FanDuel has made its name in the fantasy sports niche but that grounding has given them a kick start within the sportsbook arena.
They have a good welcome bonus of up to $500 and their registration process appears very quick, though even better is that if you are already a fantasy fan and have a FanDuel DFS account you can simply import your details from that into your new sportsbook account.
This is a sportsbook only so there are no casino table games or slots but if you are a sports bettor, read on.
FanDuel Bonuses
FanDuel Welcome Bonus
Regardless of whether you are completely new to the brand or already a FanDuel fantasy sports player, you can grab a welcome bonus on the FanDuel sportsbook and it’s a risk free bet right up to $500.
To claim your welcome bonus with FanDuel you won’t need a promotional code, all you need to do in fact is click through their site and join up with an easy registration process and place your first real wager. If you were to lose that bet, FanDuel will refund it in full right up to $500 as a credit.
Your bonus will show up within 72 hours and there are real plusses and negatives with this one. The negative is that you are receiving no real cash from FanDuel, simply a refund if you happen to lose and nothing if you’ve won.
The major plus though is that the bonus return has a 1 x wagering requirement meaning if you received a $100 bonus you will only have to bet this amount in future to be able to withdraw any money in cash.
FanDuel Odds Bonuses & Other Campains
Odds bonuses and regular promotions have already become a staple of the FanDuel sportsbook offering and it’s very much to their credit. Here are some of the regular deals players can expect:
Free Bets
Sometimes a deal runs allowing you a free bet to a specific amount of your initial wager, i.e. a 50% free bet meaning if you wager $30 and lose you may be given a $15 free bet.
Profit Boosts
FanDuel sportsbook gives out bet tokens as a boost to profits of players who are winning. This is a great initiative that we’d like to see more regularly and with more direction.
Reload Bonuses
From time to time FanDuel reward not just new customers but also existing ones; when you load your account with cash you can expect occasional 50% or 100% bonuses, i.e. if you’re out of cash but then add $50 to your account you may expect $25 or even $50 extra.
FanDuel also have more ad-hoc promos such as insurance on betting anything other than the ‘big’ team in a league or trophy, i.e. if you bet any other team than the one mentioned and the big team goes on to win, you could get a refund up to $50.
Odds and Betting at FanDuel
You’ll find a fair choice of bets for players, up to 200 single bets on sports such as NFL and MLB and a host of futures. The money lines are already well known to be better than pretty much any other New Jersey based sportsbook giving you great value.
The value for money then is good on most sportsbook offerings but overall they are a little limited in their betting markets, really more sports need to be added soon. The odds on more exotic bets aren’t the best you’ll find either so for now it seems the FanDuel sportsbook is great for those looking for a good value, simple win bet.
The main markets FanDuel concentrate on are:
- Baseball
- Basketball
- Boxing
- Football
- Golf
- Hockey
- MMA
- Soccer
- Tennis
FanDuel VIP Program
Any good sportsbook or casino knows the importance of having a strong loyalty program and FanDuel have been a little slow to offer this to their bettors, though one exists for their Daily Fantasy Sports customers.
DFS players can earn 5 points for every dollar spent in entry fees with prizes from $50 weekly and $250 monthly right up to $25,000 for the big spenders. The system is tiered and it’s possible that once you have built up cash this way you can transfer it to your sportsbook account.
FanDuel Live Betting
Although the North American market is unfortunately still way behind Europe when it comes to in-game betting, all New Jersey sportsbooks demand this feature and so FanDuel has rightly jumped right on the bandwagon.
We like to bet on the move these days and especially while games are in progress so our chosen sportsbooks need to have the right live odds and the correct technology to make this happen and on that score, FanDuel does pretty. Lines change quickly although watch out for the in-game odds being significantly worse than their pre-game.
The best part of FanDuel’s live offering really is the variety; there are basically just as many in-game lines offered as pre-game ones on most sports with the only significant way of making this better being to add live streaming of games where possible, something not offered right now.
FanDuel’s Website
The main website is a slick affair, un-crowded and very easy to use with the user interface being perfect for casual bettors and newbies especially.
The site is not over-decorated and gives clean, clear instructions at all times. On the main page you’ll find popular bets, top-line bets and live and upcoming bets. The latest bets are kind of ‘in your face’ which we see as a good thing as you will not miss an opportunity to bet the big game.
For exotics simply click on ‘more wagers’ and if you still don’t find what you’re looking for go to ‘more’. This is nice and simple, but as we’ve already said the odds in here aren’t too good for such bets.
Once you’ve found your bet, simply click on the odds and the bet will come up within a ‘bet slip’ with further options displayed for things like round robin or parlay.
FanDuel Cash-Out
Still new to many players in certain markets, the cash-out system is becoming hugely popular with sports bettors around the world and we were really pleased to see FanDuel offering this to players.
When betting live, players can use the Cash Out feature to close the bet early and take whatever amount is currently on offer, either guaranteeing a profit before the score changes in the game or to perhaps reduce losses when things aren’t going so well. The cash out feature is not available on all markets right now.
FanDuel Mobile
Not all sportsbooks, especially young ones, offer a mobile experience but FanDuel could not afford to be left behind and indeed they haven’t been.
Overall Mobile Experience
Given the rules in NJ, those wishing to bet while on the move will need to download the mobile app but this has proven to be a big hit already. For only a slight initial inconvenience, once the app is downloaded onto your device you can get to your bet with essentially one click.
FanDuel App
Players can get the FanDuel sportsbook app for all iOS and Android smartphones and tablets and this gives full access to all odds and account information.
Designed to be simple, the app does not lack for functionality and has no less capability than the main website. After you login to your account, the most popular wagers of the day will be displayed first although the app is easy to move around in and some handy notifications prompt you to look at major events and promos.
FanDuel Deposits and Withdrawals
Rather typical of a sportsbook in this section of the industry, the deposit and withdrawal options could be worked on over time to give more choice.
You will also be restricted with your deposit amounts and usually we’d recommend a live chat with the cashier to rectify this, though as we’ve discussed below they are not particularly quick at FanDuel to come back to you by this measure.
You can deposit using Visa or MasterCard credit cards, though you should check with your own bank for the possibility of a fee. Also you can use PayPal, ACH eCheck, Online Bank Transfer or the FanDuel Prepaid Card which you can apply for with FanDuel or Betfair and fund using Visa or MasterCard.
There are lots of different limits and time restraints which you will really need to straighten out with FanDuel via customer service as not everything is made public, disappointingly.
For withdrawals you can use ACH eCheck (3-5 days), ordinary Check (5-7 days), the FanDuel Prepaid Card (24-36 hours) or PayPal (instant) to grab your cash. We need to say way more options here in truth.
FanDuel Responsible Gaming
FanDuel takes its responsibilities very seriously in terms of helping players not to go too far. A full breakdown of what they call vulnerability disclosure can be found at the bottom of this page: https://www.fanduel.com/security
About FanDuel
Although it feels like they’ve been around forever, FanDuel has only existed since 2009 and it launched its first Fantasy Football Championship in 2010.
As DFS became ever more popular, extra funding kept pouring in and by 2015 the sector was dominated by two big dogs; FanDuel and Draft Kings by which time the company was worth over $1billion.
In late 2016 the two competitors wanted to merge bringing together 5 million players however this was denied which led to FanDuel creating their sportsbook as a new way to increase their customer base.
FanDuel Gambling License
FanDuel is of course fully licensed in New Jersey and is most definitely a trustworthy brand overall, though they have had their legal skirmishes in the past.
Previous dilemmas in fairness have surrounded the formerly unregulated Daily Fantasy Sports side of the business and a few years ago they were instructed to pay out $1.3million to settle allegations of unfair and deceptive practices, though in recent times they have kept their noses clean and there appear to be no issues with the sportsbook.
FanDuel Customer Support
There are three main options for getting in touch with the team at the FanDuel sportsbook and all are available to you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
The Live Chat feature is always our favorite as it is usually the quickest way to get answers in writing. With FanDuel this feature opens up as an instant message on the web page though we unfortunately found live chat here to be a little slow in terms of response.
With that in mind, if you cannot afford to spend time waiting in front of your screen then you can email the team who usually respond in a matter of minutes with a well-informed reply.
Phone options are available and for the sportsbook only meaning staff are knowledgeable and can usually help with whatever question you have, though this will come at a cost.
FanDuel Terms and Conditions
FanDuel’s Terms of Service are pretty much in line with most other major online sportsbooks and poker sites with full details available at https://myaccount.fanduel.com/viewTerms.do
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