Navigating the Choppy Waters of Crypto Sports Betting

Cryptocurrencies haven’t enjoyed the best six months on record. After Bitcoin nosedived in May 2022, and then again in June 2022, naysayers rejoiced, citing the bursting of the famed bubble. Of course, the price of Bitcoin remained rather high, just not as high as in November 2021 or even January of that year. While bankers and investors saw major losses, there’s still a sense that more casual owners are still optimistic about crypto.

This is predominantly because cryptocurrencies were made to be used rather than as an investment vehicle. As the creator of Bitcoin detailed, the point of crypto is to usurp fiat currencies and take power away from corrupt or inept central banks. So,  there are a lot of people out there making full use of their crypto, with one of the more popular ways to use it being in specialized crypto betting platforms.

Even though it’s an increasingly popular way to use crypto, sports betting is still a somewhat difficult area to navigate, especially as a novice. Here, we’re running through a few things to keep in mind to maximize the experience and understand what you’re getting into should you bet your crypto.

When to engage in crypto sports betting

A lot of people will look to the markets to see when the best time is to deposit crypto for sports betting. However, with the cryptocurrency markets being so absurdly volatile just about all of the time, picking the right spot to make use of a lull in price is very difficult. This does mean that, sometimes, it’s best to focus on short-term betting rather than long outrights, betting in-play or on today’s matches to allow for a quicker withdrawal afterward.

One thing that you can target is an opportune time on the sports betting calendar, particularly with regard to bonuses. With the NHL and NBA in full swing, there’s a $400 bonus to get started with hockey betting available, and the basketball promo offers $400 plus 50 free spins in the casino gaming section. It’s sports-focused promos like this that make the time of year that you join and bet quite important.

Turning the sports markets themselves, the calendar has its major sports this month and the next couple of months being hockey, basketball, and soccer. Boxing and MMA will also pop up throughout the year, with fight nights like UFC 285 and Josh Taylor vs. Jack Catterall II being among the biggest events of the first half of 2023. Then, of course, the football season gets underway again on September 7, 2023, while baseball starts on March 30.

The right crypto to use

Right now, there’s much discussion – particularly concerning Bitcoin – as to whether or not you should buy the dip. Much like spinning the roulette wheel, though, you can’t tell where the prices will head next, just as you never really know where the ball will settle. What you can do, however, is pick the right crypto at the right times to deposit to your crypto betting or gaming platform of choice.

To help mitigate fluctuations in crypto, platforms encourage you to deposit as soon as you want to bet to get the price that you know, as the sites immediately transfer crypto deposits into USD. On withdrawal, you can also use the Bitpay Visa card to immediately exchange the funds into USD, further reducing the chance of fluctuation between pressing the withdraw button and receiving the cash.

As such, the main decision to make is what cryptocurrency to use. While you can watch the line, if you have multiple cryptocurrencies in your wallet, consider their transaction speeds. For example, Bitcoin takes longer than Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, Bitcoin SV, Litecoin, or the USD Tether to deposit. It can also take up to 24 hours after approval to withdraw, while Ethereum and Litecoin take up to an hour. If you have the choice, it’s usually best to side with the faster coins purely to help evade potential negative price fluctuations.

Should you be looking to bet your Bitcoin – or any other cryptocurrency – consider doing so at a time that will let you make the most of promos on the sports betting calendar and use crypto that’s fast going in and quick to come back out.