Dota 2 Betting Sites
For Dota 2, a multiplayer online battle arena game, and Esports as a whole, it is difficult to compete with many traditional sports, trying to win the fans’ attention. The hearts of the British belong to football and racing, with 5-6% of the UK population betting on these sports. Also, lots of casual punters prefer tennis, basketball and cricket. Dota 2 betting is a niche area, but an important one for a new generation of punters. On this page, we will have a look at the best Dota 2 betting sites. To be honest, the selection of such Dota betting sites has taken some doing.
List of Dota 2 Betting Sites
Best Dota 2 Betting Sites For March 2024
Bet365 | Best odds for top Dota matches |
Mr. Play | Coverage of tournaments of up to the tier 4 level |
VBET | Best in the number of Cash Out markets |
GGBET | Large selection of kills markets to bet on Dota 2 |
Dota 2 Betting Site #1 — Bet365
Compared to other UK Esports betting sites, Bet365 provides the largest Esports betting line with 15+ disciplines in high season. In addition, the betting site offers one of the widest ranges of Dota 2 markets. There are about 150 Dota 2 bets per top match map, i.e. for a bo3 match, you can find over 500 Dota 2 betting options. However, there are only two O/U kills markets, which are basically substituted with winning margin ones that are a different thing. The Dota 2 gambling site also offers the SportRadar statistics, and its live section contains infographics and text logs of events.
Dota 2 Betting Site #2 — Mr. Play
The Mr.Play selection of betting events can include up to 10 Esports disciplines, and Dota 2 is one of its key Esports betting areas. There are up to 400 Dota 2 betting markets per match. The Dota 2 betting site offers a decent range of U/O markets (14 Dota 2 bets per map), rune activation markets on the 8th and 12th minutes of the match, several “First to X kills” markets etc. However, there are no video streaming and infographics.
Dota 2 Betting Site #3 — GGBET
This is not the most popular gambling site that mainly focuses on casinos but is able to surprise with the range of Dota 2 betting markets as well. There are 300-400 betting options per popular Dota 2 match. The site’s large selection of kill handicap (22 options per map) and O/U markets for betting on Dota 2 is especially pleasing. There are also combo markets, such as “Team 1 gets first blood, first tower and wins the map”. It is worth noting a rare Aegis steal betting market.
Dota 2 Betting Site #4 — VBET
This Maltese bookie does not really impress with its selection of Esports events, but it still can be recommended for betting on Dota 2. The betting site can offer 200-500 Dota 2 markets per popular match. What really draws the eye is the number of O/U kills and handicap markets: there are about 22 betting options per map in DPC matches and up to 50 betting options for Major and TI ones. The Cash Out feature is available for most Dota 2 bets. As for the Dota 2 betting site’s disadvantages, there are no statistics and live streaming, and the desktop version is not the most user-friendly one.
Dota 2 Betting Explained
There are no statistics for Dota 2 betting, as it is not a high-priority area for bookmakers. However, the game’s popularity slightly influences betting as well. Systematically, 500-750 thousand players stay online, and, in general, this is the second most downloaded game on Steam in the entire history. The Major tournament attracts over a million unique viewers, and even those who have no idea about Esports have heard about The International.
Dota 2 Betting Odds
Dota 2 betting odds are generated in the same way as for other sports. The Esports betting sites’ analysts assess the probability of a particular outcome, add a margin and provide winnings multipliers.
To illustrate, let’s enter the 2-way Esports odds for the PSG.LGD vs. Aster.Aries match (March 18, 2023) into the margin calculator. If such Esports odds were ideal best odds (or fair), the winning probability of the first team would be 80.60%, and as for Aster, it would be 9.40%, which gives a total of 100%. However, the bookmaker adds an 8.54% for margin making money, and eventually distributes 108.54%, which makes the real odds lower, compared to the ideal ones.
So, the less the margin, the higher the winning potential. To compare, we have calculated margins for the top 5 bookmakers for the Tundra Esports vs Nigma Galaxy match (March 17, 2023):
Bookmaker | W1 | W2 | Margin |
---|---|---|---|
Bet365 | 3/1 | 2/9 | 6.51% |
Mr. Play | 14/5 | 11/50 | 7.65% |
VBET | 13/5 | 24/100 | 7.77% |
GatoBet | 13/5 | 24/100 | 7.77% |
GGBET | 14/5 | 1/5 | 8.80% |
Dota 2 Betting Markets
In theory, Dota 2 could be a direction with the largest number of markets among all types of sports, as the rules of the game allow for this. But even now, with a fairly modest interest from punters, there are many interesting markets. Here are the most popular Esports markets to bet on Dota 2:
- Match winner. Such Dota 2 bets are only available for matches with an odd number of maps: bo1, bo3, and bo5. To win a bo3 match, which is the most popular format, a team needs to win two maps (or games), i.e. the winning score can only be 2:0 or 2:1.
- Map winner. In Dota 2, to win one game of the match, a team needs to destroy the Ancient at the other team’s base or force it to surrender.
- Total maps in the match. This is one of the main markets that implies predictions of how many maps will be played. For example, in a bo3 match, the total maps over 2.5 bet will win if 3 maps are played.
- Map handicap. To win a handicap bet of -1.5 in bo3 and bo2 matches, a team must win with a score of 2:0. A bet of +1.5 on maps will win in bo2 and bo3 matches if the team wins at least one map.
- First to. This is a bet on which of two teams will make the first successful action, such as to kill an enemy hero or Roshan, destroy a tower or barracks.
- Rune type. From the 6th minute of the game, runes of different types appear every 2 minutes. Some gambling sites offer to bet on which type of rune will appear at the 6th and 12th minutes.
During the course of such Esports games, the number of kills is counted, which does not affect the map winning potential, but provides extra Dota 2 markets:
- Winner by kills. By the end of the map, a team needs to have more kills than its rival. It does not matter, who destroys the throne and wins the map. In case of a tie in kills, such Esports bets will normally be a push, unless there is a draw market.
- Total kills. This is a bet on the total number of kills. The total over 49.5 will win if the teams will make 50 kills, for example, with a score of 30:20. The individual total under 20.5 means that the team needs to make less than 20 kills.
- Kills handicap. You can increase or reduce the number of kills, and the bet will be settled based on the score with the handicap applied. For example, a -9.5 handicap bet means that the team must win the map with an advantage of 10 kills.
- Race to kills. This is a Dota 2 bet on which team will be the first to make 5, 10, 15, 20 and more kills.
How To Play Dota 2?
To play Dota 2, you need a Steam account. The game is only available through this platform and is free to download.
Professional players also use their Steam accounts and sometimes suffer together with ordinary users: for instance, during the tournament, they can face some authorisation problems, and unexpected game updates can cause long match disruption, although top tournaments are played on a fixed version of Dota 2.
There are several modes in the Dota 2 game, with the most popular being the 5 vs. 5 team match, which is used for all professional matches (excluding exhibition matches). Before the game, teams choose five heroes for themselves and ban six heroes that the opponent cannot choose. In the Captains mode (professional Dota 2 mode), only the team captain picks and bans enemy heroes.
The Dota 2 game has a total of 124 heroes (including Muerta), each with 19 characteristics. The main characteristics include:
- Strength, agility and intelligence
- Health and mana
- Move and attack speed
Each Dota 2 hero has different characteristic values and unique abilities for damage, healing, slowing and stuns, increasing or decreasing characteristics. In theory, any Dota 2 hero can be used in any role, but in practice, there is a clear division of roles. Some heroes are more geared towards support (Bane, Oracle, Rubick), some are better at initiation (Mars, Tiny, Enigma), and others are better at dealing damage (Terror Blade, Morphling, Pudge).
Dota 2 heroes can buy items that give them boosts to various characteristics. Moreover, depending on the game plan, one hero may have several “builds” of items.
The goal of the team in the Captains mode is to destroy the enemy’s throne (Ancient). There are no time limits for the game.
These are not all the rules of the Dota 2 game, and for beginners, it may already be too much. The steep learning curve should not stop you from enjoying the game. Just play Dota 2 and have fun!
How To Bet On Dota 2
You can place your first Dota 2 bet in just 5-10 minutes. Follow our simple instructions for Dota 2 betting:
- Choose one of Dota 2 betting sites. We have compiled a selection of bookmakers and reviewed the best Dota 2 betting sites. In any case, the choice is yours.
- Register. Get a sign-up bonus if you find the conditions acceptable. Remember, while you are a new player, you are interesting to all Dota 2 betting sites. Do not ignore worthwhile offers for new customers.
- Make a deposit. Pay attention to the payment methods that Dota 2 betting sites allow for receiving a Welcome bonus. Normally, only debit cards and bank transfers are allowed.
- Choose a Dota 2 match. Open the selection of matches to bet on. Some gambling sites place Esports in a separate section, so Dota 2 can be located separately from classic sports.
- Select a market. Dota 2 is a developing area for placing bets. However, it can already offer much more than 2-way markets.
- Place a bet. Click on the panel with the necessary market and its odds to add it to your bet slip. Enter your stake amount and confirm the bet.
Bet on Real Money
All gambling sites that we mention in this article allow you to place wagers with real money. You can also use bonuses, but there are no other options.
It is not possible to bet with skins on Dota 2 on legal UK betting sites, and even on most illegal sites, it is not possible either. In the world, there are only several Dota 2 skin betting sites that are not trustworthy, so we strongly advise against using them.
Live Betting Dota 2
Bookmakers with a selection of live Dota 2 betting events are needed even for players who do not intend to place bets during a match. Dota 2 matches are often streamed with a delay, which usually takes:
- 2-5 minutes for online matches (when teams compete against each other online from different locations).
- 30-120 seconds for LAN matches (held in one location over a local network).
Many players make predictions based on hero picks. However, when the pick and ban phase in the broadcast is still ongoing, the match may have already started. Dota 2 betting in the pre-game mode is stopped, and bettors can only place bets in the live mode. If you also make predictions based on picks, consider three aspects, when choosing Dota 2 betting sites.
- The availability of the selection of live betting events. Some betting sites only offer selections of pre-game betting events, so you will not be able to check picks and place a bet. That is why it is better to choose bookmakers with decent selections of live Dota 2 betting events.
- The number of markets for In Play betting. The selection of pre-match and In Play markets differ. However, a good gambling site will offer most of the pre-match betting markets in the first minutes of the game.
- Margins. Live odds can be lower, compared to pre-game ones, and sometimes the difference is significant.
These are not all the drawbacks of Dota 2 live betting. There are even more problems for those players who want to “catch the odds” live. You can only see the real moment of the game or monitor it with minimal delays at LAN tournaments. In other cases, you simply cannot assess the situation firsthand, as when watching classic sports live streams. Some resources, such as DLTV, allow you to shorten the delay slightly by showing the results of the fight (number of kills) and changes in the net worth. However, bookmakers have direct access to the match and set odds based on the real situation. You will not be able to catch the moment, and moreover, you often will not see the reason for the odds changes. Learn to “read” odds changes to at least have some idea of the situation on the map.
Betting sites can close selections of live betting events and it is impossible to predict when it is going to happen. This almost always happens during major hero fights that can overturn the power balance on the map: bookmakers freeze such selections of betting events before or during the fight, and then set updated betting odds. Not only you have to bet “blindly”, but you may also miss out odds. In addition, Cash Out fans should be wary of such closures of selections of betting events. For instance, a bookmaker can only accept live bets for 10 minutes and then close the live betting option until the end of the match, and there will be no chance to cash out bets.
Dota 2 Most Popular Tournaments
The coronavirus pandemic attracted many fans to Esports, but then dealt a serious blow to the professional scene. Many tournament organisers left the Dota 2 professional team sport, and as a result, independent tournaments were practically nonexistent. The modern professional Dota 2 is a system of tournaments, including Dota Pro Circuit, Majors, and The International, held under the auspices of Valve.
In the 2023 season, it underwent another upgrade, so let’s try to explain how it works.
Dota Pro Circuit
This is a system of regular tournaments. The participating teams are divided into 6 regions:
- Western Europe
- Eastern Europe
- Chine
- Southeast Asia
- North America
- South America
Each region has Divisions I and II of 8 teams each. All of them play three seasonal tours – winter, spring and summer ones. The two top teams from Division II move up after each tour, replacing the two worst teams from Division I. The two worst teams from Division II are replaced by the top teams from open and closed qualifiers. All DPC matches are held in the best of 3 format.
Major tournaments
After each of the three tours, the Major tournament is held. The top Division I teams reach this tournament. The number of teams depends on the region:
- Top 4 teams of the tour for Western Europe and China
- Top 3 teams of the tour for Eastern Europe and Southeast Asia
- Top 2 teams of the tour for North and South America
In total, 18 teams participate in the Major. At the first stage, they are divided into 2 groups of 9 teams, and each team plays a single bo2 match against every other team. The top 8 teams from the group stage reach the playoffs and play on the Olympic system with upper and lower brackets.
In the 2023 season, there will be 3 Majors: they will be hosted by Lima, Berlin and Bali.
The International
The largest prize pools have made The International famous even among those who have never been interested in Esports. In 2021, one of the biggest prize pools of this world championship exceeded $40 million. The prize money pool of the next TI was half as much; however, no other Esports tournament has come close to such figures.
Qualification for The International is held according to the DPC Points system. The top 5 Division I teams from each region of the Dota Pro Circuit tournament receive 30-300 DPC Points. The top 8 teams from each Major receive 100-400 points. Points are deducted for changes in the roster. Based on the DPC Points results, 12 teams reach The International. Another 6 teams reach the tournament via regional qualifiers – one team per region.
Other tournaments
In the modern competitive Dota 2, there are virtually no tier 1 and tier 2 tournaments. The Riyadh Masters (with a prize money pool of $4 million) and GAMERS GALAXY: Dubai 2022 are rare examples gifted by major oil and gas exporters. BTS Pro Series, once a worthy competitor of the DPC, organises uninteresting tier 2 tournaments with teams from South Asia, North and South America, although the elite of this one of the most popular games is concentrated in Europe and China.
Dota 2 Betting Tips
In a complex area like Dota 2 betting, it is difficult to give simple advice. Bettors need a lot of time and patience to understand the Dota 2 rules and the professional scene; however, there is a special pleasure in it. Here is where to start:
- Learn the heroes and the game rules. It’s impossible to know all 120+ heroes equally well, but you can study 20-30 meta heroes. Watch DLTV to see which heroes are picked most often in the professional scene. Guides on heroes can be found in specialised wikis. In any case, you should know the Dota 2 rules well to understand how things can unfold.
- Follow the patches. The game is regularly updated: patches change some game rules, improve some heroes, and “kill” others.
- Learn players’ preferences. Athletes have strong and weak heroes, some players compete using standard builds of in game items, and some like to experiment.
- Analyse statistics. There aren’t many truly comprehensive statistical resources, but they do exist. DLTV and Dotabuff are among the most authoritative ones.
- Be interested in the opinions of analysts. Only you decide whether to place a bet or not, but studying other opinions will not hurt. Commentators and analysts give their assessments of teams and hero picks on broadcasts.
Dota 2 Betting Sites FAQs
What is the Best Dota 2 Bet Site?
Several bookmakers claim to be the best Dota 2 betting site: Bet365, Mr. Play, VBET, GatoBet, and Dr. Bet. Each has its own strengths and weaknesses, so we do not highlight any one in particular. You can read our reviews of these operators and check out a selection of other Dota 2 betting sites.
Do Dota 2 Betting Sites Offer Any Promotions?
Almost all Dota 2 betting sites offer bonuses for new customers. They are not related to Dota 2 or Esports, but you can use them for betting on any sport, along with some bonuses for registered bettors. Check out the bookmakers’ current offers with descriptions of the conditions in our selection to enhance your online betting experience.
Is Dota 2 Betting Legal?
Betting on Dota 2 is only legal on sites licenced by the UK Gambling Commission. If a bookmaker operates officially, it complies with legal requirements, and you can bet on any type of sport without fear of breaking the law or putting your personal information and money at risk. On the Match.Center site, you will find reviews and selections of only legal bookmakers.
What is Dota 2 Gambling?
The main definition is betting on professional Dota 2 matches. It is no different from betting on football or tennis: the bookmaker sets odds for the match, you choose the outcome and place a bet for a certain amount. Dota 2 skin gambling is illegal in all countries, but even if it does not scare you, very few bookmakers around the world accept skin bets. Most of them do not even have the most accessible licences, such as Maltese or Curaçaoan ones, and have no reputation, so we do not recommend dealing with such Dota 2 betting sites.