Best Offshore Sportsbooks

Betting offshore has long been associated with a negative stigma – think portly bookies taking bets over the telephone smoking a Cuban, or shady backroom deals. It is 2023. Offshore sportsbooks have evolved and have signed partnership deals with Major League Baseball in Latin American markets.

There are a handful of world-class offshore sportsbooks, such as the ones displayed previously by Bookmakers Review, that are safe, reliable, and pay just as quickly as the sportsbooks in legal states.

There are also dozens of decent sportsbooks that aren’t yet considered elite but have been rated favorably by BMR, and finally, sportsbooks that absolutely must be avoided such as those blacklisted by BMR. View all active offshore companies in the complete offshore betting sites list.

There are no laws to prevent bettors in the United States from using offshore sportsbooks. It is perfectly legal for American bettors to sign up with offshore sportsbooks like Bookmaker or BetOnline and start betting.

However, offshore sportsbooks are not regulated by the federal government or any state governments, such as sportsbooks licensed in the US. That means you do not benefit from local consumer protection laws. For that reason, it is vital to stick to trustworthy offshore sportsbooks vetted by BMR experts.

The BMR team conducts a rigorous review process when assessing the quality of an offshore sportsbook. We sign up for accounts, test the sportsbooks out and look for several key features:

• Convenient deposit methods
• Quick, secure payouts
• User-friendly interface
• Excellent customer service
• Competitive sports betting odds
• Lots of betting options
• Flawless security record
• Generous bonuses and promotions

We then assign a rating to each of these offshore gambling sites. Learn more about our sportsbook review process.

There are two clear reasons for betting offshore:

1. There are no locally regulated sportsbooks in your state, leaving the millions of California, Florida, and Texas sports bettors searching for offshore betting sites for legal gambling.
2. Offshore sports betting sites are better than the sportsbooks in your state. Many states do not yet have local sports betting industries. The best offshore sportsbooks for US players also remain popular in states with local sports betting industries. We have explained the key reasons why below.

Advantages of Using Offshore Sportsbooks

Several states now have locally regulated online sportsbooks. However, you can still use an offshore sportsbook for online gambling instead. If you choose that option, you will unlock several benefits:

More Options for Online Sports Betting

Sportsbooks like FanDuel, DraftKings, and BetMGM are often heavily restricted in terms of the betting options they can provide because of the different gambling laws in each state. For example, you cannot bet on college sports in Virginia, and many states ban betting on games featuring teams based within the state. Lots of them outlaw prop bets on college sports too.

No states permit betting on elections or other political events. It is rare to find a state that allows betting on entertainment or esports. Only five states – Connecticut, Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia – allow online casinos, and progressive jackpots are geo-fenced. Poker is only available in a handful of states. Many still prohibit horse racing bets.

If you sign up for a sportsbook account with top offshore sportsbooks such as BetOnline or Bovada, you can start betting on:

• Professional sports
• College sports (including prop bets)
• Politics, entertainment, and esports
• Slots, table games, video poker, live casino games
• Horse racing
• Poker cash games and poker tournaments

Better Odds and Reduced Juice Lines

It is very expensive to run a sportsbook in locally regulated markets. For example, New York charges a $25 million licensing fee and it takes a 51% gross tax on revenues. That makes it difficult for operators to provide sharp odds.

Offshore sports betting sites are far more cost-effective. The best offshore sportsbooks pass those savings onto customers with better odds.

American players will also find reduced juice sportsbooks. For example, BetAnySports offers -105 on either side of a point spread or total, and Heritage Sports offers -108. You will not find betting lines like that onshore.

Sportsbook Cash Back

Some of the top offshore sportsbooks give you back a percentage of the wagers you place periodically as a cash bonus. This is known as sportsbook cash back. It is a form of loyalty program. The rates and mechanics differ from one sportsbook to the next and some may require the usage of exclusive sportsbook promo codes, but it is the sort of generous promotion that you will only find at the top offshore sports betting sites.

If you have a dispute with a locally regulated sportsbook, you can lodge a complaint with your local gaming control board. It is a lengthy, bureaucratic process, but there is an avenue for your complaint to be heard.

You have no such recourse when it comes to offshore sportsbooks. That is where we come in. BMR is the watchdog for the offshore betting industry. If you have been treated unfairly by a sportsbook, had winnings confiscated, or had trouble withdrawing your cash, fill in our sportsbook complaint form.

We are committed to helping bettors recover what they are owed. However, if you stick with one of the top 5 offshore sportsbooks we have recommended, this should never be an issue.

We also blacklist offshore gambling sites that have chronic problems with paying winnings, slow payout speed or other issues that trustworthy sportsbooks don’t have.

Regulated sportsbooks have emerged in certain states after the United States Supreme Court overturned a federal sports betting prohibition called PASPA in 2018. There are some high-quality sportsbooks in these states, but they are often restricted in what betting markets they can offer their customer base. For example, many do not offer wagering on in-state college teams, college props are often outlawed, and you cannot bet on politics, entertainment, and esports. Most states do not allow betting on casino games or poker tournaments either.

The best offshore sportsbooks have been operating for many years. They do not fall under the jurisdiction of federal or state authorities in the United States. That allows them to accept online sports betting customers from any state. Many of them a wide variety of betting markets such as:

• College sports betting
• Politics
• Novelty bets
• Esports
• Slots
• Table games
• Poker cash games
• Poker tournaments

However, many offshore sportsbooks cannot be trusted. For that reason, we serve as the watchdog for the offshore gambling industry. We hold untrustworthy offshore sportsbooks to account, and we only guide you towards legitimate sportsbooks that pay out on time, without fail.

You can rest assured that betting on sports is safe and secure at our top-rated offshore sportsbooks.

Why do you review offshore sportsbooks?

Most Americans do not have access to locally regulated sportsbooks or online betting sites. For example, California, Texas, and Florida – the three most populous states in the country – have not yet joined the legal sports betting trend. Bettors in those states and many other parts of the country need to use offshore sportsbooks if they want to place quick, convenient wagers on their favorite leagues.

However, there is a vast difference in quality between the best offshore sportsbooks and the rest of the online betting sites out there. They are not regulated by U.S. authorities, so American consumer protection laws do not apply.

That makes it vital to choose a reputable sportsbook. It is all too easy to sign up with a company that will simply fail to pay out if you win your sports bets. We review offshore sportsbooks so that we can steer our readers towards high-quality, trustworthy sportsbooks and expose scam sites.

What to do if you have a complaint about an offshore sportsbook?

We will do our best to help players that have been treated unfairly by any offshore betting sites. You can fill out a complaint form and we will contact the sportsbook on your behalf in a bid to resolve the issue.

1. Submit a complaint.
2. Forward relevant emails to disputes@bookmakersreview.com.
3. Ask for help from our BMR Forum community.

We have assigned a rating to more than 100 USA sportsbooks in the Betting Sites Guide. Our reviewers regularly return to each sportsbook to ensure that it continues to uphold high standards.

If it fails to do so, we will adjust our sportsbook reviews accordingly and mark them down. Some top offshore sportsbooks also earn stronger ratings, but only after they have proven themselves to be trustworthy, high-quality operators in the long term.

At Bookmakers Review (BMR), our mission is to deliver players accurate information on trusted sportsbooks. BMR is not a website that will recommend offshore betting sites that are known for cheating players out of their winnings or slow-paying come withdrawal time.

Bettors can compare information on all online sportsbooks using BMR – the good, bad, and ugly ones, which is why it is essential to use resources like the Betting Sites Guide, where sportsbooks are listed from A+ to F.

Sportsbooks that are blacklisted — sportsbooks rated from D- to F — display a prominent “avoid” icon on the rating guide so that players understand the risk associated with these companies.

We encourage players to utilize the free resources provided on the site, including the BMR forum community where bettors frequently exchange feedback on sportsbooks, and to ask for help when help is needed. BMR is standing by to assist with your inquiries at disputes@bookmakersreview.com.

Alternatively, bettors can submit a sportsbook complaint form to lodge a formal grievance against an online sports betting site.

BMR Website Resources

In addition to reviewing sportsbooks and monitoring the betting industry as a whole, BMR offers the following products:

• A free live betting odds service comparing offshore sportsbooks lines on a plethora of sporting events taking place around the world.
• A free sports picks website where veteran handicappers share their betting insight on all the latest matchups.
• A betting forum community that allows players to chat and have fun, and also talk more serious stuff like if an offshore betting platform should be avoided.
• A learn section filled with betting calculators to help you break down odds, parlays, the value of free plays, and much more.