Written By:
Jelena Kabić
About Author
Jelena Kabic is a sports betting writer that focusses on responsible gambling. A psychologist by vocation, Jelena volunteered in a rehab facility, where she worked with gambling addicts. She now reviews all our content to ensure it discusses betting in a socially responsible way.
Fact Checked By:
Amy Webb
About Author
Amy's introduction to the gambling world was 6 years ago, when she joined a casino operator as a content specialist. Since then, she's helped launch and maintain gambling review sites in over 8 different countries. She's tested dozens of casinos and sportsbooks, which is how she can spot a subpar brand in an instant!
Last Update
November 23, 2023
Last Update:
The Best eSports Betting Sites in Canada for 2023
eSports Betting
eSports betting in Canada is gaining a lot of popularity, and with good reason.
Its complex game strategies can make it exciting to watch, and the fact that it’s a smaller market can lead to a lot of profitable bets.
In this guide, we’ll look at the top eSports betting sites available for Canadians, as well as all the information you need before you sign up.
Our Recommended eSports Betting Sites in Canada
We recommend these websites not only because of their remarkable eSports sections, but also because they each have an official iGaming Ontario license.
This means they’re trustworthy and completely legal in Ontario, and available in other provinces as well!
Is Rivalry Legit?
Being one of the most popular sportsbooks for placing eSports bets, we often get the question of whether Rivalry betting is legit and safe to play at.
Tip!
Rivalry owns an iGO license, which makes it a legal and safe option for Canadian bettors!
Rivalry is not only among the top eSports betting sites, it’s also a perfectly safe one to be betting at.
What to Bet On This Month
From May 5-7, Dota Major Berlin 2023 is taking place! 18 teams will be competing for the prize, and Rivalry gives you up to 17 betting markets depending on the game.
Some of these include:
Match Winner
Map 1 Winner
Map 2 Winner
Kills
Totals
Score
Which eSports Can You Bet On?
If you’re new to eSports betting, you might be unsure of which game you can bet on. The following section will give a rundown on the most popular eSports games that Canadians can bet on.
CS:GO Betting
CS:GO is a multiplayer first-person shooter game and has two teams (Terrorists and Counter-Terrorists) play against each other in different objective-based game modes.
Top Tip!
CS:GO is a game that attracts a lot of betting activity thanks to its popularity and multitude of betting leagues and events.
Some of the most popular CS:GO betting tournaments include the Majors, sponsored by Valve.
Here’s what Rivalry, one of the top eSports betting sites, had to offer for IEM Rio Major:
Meanwhile, Betway Ontario had various player specials. Here’s an example:
A step below the Majors are the S-tier events, also known as the Premier tournaments. These include the ESL series such as the ESL Pro League.
However, this is only the tip of the iceberg because you’ll find dozens of CS:GO options at eSports betting sites. Although all eSports betting sites will cover CS:GO, sites like Betway offer a better range of CS:GO markets.
League of Legends Betting
League of Legends (LoL) is a MOBA (multiplayer online battle arena) game developed by Riot Games.
Two teams of five players battle in player combat while defending their half of the map, and the game ends when a team destroys the ‘Nexus’ in the enemy base.
Although the concept is simple, the execution is complex because there are dozens of strategies that a team can use to win the game. This is what makes betting on this game so exciting!
In fact, LoL bettors can look forward to a lot of prop bets at eSports betting sites. These include the likes of:
- First Blood
- Team to Destroy First Tower
- Kill First Dragon
Same as CS:GO, you can look forward to a lot of LoL events, but the most important are the World Championship and the Mid-Season Invitational (MSI).
You’ll find LoL betting options at all eSports betting sites, but we recommend you stick to a site that can give you a full range of main and prop bets to choose from.
Dota 2 Betting
Dota 2 is one of the most successful MOBA games and is a rather complex game to learn. Similar to LoL, two teams of five heroes play against each other with the aim of destroying their opponent’s base.
Top Tip!
Its complexity is what makes Dota 2 betting so thrilling, but we do recommend that you’re very familiar with the game before placing any bets.
You will never be bored betting on Dota 2 as there’s the Dota pro circuit that guarantees Dota betting activity all year round.
The most popular event is The International, which features massive prize pools, but the ‘majors‘ are also picking up a lot of betting interest, so don’t dismiss them.
Like LoL and CS:GO, Dota 2 is popular enough to be covered by all eSports betting sites. However, bet365 has particularly good coverage of the smaller Dota 2 leagues.
Valorant Betting
Valorant is a first-person hero shooter game developed by Riot Games Company. Since it was officially released in mid-2020, it’s new to the scene and hasn’t yet picked up the massive following of other eSports games.
This is precisely why it should be on your betting radar as you’re more likely to spot valuable betting opportunities with a game that is not yet one of the top eSports contenders.
Moreover, you can see the shift of pro players from Overwatch, which shows that this game has the potential to grow.
You can bet on plenty of events, including the Champions Tour Game Changers and the MSI Valorant Invitational.
You won’t find Valorant at all eSports betting sites. Betway has recently started offering it again!
Starcraft 2 Betting
Starcraft 2 is an exciting real-time strategy game created by Blizzard Entertainment.
Players can choose between the three races from the original game, as they’re waging war throughout the Galaxy. Both single and multiplayer modes are available, as well as story modes, co-ops, and versus modes.
While the game relies heavily on its predecessor, there are also new worlds to explore and new characters to interact with.
The most popular events to bet on are the Premier Tournaments, which feature the best teams in the world and have sizeable prize pools.
This game is definitely not as popular as LoL or CS:GO, and you can usually only bet on the outcome of the match.
But that also means you have a better shot at finding value bets!
Overwatch (2) Betting
Overwatch became quite popular a couple of years ago, and its influence in the sports betting sphere seems to be growing. While far less popular than the “big fish” like Dota 2 or LoL, Overwatch still has a dedicated fanbase which resulted in more and more betting sites letting players bet on this game.
Created by Blizzard entertainment, Overwatch is a fun, first-person shooter, time-limited game in which two teams of six compete to complete map-specific objectives. Each player can choose from a wide variety of heroes.
When it comes to Overwatch, you can bet on OWL — the Overwatch League which features city-based teams.
canadian teams!
Canadians can look forward to Toronto Defiant and Vancouver Titans’ games!
On October 2, 2022, Blizzard released Overwatch 2 after a long period of wait, with all players being automatically transitioned from the original Overwatch.
Similar to Starcraft 2, you can usually only bet on the winner of the game.
Which Sportsbook Has the Best eSports Odds?
We’ve covered the selection of eSports events and leagues you can find at eSports betting sites. But which site has the most competitive eSports odds?
This question can be difficult to answer, but let’s compare some odds to better explain the concept.
The first example is for LoL’s Beyond Gaming vs. Evil Geniuses in the LoL World Championship Play-In:
| Beyond Gaming | Evil Geniuses | |
| Betway | 2.75 | 1.40 |
| LeoVegas | 2.80 | 1.40 |
| Sports Interaction | 2.75 | 1.40 |
| Rivalry | 2.75 | 1.45 |
In this example, LeoVegas is the best option for the underdog, while Rivalry has the highest odds for the favourite.
In more concrete terms, if you bet $100 on a Beyond Gaming win at LeoVegas, it will give you a payout of $280, while the same bet at Betway would give you a payout of $275.
But is this a general pattern for eSports odds? Let’s check out another example, this time from CS:GO’s ESL Pro League:
| G2 | Natus Vincere | |
| Betway | 2.05 | 1.70 |
| LeoVegas | 2.15 | 1.65 |
| Sports Interaction | 2.00 | 1.72 |
| Rivalry | 2.08 | 1.75 |
For this CS:GO example, the best place to bet on the underdog is once again LeoVegas, while Rivalry leads the way for the favourite again.
What this means is that a $100 bet on the favourite at Rivalry gives you a payout of $175. On the other hand, the same bet at LeoVegas will award you a payout of $165.
That’s a difference of $10, but the bigger the discrepancy between opponents, the bigger the variation in payout it usually is.
What this shows us is that in general, LeoVegas tends to have high odds for the underdog, and Rivalry for the favourite.
But although we recommend shopping for odds for all sports in our sports betting strategy guide, it’s even more crucial for eSports betting.
Since eSports is not a very big market, it tends to have a lot more variation in odds as sportsbooks focus on the lines that get them the most profit.
This means that while odds for major leagues like the NHL, NFL, and the NBA are scrutinized, eSports odds are less studied and perfected, as can be seen in the examples above with the odds variation.
Top Tip!
And while this means that you need to do some extra work, it also results in a lot of opportunities for value betting!
FAQs
Where can I bet on eSports in Canada?
Among the best safe, legal eSports betting sites in Canada are Rivalry, bet365, and Betway.
Where to bet on eSports in Ontario?
Ontarians have plenty of legal betting sites to place their eSports bets on. Among them are Betano, bet365, Betway, and most notably, Rivalry.
What is the best betting site for eSports?
There are plenty of good eSports betting sites for Canadians, but one of the best is LeoVegas. Betway offers a lot of eSports betting options, as well.
Is eSports betting legal in Canada?
Yes, eSports betting is perfectly legal in Canada and you can bet with no repercussions.
How do I bet on eSports in Canada?
To bet on eSports in Canada, simply find a good betting site that offers eSports betting and accepts Canadians. Sign up and make your first bet!
Can you bet real money on CS:GO?
Absolutely! In fact, CS:GO is one of the most popular eSports betting options in Canada. You just need to find a betting site that has CS:GO betting options.
