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Gambling at an International Betting Site
2022-06-10
Sports betting and online casino players in Africa can choose between playing at a local African betting site or opt for an international sportsbook or casino. Of course, the choice is up to you where you prefer to place your bets! African betting sites as well as the big international ones operating worldwide both come with their own advantages and disadvantages.
In this article we explain the difference between local African gambling sites and the big international betting sites. We also try to answer the question which betting sites are the best for players living in Africa: Should you play at a local online bookmaker or opt for a big international brand? The answer isn't black-and-white as there are lots of factors influencing the outcome. Make sure you read on if you want to find out what kind of betting site is the best for you!
African and international betting sites
Although there are lots of ways how you can classify betting sites, a common one is dividing them between local and national websites and international ones. Simply put, local or national website only operate in a single country or a more narrowly defined geographical area. An international betting site operates in multiple countries or even allows players from all across the world to access it.
It's not surprising that international betting sites generally have a much higher name ID. You will certainly have heard of some of the names of these online casinos and sportsbooks! Take for example the online bookmaker Bet365. Although this sports betting site is originally from the United Kingdom, it is active in dozens of countries all over the world. You can therefore say that Bet365 is a truly global, international betting site. Sports betting fans from all over the world will have heard of this brand and recognise their logo.
Bet9ja
- Betting Site for Nigeria
- Fast payments
Other websites have a more narrow scope. Take for example the African sports betting site Bet9ja. Although Bet9ja is a reputable, quality sportsbook – it's active in a few African countries only. In those countries Bet9ja is certainly well-known, it's unlikely that punters in Europe or Asia will have ever heard of it.
African or international betting sites – which is better?
It's time to take a look at the main differenced between these different betting sites and try to answer the question which of them is better for African gamblers. Given that there are quite some differences between sportsbooks and online casinos we will answer this questions separately for both of them.
Sports betting sites
Generally, the difference between local African sports betting sites and big international ones isn't that big anymore nowadays. The times that local African sportsbooks were rather limited in scope are gone. Nowadays, you will find that a quality African sports betting site has an equally wide array of betting options than a big international brand. This depends per African country.
This counts for both the sports you can bet on as well as for the different kinds of betting options. Both local and international sportsbooks allow you to bet on almost any sport imaginable. The same is true for different football competitions and cups. Although a couple of years ago you had to choose a big international betting site in order to bet on matches in the more unknown football leagues in the world, you can now do so pretty much everywhere. This is true the other way around as well. Where the big international betting sites might had limited betting options on African football matches, they nowadays allow you to bet on almost every African football league too.
Differences between international and African betting sites are negligible too when it comes to the kinds of bet you can place. Whether you prefer a simple bet on a single match, want to make an accumulator bet (acca) or go for live betting – it is possible almost everywhere.
Payment options
The biggest differences between local African and international sports betting sites can be found when you look at payment options and customer support. Depositing money at an international sports betting site is usually done by debit or credit card, e-wallet or bank transfer. These options can also be found at local African sports betting sites. If you want to use an e-wallet to deposit money you really need to compare the sports betting sites what kind of e-wallets they accept. There can be a difference between international and African sport betting sites in this regard, with some global sportsbooks only accepting the main online wallets while African sites might only accept a couple of local ones.
If you depend on USSD or mobile money services, you will find that local African sports betting sites are a lot easier to use. Most international sports betting sites unfortunately do not accept USSD, mobile money services or other African payment options such as M-pesa.
Customer service
Also when it comes to customer support there can be a few differences between local sports betting sites and international brands. Local betting sites have the advantage that they often have a local telephone number if you want to contact the help desk. International betting sites might not have any phone support at all – or only an expensive landline in Europe which you must call. Local sports betting sites sometimes also have local offices in the main cities in Africa which you can visit in person if you require support.
Of course, these local betting sites have the extra advantage that they might have a customer service where a local language other than English is spoken. That said, international betting sites can often be easily reached by e-mail and live chat – so if you are fine with those options there shouldn't be a major problem in terms of customer service.
Sportsbook bonuses
Another difference between international sports betting sites and local ones in Africa can be found in the welcome bonus they might provide. Generally speaking, international betting sites have higher bonuses than African betting sites. They also tend to have more frequent promotions and other special deals. The reason behind this is simple.
However, you can't generalise too much on this topic as it's very much dependent on the betting site in question. There are also international betting sites with very low bonuses and African sportsbooks with frequent promos. If the welcome bonus, free bets and other bonus deals are important to you, do make sure you read all our individual sports betting site reviews.
Recommended sports betting sites
Whether you want to play at a local sports betting site or a big international sportsbook, there are many online bookmakers from which you can choose if you live in Africa. In our opinion, these are the best African sports betting sites:
These betting sites can be accessed from all over the African continent, whether you live in Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya, Ghana or another country. If you sign up for an online account you can even receive some free bets as welcome bonus! We have written a review of all of these sportsbooks, so if you want to learn more about these betting sites do check them out.
Local vs international online casinos
When it comes to online casinos, there are some bigger differences between local African betting sites and the main international ones. To begin with, there aren't even that many dedicated online casinos in Africa. In Africa, online casino games are mostly offered by betting sites whose main focus is sports betting. Although the advantage is that you can bet on sports and play online casino games with one single account, it is often the case that online casino games come only second in importance after sports betting.
This can sometimes be seen when you look at the casino game selection. Even though there are some positive exceptions, many African betting sites have more limited collection of casino games than the major international online casinos. If it is important that you have access to the largest casino game collection possible, then we would recommend you to play at a large, international online casino.
The same counts for access to the best-known and newest casino games in the world. Although African online casinos and betting sites often have a good collection of table and card games, the quality of their video slot collection varies. If you are looking for the most popular and newest video slots, you are often better off at a big international online casino.
Casino payments and customer service
There can be great differences between the available payment options and customer service channels at online casinos. Just like we described above talking about payments and customer service at sports betting sites, there are often differences between local African online casino sites and big international casinos. We therefore advise you to read the above paragraph about sportsbook payment options and customer service as all points mentioned here are valid as well for online casinos.
To summarise, African online casinos often have more local payment options available such as USSD and mobile money applications, while most international casinos usually don't work with these methods. If you have a debit or credit card, some crypto such as Bitcoin, an e-wallet or a bank account with fast payments and low fees, there isn't much of a difference whether you select an African online casino or a big global brand. If you however are dependent on local payment options opt for an African online casino or betting site.
The same counts for customer service. If you want to reach a casino by cheap phone line or perhaps in person at an office, you have to choose an African betting site. However, if you are fine with contacting a casino help desk by live chat or e-mail, the big international casinos work just as fine.
Casino bonuses
When it comes to casino bonuses the situation is roughly the same as with sportsbook bonuses. If you are searching for the highest possible bonus, you will have to go to the big international online casino brands. Although local African online casinos offer a welcome bonus too, the main international usually have better deals giving you more bonus money.
Of course, the downside is that it's not always possible for African players to sign up at a major international online casino. Some of the best known online casinos in the world unfortunately exclude players from Africa. That is because of legal reasons as their gambling permit doesn't allow them to accept gamblers from certain countries.
Recommended online casinos
If you are looking for a great quality online casino where you can sign up without a problem as an African player, look no further than the following websites. These online casinos are highly popular across Africa and accept players from Nigeria, South Africa, Ghana, Kenya and many other African countries. In particular, we can recommend the following online casinos.
Most of these online casinos are betting sites where you can play online casino games and bet on sports with one single account. That's of course super convenient if you are interested in both! As a new player, you can claim a great casino welcome bonus. You can use your bonus money on any casino game you like, whether that's video slots, card games such as poker or blackjack or roulette. Give it a try!
Conclusion
As a gambler in Africa, you have the choice out of many great online casinos and sports betting sites. You can opt for a local betting site from Africa or perhaps go for one of the main international sportsbooks and online casinos from Europe or America. There are advantages and disadvantages to both of these two categories.
If you want to benefit from an easy-to-reach customer service and local payment methods such as mobile money applications and USSD, it's best to opt for an African betting site. However, international betting sites based in Europe and America tend to have higher bonuses and a better selection of casino games.
Here at Africa Casino Hub you can find a great overview of different online casinos and sports betting sites. All of these betting sites accept players from Africa and offer you a great gambling experience! If you want to find out more about these betting sites, read our reviews. Don't forget to claim your welcome bonus in free bets or bonus money if you sign up at one of these betting sites!
Football Betting Specialist at Africa Casino Hub
Samuel, who is originally from Nigeria but works and lives in the United Kingdom, is our expert on the English Premiership and all the lower English football leagues. As someone who has followed English football from up close for the last 20 years, he knows how to interpret official data and statistics and use it to his benefit when betting on matches. Samuel will not only deliver our match predictions and previews for the English Premiership and lower leagues, but will occasionally dive into the world of Scottish football and the UEFA Champions League and Europa League as well.
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