbooks and online casinos are open 24 hours a day, seven days per week, there is always some form of customer service available via methods like e-mail or a chat function. These customer service representatives can assist you with anything from deposit or withdrawal issues to questions about certain types of games or bet styles.

As sports betting becomes more of the norm throughout America, it will be interesting to see what West Virginia does to keep up. The smaller states like West Virginia, like Rhode Island, have an inherent disadvantage with lower populations and less places to gamble. While they certainly do not have the travelling gamblers that New Jersey or Nevada has, they have filled a niche in their area of the country for local gamblers.

The future of any sports betting hinges on the online presence of the sportsbook, especially with mobile phones. It was not too long ago that sports bettors needed to line up and place bets at a sportsbook counter in person. While people still do this at brick and mortar sportsbooks, a vast majority of the action is played online now. In a post-Covid19 world where in-person activities and limitations on how many people can be in the same building may be the norm, it is easy to see the appeal in playing at an online sportsbook. As the sports betting industry continues to grow in West Virginia, it will be interesting to see just how rapidly revenues can increase year over year. Already, West Virginia has an excellent start with multiple locations to gamble at, as well as a strong mobile and online sports betting space. If West Virginia continues to expand for the foreseeable future, they may be a model that smaller states can emulate in the years to come.

With the introduction of the big brands in sports betting, West Virginia was quick to adopt online and mobile based sports betting. All of the major sports are available in West Virginia, including horse racing and dog racing, a couple of staples at the race tracks in the state. West Virginia does not have any professional sports teams but do have a very popular College sports scene that should see an uptick in betting volume if the NCAA returns this fall with football and basketball.

The NFL remains king of sports betting though, as an estimated $6 billion was wagered in America on the Super Bowl game alone this year. Other popular sports to be on include the NBA, MLB, NHL, NCAA, MLS and European Soccer, UFC events especially when held in Vegas at places like the MGM, and PGA Golf. Stand alone events also bring in tons of betting action, including the Super Bowl, March Madness, the Haskell Invitational or any other big horse race like the Kentucky Derby or Belmont Stakes, and Golf majors like the Masters or U.S. Open. You are not limited to professional sports leagues though as even things like Triple-A league Baseball games, eSports, and politics can be gambled on online at sportsbooks.