Can You Bet on Horse Races Online?

Feb 18

Can You Bet on Horse Races Online?

Sports betting is one of the most popular hobbies that sports lovers undertake. Nowadays, most sports bettors use the internet to place bets and this way, they get to use bonuses from welcome codes and offers, such as the Spreadex sign up offer. Online sportsbooks make betting easier and more practical. Sports like football and basketball are popular enough that they will be present on most betting sites.

What about horse racing? It was one of the first betting sports. Surely it would be available for online betting. It is, but there are some things you should know about it.

The Legality of Online Betting

Every country has its own laws about online betting. Some allow it while others forbid it entirely. Some countries allow sports betting online, but only through country-sponsored and monitored betting sites. Some countries have lax laws and allow anybody to operate with their citizens, if they pay a license fee. 

Check whether you can actually bet legally online and whether any of the local online sportsbooks offer horse racing as an option. Likewise, one should always check whether any of the international gigantic sites are available, because they are likely to offer better features and more sports to bet on.

Horse Racing Betting in a Nutshell

Just like regular horse racing betting, online horse racing betting is done prior to a match. The exemption with online betting is that a bet can be placed many days in advance. With actual horse racing betting, at the race track, the bets can be placed a short time before the race begins. 

There are plenty of bets that can be placed, such as the outright winner. The exacta, quinella, trifecta and similar bets, are bets where you guess the first two or three horses to finish, sometimes in exact order, sometimes in any order. You can also bet that a horse will win multiple races in a row, which is one of the hardest bets to win. It is also a bet that pays out the most.

There are bets such as the place and show, which means that your preferred horse will finish in the top two or three. Some bookmakers allow this bet to be extended up to five places.

Should People Bet Online or at a Race Track?

This is a question which the sports bettor would best answer on their own. The track is where horse racing takes place, meaning that it is also the place where bettors place bets, historically. Things changed with the internet, and horse races can be watched through online streams or broadcast media. 

Online betting is simply more practical. If travel is restricted, let’s say due to a global pandemic and spectators are not allowed on race tracks, then online betting remains the only option. Some people opt out of going personally because they don’t want to be surrounded by other people, many of whom will be angry, having lost their bets.

Sports betting can be done online or in person. Nothing is different with horse racing in this regard, except that some horse racing fans are more passionate and enjoy the thrill of watching a race live. Others opt for the more practical approach with online betting.