What Kinds of Entertainment Bets Can I Make?
While the main reason you come to sports betting sites is to wager on sports, you may have noticed that quite a few online sportsbooks these days are also offering a variety of entertainment bets in other niches.
If you are knowledgeable in an area outside of sports where there is action available, you should not miss out on the opportunity to potentially make some money with your knowledge.
In this guide, will discuss some of the different types of entertainment bets you can place online and offer some recommendations for sportsbooks which offer this type of action.
Politics
One of the most popular areas for placing wagers outside of sports is in the arena of politics. While many sites focus on US politics, you may find wagers on global politics as well.
How is betting on politics a type of “entertainment bet”? Well, technically it is not a wager in the field of entertainment, but some sites place wagers on politics, religion, current events and financials all in the entertainment category alongside wagers on TV and film.
Some political wagers are outright “to win” bets. For example:
- Who will the Democrat candidate for the US presidential election in 2020 be?
- Who will win the next US presidential election?
- Which political party will win the next US presidential election?
Others are highly specific and may be similar to prop bets that you have placed on sports. For instance, here are some additional political wagers which are available to place online as of the time of this writing:
- Will Trump tweet about Mueller hearing on 7/24?
- How many times will Trump tweet on July 24, 2019?
- Will Mueller confirm that Trump obstructed justice?
We’re not here to get you to love or hate the guy. We’re here to ask you this – Think he’ll do it again in 2020?
As with wagering on sports, planning political bets involves conducting detailed research to try and come up with accurate predictions.
But also as with sports betting, political betting requires that you shop for value in terms of odds. Betting on an obvious favorite and then winning is not where you will find value. The odds will truly pay off when you take the long shot and win.
There is really no better time to get into political betting than right now. Politics both in the US and abroad is becoming more and more polarized and unpredictable. When Trump got into office, that proved that pretty much anything can happen, however unlikely it would’ve been a decade ago.
Do your research and you’ll be able to identify similar opportunities. If you can identify a candidate that nobody else thinks has a chance but whom you feel confident can win an office, you may be able to make a sizable profit.
Now, everything I just said above applies largely to outright “to win” wagers, not to prop-style bets.
You may have a more challenging time from a strategic standpoint planning a wager in answer to a question like “How many times will Trump tweet on (date)?”
But you may be able to review statistical records along with current events and Trump’s present mindset in order to make a guess as to how many tweets he will make on that date based on his past behaviors.
Television and Film
Moving away from politics, another field where you can place entertainment bets is in television and film.
The types of wagers available at any given time will depend on two things –
- What shows are currently on the air, and
- schedules for awards
Here are some examples of the types of television and film related wagers you can place on sportsbooks online:
- Which show will win Outstanding Drama Series at the next Emmy Awards?
- Who will win Outstanding Lead Actor for a Drama at the next Emmy Awards?
- Which show will win Outstanding Competition Program at the next Emmy Awards?
- Who will win Best Director at the next Academy Awards?
- Which actor will be cast to play (role) in (upcoming film)?
- Who will die sooner: Actor A or Actor B?
Sometimes, with a very popular show, you can even place bets on what will occur within the storyline of that show.
For example, when Game of Thrones was on, it was a popular pastime to wager on who would rule Westeros at the end of the final season, along with other events in-story along the way.
Game of Thrones may be over, but the amount of wagers was insane! We need a new show of this caliber. Pay attention Hollywood!
As with political betting, the more you know about what is going on in the field of entertainment, but better positioned you will be to make accurate wagers and spot solid value.
You can conduct statistical research to try and make accurate wagers about award outcomes. There are common patterns which surface from year-to-year.
For example, around 96% of the time, the movie which wins Best Picture at the Academy Awards also receives a nomination for Best Director.
That means that if you see a film which is nominated for Best Picture but not Best Director, statistically speaking, it is less likely that it will win Best Picture.
As another example, around 79% of the time, it is a Producers Guild of America winner which takes home the Oscar for Best Picture.
It is also worth noting that Best Picture is usually given to a film which was generally well-liked by the vast majority of critics and viewers as opposed to one which divided audiences dramatically.
If you conduct research, you will find many more trends which can help you to make predictions about future Oscars and Emmys.
As for making predictions about what will happen in a future season of television, this may be quite difficult if the show is being written to be as unpredictable as possible.
But even so, there tend to be patterns in how people write for TV, and the more you understand the minds of the writers assigned to a particular show as well as what will be allowed at the executive level, the more likely you are to be able to accurately predict how situations will unfold in future episodes.
Even a show which features a lot of surprising situations and outcomes must have some internal logic in order to hold together as a coherent whole. If you can identify those threads and follow them, you may be able to profit off of your keen observational skills.
Current Events
Wagers you can place on current events may be filed under the politics section of a sportsbook, or they may have a separate section of their own.
Some of these prop bets can be quite unusual. Here are some examples of a few which are available as of the time of this writing:
The guards are looking the other way! Run, Chapo! Run!
- Will Area 51 be raided on September 20th, 2019?
- Will Trump tweet a warning not to raid Area 51?
- Can El Chapo escape from prison?
- Will El Chapo die in prison by natural causes?
- What will the first organization be to charter humans to Mars?
- Will a human being set foot on Mars by 2025?
With research and your grasp on human nature, you can attempt to make predictions regarding these types of events.
Religion
Quite a few sites also allow betting pertaining to religion, generally the next pope. For example:
- Who will be selected as the next pope?
- What will be the first papal name of the next pope?
As always, wager according to your knowledge—or hope that a lucky guess might pay off.
Financials
Whether or not you invest in the stock market, the forex market, or any other financial market, you probably are aware that gambling and investing are a lot alike.
In fact, one can argue that the difference between them is largely a matter of degree and approach.
So it should not come as much of a surprise that a few online sportsbooks are now offering financial betting as well.
Action is typically available on stocks, indices, currencies, and commodities.
I’ve noticed it is actually getting harder to find sports betting sites with financials available. It could be that I am mistaken, but it did seem like these were more widespread in the past.
This may have something to do with regulatory changes recently throughout Europe. Until about a year ago, a financial product called “binary options” was popular and abundant in the European market.
Even though this was touted as an investing product, it would be more accurately termed a gambling product. This mismatch in presentation led ESMA regulators to crack down and enforce a temporary recurring ban on binary options throughout the EU.
Even though the ban is now expired, ESMA only dropped it because individual countries are passing permanent bans against binary options trading.
What does this have to do with gambling on financials at sportsbooks?
Well, financials betting on sportsbooks tends to be quite similar to binary options trading.
So ironically, despite the fact that sportsbooks were not misleading customers about financials betting, it seems likely that they have faced regulatory pressures around the world for offering financial wagers.
For this reason, financials betting is probably harder to come by today than it was in the past. Nonetheless, if you look for it, you still might find some websites which offer it.
You will give yourself the best chance at winning financial bets if you conduct research and come up with strategies to make determinations about what the markets may be doing.
Also, make sure you check out BetOnline, currently offering a 100% match for first time users making a bitcoin deposit!
Lottery
Did you know you don’t have to play the lottery to wager on it?
You don’t have to buy a lottery ticket to win money when lottery numbers are drawn. How does that work? Quite a few sports betting sites offer action on lottery numbers, usually for the Powerball or Mega Millions.
There are a couple different types of lottery-related bets you can place. On some sites, you can wager on several of the numbers that will be drawn. Another type of wager you can place on the lottery is whether or not there will be a jackpot winner on a particular date.
Other
While the majority of entertainment bets fall into the categories listed above, on some online betting sites, you will find other categories as well which may be more unusual.
Where to Place Entertainment Bets Online
Now that we’ve talked about some of the different types of entertainment bets you can make, let’s check out some top recommended websites for placing bets on TV and film, politics and more.
Click on any of the names or logos of the sites to be taken straight to the action! In no particular order, we present to you –
MyBookie.ag
This site offers action on politics, business, TV, movies, celebrity deaths, current events and religion. So that is a nice wide selection and brings you plenty of opportunities for fun and profit.
As many of the example bets included in this article were taken from this site, you already have a pretty good idea of the types of wagers you can expect at MyBookie.ag.
When you sign up for the sports book, you can take advantage of a 50% match bonus on your first deposit. You also can qualify for a $20 risk-free bet. When it comes time to re-up your funds, you can look forward to a 25% reload bonus up to $500. The website offers daily sport book and casino bonuses and promotions as well.
Bovada
Bovada, another of our all-time favorite sports betting sites, lets you place entertainment bets on politics as well as current events.
You can qualify for a $250 sports welcome bonus as a new member of the site. If you deposit bitcoin, you can receive up to $5,000 worth of bonus money across a number of deposits. The site also offers bonus money for casino gambling, the online poker tables, and referring your friends.
BetOnline.ag
BetOnline.ag offers entertainment and politics betting. If you are in the sportsbook section and you look under “Game Props,” you can then click on “Entertainment” to wager on TV and more. You can also find “Politics Props” in the same area.
If you leave the “Game Props” dropdown and click on “Futures” you will find “Politics Futures”. Here, you will discover wagers you can place on nominees and elections.
As for bonuses, if you are new to BetOnline.ag, you can receive a 50% welcome bonus on your first deposit. On subsequent deposits, you can receive a 25% sports reload bonus.
Bonuses are higher if you are using a cryptocurrency. For your first deposit, you can receive a 100% match bonus. For reloads, you can receive a 35% bonus.
Intertops
Intertops has literally been online for decades. We discovered them years ago, and have been happy customers ever since. One of the best things about Intertops is the sheer variety of sports you can bet on. As it turns out, they also offer quite a few non-sporting options as well.
In fact, if you look under “Non-Sporting” in the sportsbook menu at Intertops, you will find where you can wager on US lottery Powerball numbers.
Right below “Non-Sporting” in the main sportsbook menu is “Politics.”
Finally, if you scroll down a little bit further, you will come to the “Stock Market” betting area, where you can place wagers on questions like these:
- What will the DJIA close on (date)?
As for bonuses and promos over at Intertops, you are able to choose your own sign-up bonus up to $200. When you sign up, you also receive a $20 free bet. Intertops has some unique promotional offers as well which you won’t find just anywhere.
For example, at the time I am writing this, the bettor who is able to find the highest odds can receive a cash prize (this contest is run monthly). There are also multiple promotions available for players who enjoy making parlay bets.
5Dimes
If you’re looking for a site which offers entertainment betting not just on politics, but on some more usual competitions, consider 5Dimes. Under “Other Sports,” you’ll find “Politics,” a category which includes wagering opportunities on impeachments, elections and more. But you’ll also find “Lotto,” under “Other Sports,” as well as “Spelling Bee” and “Competitive Eating.”
That’s right—on 5Dimes, you can bet on some serious niche competitions! If you look under Spelling Bee, you’ll find action on the 2020 Scripps National Spelling Bee. Here are some of the unusual prop bets you can place:
- Boy wins or multiple boys share champ
- Girl is lone champion
- Two or More co-champions
- Winner comes from sponsored region
- Winner comes through RSVBee program
- Last speller wears glasses
- Last speller wears braces
- Maybe the last word has over 9½ letters?
*Editors note – How in the world does a word have 9 and a half letters?? If you know the answer, call me!
Curious about the “Competitive Eating” category? As of the time I am writing this, 5Dimes is offering action on the Men’s 2020 Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest in Coney Island, New York. Here are some examples of the types of wagers you can place on this event:
- Joey Chestnut wins Nathan’s Contest
- Field wins Nathan’s Contest
- Men’s winner hot dogs eaten over 71½
- Winner determined in 10 minutes
- Eat-off required to determine winner
- Reversal of fortune during contest (yes, this refers to vomiting or regurgitation)
- Any protester interrupts the contest
5Dimes has plenty of great rewards for new and loyal customers, including reduced juice, cash back, rebates and more.
SportsBetting.ag
SportsBetting.ag is another option worth considering for entertainment betting. If you navigate to the sportsbook menu on the site, you can look under “Game Props” for “Entertainment”. Here you can place bets on events like the Emmy Awards. Also under “Game Props,” look for “Politics Props” for action on elections. For more political betting, navigate to the “Futures” dropdown, and then click on “Political Futures”.
As a new player, you can qualify for a 50% welcome bonus with a regular currency or a 100% bonus with a cryptocurrency. Regular players can receive a 25% bonus on account reloads, while crypto players can receive a 35% reload bonus on their subsequent deposits.
Bookmaker.eu
At this sportsbook, you can wager on US political elections. There is also a small section for international elections, so if you are interested in profiting off of your knowledge of global politics, this may be one of the best sportsbooks for you. Betting is also accepted for entertainment awards such as the Oscars, Emmys and Golden Globes.
Like many of the other sportsbooks we recommend, Bookmaker.eu offers both welcome bonuses and reload bonuses. At the time of this writing, a 15% cash welcome bonus is offered to regular players and several larger cash bonuses are offered to crypto players. How much you receive through reload bonuses depends on what player tier you are in.
Speaking of tiers, this is a great site if you are a frequent gambler since there is a rewards program which allows you to earn points as you play at the sportsbook and casino. These points can be redeemed for cash-back.
It’s Time to Profit Off of Your Knowledge of Politics, TV, Movies, and More
Now you are familiar with all the different types of entertainment wagers you can place at sports betting sites. If you are already keeping up with politics, television, films and financial markets, it only makes sense to put that knowledge to work and try to turn it toward generating a profit.
Plus, current events are a lot more fun and exciting if you have something invested in how they turn out. Click through any of the links to our recommended entertainment betting sites above to open your accounts and start wagering now. We recommend joining several sites so that you can shop the odds and maximize your profits!
These titles may lead to sports themed articles, but the same fundamentals are the same for non-sports betting!