Best Betting Sites with Welcome Bonus in South Africa 2024
Looking for the best welcome bonuses in South Africa? Goldrush, YesPlay, and Melbet are best sports betting sites that offer great rewards, secure betting, and exclusive promotions for new players.
South Africa’s betting sites offer a lot of welcome bonuses for new customers on their platforms. These not only not serve as an incentive to retain customers but also to help them maximise as much as possible on their bets.
The best betting sites have their welcome bonuses on a specific page for ease of convenience. A new customer can easily navigate their way there and have a look at what is on offer. Alternatively, some welcome bonuses will be put on the banner, all you must do is click and you will be redirected to that bonus.
Welcome bonuses vary in their nature and most sporting codes have specific bonuses for them. Football for instance has bonuses that are relevant to it, such as betting on a particular team to stand a chance of winning or receiving what the bookmaker might have on offer.
It could be anything from a matched deposit, free bet, or sign-up bonus straight into your betting account. SportsBoom explores the best betting sites with welcome bonuses in South Africa.
3 Best SA Sportsbook Sign Up Bonuses & Promos
For many people, signing up to betting sites with a welcome bonus is essential. Maybe the biggest perk of finding a new site is claiming a bumper promotion. Whether you’re after a free bet, a deposit match bonus, or even a no-deposit bonus, we’ve got plenty of great options for lucrative sign-up offers.
Key Features
- Support:
- Licenses:
Goldrush is our top ZA sports betting site for rugby and football boosts.
You can claim acca and multi-bet boosts on everything from rugby to cricket.
There’s even a dedicated Boosted Odds tab that displays all current enhanced prices.
Goldrush scores down on regular bonuses and sign-up deals.
We couldn’t find a sign-up bonus for new players on the site, and regular free bet deals are thin on the ground.
There is currently no VIP scheme for high rollers and regular bettors.
Despite the drawbacks, you can earn some of the biggest maximum payouts in South Africa.
Goldrush allows top payouts worth R2,000,000, certainly some way higher than rival ZA sports betting sites.
Pros
Cons
Key Features
- Support:
- Licenses: South Africa
YesPlay is a Western Cape Gambling and Racing Board-licensed sportsbook that won’t win awards for its lobby design.
However, what YesPlay lacks in appearance, it makes up for in welcome bonuses and betting markets.
YesPlay allows deposits from around 12 different banking methods when you claim the offer.
These include standard credit or debit cards, plus voucher options like 1Voucher Direct, BluVoucher, and OZOW.
The YesPlay welcome bonus is valid across all games and sports betting markets.
The wagering requirement is 7x, regardless of what you spend your bonus cash on. That’s a little higher than the 2x–3x found at other ZA gambling sites.
However, the bonus does allow you to play any game of your choice.
The min. odds of 1.9 on eligible sporting events are also a little higher than some other ZA sports betting promotions.
Pros
Cons
#Ad• 18+• Accept bonus offer• make deposit > R20• 7x wagering•7 day limit• Full terms and conditions apply
Key Features
- Support:
- Licenses: Curaçao, Kenya
Melbet offers a nice mix of ongoing promotions and VIP perks alongside its welcome bonus.
It’s just the ticket if you bet on football and want to take advantage of Melbet’s awesome selection of pre-match and in-play markets.
For the sign-up bonus, you can claim up to R1778 when you open your account and make a deposit.
Melbet matches your first deposit 100% with bonus funds.
You must meet the 5x wagering requirement before releasing your winnings.
In addition, you’re restricted to making accumulators (min. 3 legs) when clearing bonus funds.
Melbet also keeps the action coming with a great Promo Code Store.
You accrue points when betting on sports, then cash them in to purchase free bets and accumulators.
You’ll also earn 5% cashback every week when betting on selected tournaments, such as the CAF Confederation Cup.
Pros
Cons
#ad · 18+ · Min deposit 20 ZAR · Max bonus 1839 ZAR · Wager 5x · Accumulator bets · Min odds 1.40 · Valid 30 days · One per user · No cashout until wagering met · Changes may occur · T&Cs apply.
What Are the Different Types of South African Bookie Sign Up Offers?
100% First Deposit Match
When you make your first deposit, the bookmaker will match it with a similar amount. This basically doubles your money. A R100 deposit will be matched with another R100 from the betting site, giving you a total of R200 to make your first bet. You may use this money on your prerogative, but the matched deposit cannot be withdrawn.
Free Bets
This bonus allows you to make a bet without a stake being withdrawn from your account. The only catch would be that you must at least have some money in your account made through a deposit and the number of free bets you get could be as much as 5, it all depends on the bookmaker.
Cashback Bonus
Cashback bonuses usually give you a percentage of your money back when your slip loses. It could be anything from 2%-10% of the money you wagered on that first bet after signing-up.
This is one of the good bonuses we have identified because it at least gives you a chance to make another bet with the percentage your bookmaker has returned into your account. They are offered periodically and could probably be offered from your first bet until the fifth one.
Sign up Bonus in Your Account or Prize Money
A sign-up bonus is free money into your account after completing your registration on the site you have chosen as your preferred bookmaker. The amount given could be anything from R25 to R50, however, the customer will not be able to withdraw it. You may only withdraw your winnings. A sign-up bonus could also come in form of cash prizes won.
Risk-free bets
Similar to the cashback bonus but with this one you stand a chance of getting all your money back if you lose. It all depends on how your ticket was put together because things such as odds, the number of teams and wager amount are factored in so that your slip qualifies to get the bonus.
It will be quite easy to tell as most betting sites update your slip as you put up teams right at the bottom, showing you if you qualify for a risk-free bet or not. Here too the bonus is offered for a certain period to new customers.
Best Sportsbooks for Each Bonus Type
| Bookmaker | Bonus up to | Type of Bonus |
| YesPlay | R3000 | Deposit Bonus |
| Goldrush | R100 | Sign-up Bonus |
| Melbet | R50 | Free Bets |
| 10Bet | R3000 | Welcome Bonus |
| Hollywoodbets | R25 | Sign-up Bonus |
| 1X-Bet | R20 | First Deposit Bonus |
| BetMGM | R25 | Sign-up Bonus |
| Playabets | R50 | Sign-up Bonus |
| Gbets | R1000 | Deposit Bonus |
| Betway | R1000 | Deposit Bonus |
Betting Sites with Free Bets and Matched First Deposit Bonuses
Free bets and matched deposit bonuses are great incentives for customers because they indicate that the bookmaker is willing to match their customers and sort of dispel the often-said suggestions that the house will always take your money.
In this instance, the house is at least incentivising its customers by giving them an opportunity at making more money without having to break their own bank. Most betting sites in South Africa offer such bonuses.
Such incentives set the cream of the crop apart from the rest in betting sites. SportsBoom has identified three such sites for your convenience.
What Makes the Best Welcome Bonus?
The best welcome bonus must be tailored to work best for the customer so that they are able to derive some value from signing up to a bookmakers website. At SportsBoom we believe that anything that matches what is initially put in as a deposit by a customer is very important as it denotes some form of reciprocal value between the two parties.
A good welcome bonus is clear and unambiguous so that there is no confusion on the customers end of things. It must state with clarity what the customer is going to receive after their sign-up without any hidden or difficult to read terms and conditions.
Loyalty is another one of the things the best welcome bonuses must infuse in a customer. Some customers bet full-time whilst others do so as a past time, so it’s important that either party feels a certain level of loyalty from their bookmaker upon initially signing up.
Freebies. It may sound farfetched, but everyone loves a freebie every now and then. The best betting sites offer cash prizes or other forms of prize every now and then and for that reason SportsBoom rates such bonuses highly. Some of the bookies we have listed in our article have such offers, be sure to check them out.
Lastly, the best bonuses save customers some money. Although gambling has no guarantee and monies are made as they are lost, it’s great incentive to get a bonus that saves some of your cash for those rainy days. Start off your betting journey with the bookmakers money and save yours for when you need it most. Free bets and 100% deposit matches are such bonuses you can use before digging into your pockets.