Esports Betting Mistakes - Blunders to Avoid When Betting on Esports

Last checked 24 September 2026

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Since you’re most likely a beginner, it’s best to take things slowly, especially if you’ve never even placed a single sports wager in your life.

It will guide you through some of the most common esports mistakes, help you understand them, and teach you about the best ways of avoiding them. Essentially, our esports betting guide here aims to eliminate all the issues that might occur during your first month of real money esports betting!

What Are the Most Common ESPORTS Betting Mistakes?

Now that you know we’re focusing on the most common esports betting mistakes today, it’s time to stop beating around the bush and dive right in!

Betting with Money You Don’t Have

What’s worse than betting too much? Betting with money you don’t even have. Yep, some people do this. There are people who take out loans and try to cash in on a fiery special. Needless to say, this is an awful idea on so many levels.

For starters, betting with money you don’t have is the start of another wicked cycle. Even if you win the first wager, you’ll get greedy and go on a betting spree that could seriously endanger your personal finances. Long story short, never bet with the money you don’t have or can’t afford, period.

Not Cashing Out When Ahead

Let’s say you’ve placed several high-risk bets, one of them comes through, and you end up winning a whole bunch of money. Obviously, this is the perfect chance to finally spoil yourself! Go out and treat yourself! You don’t win big every day (if you do, please teach us).

Unfortunately, lots of people get greedy after getting a major “W.” As soon as they get a taste of winning, they want more. They want to double their win, then again, and again, and again… It’s a vicious cycle—one you should never be a part of! Contrary to popular belief, there’s no place for greed in betting.

Make sure you remember that!

Sticking with Bad ESPORTS Betting Sites

This is definitely among the top three most common esports betting mistakes people keep doing. And let’s face it, they’ll never stop doing it. But that doesn’t mean you should be among them! If you’re already enjoying betting on esports online but you’re not sure you’re getting the experience you deserve, don’t waste your time and switch to another one as soon as possible.

If you’re not sure where to look, you can always check out our comprehensive list of the best esports bookmakers. You won’t just find the best bookies out there, but a ton of valuable info as well. It’s sort of like a beginner’s guide to esports betting online. If you’re just starting out, reading it is a real must!

Sticking with Match-Winners

A ton of esports betting enthusiasts only place match-winner bets. Yes, we understand that match-winners are the simplest, most straightforward bets out there, but there’s really no reason to limit yourself so drastically.

Most of the time, the highest-value bets are hidden away in the esports specials section. It can be a bit time-consuming to find the greatest deals. But if you’re keen on being profitable, that’s definitely one way of drastically increasing your chances of success.

Betting When High or Drunk

Do we really need to elaborate further on this one? Come on, you should all know that betting when high or drunk is never a good idea. No matter if we’re just talking about a few glasses of beer or a few joints, the results are always the same and terrible for your personal finances.

People make terrible decisions while under the influence of alcohol or drugs. That’s an outright fact. With that being said, if you’re not capable of driving when high or drunk, you’re not capable of betting either. If you are intoxicated or have impaired judgment, just save yourself the losses and call it a night.

Save your money for another day!

Failing to Understand the Basics

Yep, there’s a ton of people who, even after years of experience, still don’t have a full grasp on the basics of online betting on esports. If you’re among them, or if you’re a total beginner, our esports betting FAQ ought to be a good place to start.

Most of the questions are based on the basics of esports betting, but there’s some advanced stuff in there, too. There’s bound to be something that’s right up your alley, so make sure you go and check it out!

Being Emotional

The same story goes for betting when overly emotional. Whether we’re talking about personal life issues, business issues, or financial difficulties, you should never partake in esports betting when your emotions are driving your daily routine.

Do you really want that to happen to you? Come on, of course, you don’t! In that case, don’t bet when you’re overly emotional and you’ll be alright!

Ignoring Stats

Never ignore relevant stats! No matter how silly and one-sided they may seem, a relevant stat should always be taken into consideration.

Of course, we’re not talking about stuff like, “The last time Astralis lost on Nuke was on a rainy Tuesday; today is Tuesday and rain is just about to start, so what am I waiting for? $50 on C0ntact all the way!!!”

You need to understand the relevance and learn how to differentiate useful stats from irrelevant, obsolete ones. It’s not something that can be taught. It comes with experience and requires a lot of patience.

Not Double-Checking Info

Always double-check everything you read online, even if it’s coming from a reliable source! You never know what can go wrong. Perhaps it’s just a typo, or perhaps there’s something more to it. Either way, you should never invest large sums of money into your wagers without previously double-checking all the information you’re working with.

On top of that, never invest your money into bets recommended by so-called industry experts. While we don’t want to get into the whole scam discussion here, we still feel it’s important to emphasize critical thinking. Use their picks or predictions only as a portion of the whole story, and try to corroborate it with additional stats and valuable insights.

That’s how winning wagers are made!

Having Unrealistic Expectations

Yep, this is the last common mistake people tend to do when betting on esports. It’s well-represented, just like all the aforementioned ones. Luckily, though, it’s pretty straightforward. There’s no place for unrealistic expectations in the esports betting sphere and in the online betting sphere, in general.

Why? Well, thinking you’ll become rich overnight with a juicy tenfold accumulator will just make you lose more money with each passing day. A cycle that could put your finances in a world of trouble if not addressed in a timely fashion.

For this one, the best advice we can give you is to pace yourselves and take things one step at a time. You probably won’t get rich by betting on esports. It’s a fact. Only a small portion of bettors will be able to live without having to go to work every single day.

The rest will have to suffice with occasional wins and thrive for small profits at the end of each month. It’s just how things go.

Not Investing Enough Time in Research

Don’t mess around with this one! If you’re not putting enough time into your pre-bet research, you’re going to be on the losing end of most of your bets. We’re not even exaggerating here; investing money in half-baked bets won’t get you anywhere. Well, it can lead you somewhere—to the bankruptcy queue, that’s where!

Research is of crucial importance yet we see so many beginners avoid it altogether. It’s okay if you’re just going to place one or two bets and that’s it… But it’s not okay if you plan on doing it for the next few months. If you belong to the latter group, don’t take pre-bet research for granted. It’s essential!

Trusting So-Called Betting Experts

We all know the internet is packed with misinformation and good old fake news. The sports betting section, unsurprisingly, offers pretty much 90% misinformation. Things wouldn’t be as dangerous as they are if it wasn’t for so-called esports betting experts.

Google tends to emphasize such sites when people search for esports match predictions, which is obviously a bad thing. Beginners flock to them and end up losing a bunch of money either paying for premium “inside tips” or just following randomly-selected predictions instead of doing their own research.

What’s the best course of action here? It’s simple, don’t trust Google and don’t trust random esports betting sites! Only trust in your own research; nothing more and nothing less!

Not Following the Newest Trends and News

You have to follow the latest trends if you are to remain a threat to esports bookmakers! When talking about trends, we’re referring to stuff like meta (most effective tactics available) alterations, as well as roster changes, transfers, and news surrounding notable teams and players.

If you’re in this for the long run, you need to stay up to speed with this stuff all the time! Go through your social media channels, follow prominent teams and players, and follow their every move. The same goes for your favorite esports titles too!

Sooner or later, you’ll see something groundbreaking first, and you’ll be able to react before the bookies. That’s the charm of esports betting!

Not Experimenting with Accumulators

People prefer singles, and there’s nothing wrong with that. Singles involve much less risk, but their payouts are (typically) far lower than anything accumulators bring to the table. How come?

Well, let’s start from the basics. Accumulators are wagers that involve several different selections. Instead of betting on each line separately, accumulators allow you to combine multiple bets. The odds are then multiplied with each other and with your stake, which drastically increases potential returns.

Of course, we’re talking about great risks here, but risks that tend to pay off—if you know what you’re doing, of course.

Mind you, we are not saying you should only bet on accumulators. However, spicing things up every now and then could bring you a ton of green!

Being Too Static

Esports betting is the most dynamic market out there. You, as the bettor, need to stay on top of its dynamic nature, especially if you want to be profitable, month in and month out.

What do we mean by “dynamic?” Well, things change quickly, no matter which esports titles you’re interested in. New weapons, new items, new playable characters, map alterations, and all sorts of other balancing changes happen all the time.

We often see beginners being way too static. If you want to win bets, you need to be the exact opposite. You need to keep track of all of the above. That will help you in always being one step ahead of the bookies! At the end of the day, it’s what’ll get you more winning bets, and that’s what matters the most!

Failing to Recognize Important ESPORTS Events

Last but not least, failing to recognize the most important esports events. This, obviously, depends on the esports title you’re betting on. But the same rule applies to the most: You need to know the starting dates of key events long before they’re due.

Knowing a month in advance (if the information is available, of course) will give you a head start as you’ll be able to research potential participants, watch their games, and take notes as to who’s underperforming and who’s stepping up for the occasion.

In addition to that, you need to learn how to differentiate important from unimportant events. Liquipedia is your friend here; browse through your game’s Liquipedia tournaments hub and you’ll find your answers in minutes.

Wrapping Things up

If you’re just starting out, make sure you carefully read through these most common esports betting mistakes. They will not only help you make new mistakes but prevent you from repeating your old ones by giving you deeper knowledge on why something shouldn’t be done.

Don’t let such a complex piece on common esports betting mistakes discourage you. We all make mistakes; it’s how much you learn from them that will separate you from others.

With that in mind, thanks for reading the whole piece and good luck in your future esports betting endeavors!