The Sports Betting 101 Series: Sports Betting and Online Casinos – What’s The Difference?

From ordering food to watching movies and communicating with our loved/hated ones, everything is now just one click away thanks to a wonderful thing called the world wide web. COVID dialed things up to 11 in that regard, as many leaned HARD on the internet (as the teens call it) for every bit of their social lives, work, and entertainment.

That brings us to the topic of today’s continuing series on the recently new advent of legal sports betting and the NFL. While the Minnesota legislature has yet to approve the stalled bill that’d allow sports betting in the state, many other states (where we get a decent amount of traffic) like Iowa, where it’s totally legal for anyone to place a bet on their favorite teams.

You can see Vikings legend John Randle down in Iowa after his first bet which happened to be on the Twins. He placed a $93 bet, for obvious reasons, and talked to the media about how as a former player he didn’t see any issue with sports betting especially in terms of shady insiders influencing the outcome of games / individual player performance because of all of the (theoretical) money each market plans to make from the above.

“It’s something that is fun, it’s a new opportunity, and a new experience for people,” Randle said. “For the fans, it’s a new way of betting, and being involved with sports.”

We here at purpleTERRITORY Media believe that our role as the leading local/independent Minnesota Vikings news/content resource, we should cover some aspects of sports-betting as it will inevitably take over the Gopher state (and then promptly under-perform against government estimates).

Hence the Sportsbetting 101 series. We’ve touched on this before but with the off-season already here for the Vikings we thought it was a good time to relaunch. That began with yesterday’s article, which you can read here:

Today’s article is an exercise in identifying the right place to actually place your bets safely and securely online. Some places have online bookies, others have online casinos, and while it’s our dream to integrate sports wagers into our brand new app UFFda! (Which launches in a month), it’s probably best that we don’t apply our C- math skills to the science that goes into spreads, lines, etc.

Sportsbooks and online casinos have had a real breakthrough over the past couple of years. Smartphones and tablets have made it possible for online gambling and sports betting to be done on the go, back when there was such a thing as a go to go to. For players around the world, this was a game-changer, since now they are able to access their favorite games or place a wager no matter where they are. Like, their living room couch, toilet, or living room love seat.

Of course, there is still the question of online sports betting and gambling being illegal in certain states/countries/1980’s movies about a power hungry mayor who lost his daughter to a smartphone. But after 2020, the economical potential of this industry became more than evident. With the budget disasters created by COVID around the world, a number of countries (and 1980’s mayors) are now in the process of legalizing online casinos and bookies (and forgiving Samsung for Trish’s carpal tunnel related demise).

But is there a difference between the two? It’s clear as day that sports betting and online gambling are connected in many ways. In many aspects, both bettors and players rely on luck as well as their knowledge. However, the two have core differences that attract different kinds of people.

Online Casinos

Online casinos are websites owned by a certain operator, that allow players to enjoy different games like poker, blackjack, slots, baccarat, roulette, etc.

In some states (like ours), online gambling is still illegal. For example, even though players can enjoy Online Gambling in Colorado, that’s not the case for a greater number of USA states than not.

In order to register to an online casino, obviously any player must be of legal age. After registering for an account the player can access all the available online games offered by the operator, and know that for the legitimate online casinos you’re getting a regulated game with consistent payouts.

Online casinos can include both casino games and sports betting. Some operators also have brick-and-mortar venues that offer both casino games and wagering. Nowadays, most online casinos attract new users by offering generous welcome offers and promotions. Something we’ve covered in the past (and will focus on in one of the upcoming Sportsbetting 101 pieces).

However, due to the rapid growth of the gambling and betting industry, there is a number of unlicensed operators that are unsafe to use, which is obviously a gigantic concern for anyone entering their credit card or banking information online.

If you are looking for the safest way to play games with good promotions, you can consider online casino no deposit bonuses from this site.

Keeping track of trustworthy operators can be tough since new ones are beginning to pop up on a daily basis. Even though interesting bonuses and promotions can be appealing, there are also other aspects of an online casino that make it worth your money and time, like good reviews and a bountiful selection of games.

Sports Betting

As mentioned in the previous section, there are many similarities between online casinos and sports betting. However, the core difference is the users. Sports betting will always be more attractive to sports fans. Breaking news, I know.

Furthermore, while some casino games rely on actual knowledge and skills, most of them also count on luck and chance. On the other hand in sports betting, a lot depends on the bettor’s knowledge of the teams, individual players, previous seasons, current situation within the team, etc.

So, we can say that for sports betting, knowledge of the subject can in a great deal affect the outcome of the wager (which is true for some card games, but not for things like slots or what to avoid at the $5 buffet (aka the biggest gamble of all).

The bettor who has a solid understanding of sports, players, and rules, can also understand the odds or predictions, and then place a winning bet on a certain game. That’s why people like our Mike Tice have such great success in picking against the spread.

Even though the result isn’t always as expected due to some unforeseen factors (the player can be tired, or the team isn’t motivated enough for that game), in most cases, a bettor with good knowledge of a certain sport don’t need to rely on luck.

So, keep reading our stuff! Is the conclusion?

In Conclusion (for reals this time)

Sports betting and online casinos will always be linked in this way or another (unless UFFda! Changes the game and lands us our biggest brand ambassador yet… Pete Rose). The key, then, is to do your research when looking for the best sites/apps to use (which is another topic for the next SB 101!), research on everything you can learn about everything from online card games to the Wildcard round of the NFL playoffs!

A good place to start if you’ve found a site or app with sign-up bonuses that entice you, is to type the name of the site/app into Google with the word “scam” (or hopping on consumer affairs and searching their database of consumer complaints).

Stay tuned for the next SB 101 early next week and happy punting, everyone!

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