Since Valorant is still a fairly new game, its esports scene hasn’t quite hit full stride just yet. However, things are definitely heading that way. Only recently has Riot Games announced that it will be running an international Valorant tournament, First Strike.
This is no doubt part of its plan to test the waters for a professional Valorant scene. That doesn’t mean that punters can’t bet on Valorant before this tournament starts though. Valorant is in a different situation than more established esports, so here are some tips on how to bet on Valorant:
Find an esports betting site to use
Right now, there are a select few dedicated Valorant betting sites. More will probably emerge over time, once the esports scene gets going. It’s safe to assume that some, if not all of them, will be offering bets on Valorant before too long. There are sites that are specifically made to provide punters with a list of the best Valorant betting sites check it out.
It’s thought that these will be the main esports betting sites that will lead the way for more offering Valorant bets. Other sites may follow, but these are the guys bettors will want to be keeping an eye on in case something good pops up.
Betting on Valorant follows a similar formula to all other team-based esports games. Sites offer odds based on the skill level of each team, and the players making up their ranks. The most common form of bet is made on the outcome of a match between two teams. A team is victorious when it wins 13 out of a map’s 24 rounds, with matches typically taking place across three maps.
Bettors can actually make a range of different bets, though. Whilst betting on the overall winner is the most common, one can also bet on which team or player will claim the first kill, the winner of a specific map, and many other more obscure bets. To a degree, punters can bet on anything in a match, just so long as the site is able to place odds on it as per their data on each team.
Is there profit to be made in Valorant betting?
When a bookmaker offers action, there’s almost always money to be made. The amount totally depends on the amount of risk one is willing to take, and how well the player knows the game and players.
For example, if a punter places regular bets on teams who are pretty much guaranteed to win their match, then they probably won’t make much money. Bookmakers will place lower odds on a team to win if they’re likely to dominate the competition. If one places a bet on a team who is almost certainly going to lose, and they win, it can yield a much larger amount of cash with a single bet.
It may also be that there’s more profit to be made in placing obscure bets, known as Live Bets. These bets are placed on certain actions that might occur in any given game. A great example of this is placing a bet on which character will use their Ultimate ability first. This is ultimately decided by both teams’ strategies and the dynamic events of each match. There will likely be some good odds on this because there’s no way to predict the outcome.
Know the game
Of course, placing bets on Valorant willy nilly almost certainly won’t pay off. The most important factor of how to bet on Valorant is to know the game. Ideally, bettors should familiarize themselves with the game by playing it, but if not then they should have watched a few hours of it so they know what they’re betting on.
Valorant borrows the general format of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, uses characters like Overwatch and Rainbow Six Siege, and takes inspiration for those characters from various MOBAs. In many ways, it’s a game that’s made up of different elements taken from other games, but it works exceptionally well in its own right.
It’s hard to safely place a bet on any game, let alone a Live Bet on a particular element of a match, when one doesn’t know what they’re looking at. Bettors need to understand how a team can win a match, how they can use their abilities together to overcome certain obstacles, and why particular synergies work better than others. With this knowledge, they can start to make some informed bets on Valorant.
However, Riot Games will change the meta of the game over time. With each update, certain powers become stronger or weaker, and key characters can fall out of favor. Maps will also be changed, which can completely flip the meta in a way that can hurt or help a team’s chances across the board. Bettors that aren’t playing Valorant, or at least keeping up with news on the game, won’t stand much of a chance of making informed bets that will earn a profit.
The bottom line is that watching or playing Valorant is just a smart move or anyone looking to bet on it. This can make the difference between you throwing money away, and growing an investment.
Understand the bets you’re making
As mentioned above, punters should understand Valorant as a game before placing bets on it. They should also understand the specific types of bets that are available.
That includes knowing what the odds are, and how much could be made depending on the outcome of a match. Just staring at numbers and placing bets without a thought for what they mean will almost certainly prove to be a money-losing endeavor.
Conclusion
Valorant is still a very new game, but already it’s got a growing esports scene and a number of betting sites where bets can be placed on almost anything. It won’t do players any good to place bets without some prior knowledge, though. Get into the game, learn every facet of it, and get an understanding of the odds the bookmakers are offering. Combine all of this, and you’ll understand how to bet on Valorant perfectly.
