As Overwatch is one of the most exciting things to hit the esports world in years, it’s no surprise to find that many betting sites are being set up to allow you to wager on this awesome first-person shooter.
Rivalry are one of the latest betting sites to join the fray and their esports betting service has been helping many gamers bet on Overwatch since they started operations in 2017. Our Rivalry esports review is going to take a detailed look at what kinds of odds you can get for your Overwatch bets here and what kinds of tournaments they cover.
In addition to this, our Rivalry Overwatch betting review will examine important security features like their licensing, payment methods and customer support options. So if you are serious about wagering on this great Blizzard Entertainment game, you should read our full Rivalry Overwatch betting review.
Double your deposits & welcome bonus with the offer of the month:
- Fully licensed esports betting site
- A good amount of esports betting options
- Competitive Overwatch & Valorant odds
- Great site for casual gaming fans
BONUS OFFER – Get up to $350 with the Rivalry esports VIP programme
The first part of our Rivalry Overwatch betting review took a look at the brand’s latest promotion; their VIP programme. This replaces a standard welcome bonus and instead allows you to win up to $350 in extra betting funds by making a series of different Overwatch bets. So how easy is it to make full use of this promising esports betting promotion?
We found that the VIP programme required you to make some seriously tough esports bets in order to get all of the bonus funds. Whilst making a starting Overwatch bet of $1 on odds of 1.20 or higher shouldn’t prove too tricky, we’d like to know just how many punters managed to clear the challenge of winning a combination bet with odds of 25.0 or higher. So although this promotion is a breath of fresh air when compared to the standard matched deposit bonus, it’s certainly not the easiest special offer out there. Terms and conditions apply, 18+.
BETTING MARKETS – Bet on all levels of Overwatch tournaments here
Betting on Overwatch means that you get to wager on tournaments taking place every day all over the world. So how well does the Rivalry betting site meet this challenge? Our Rivalry esports review found that the brand covered an excellent range of Overwatch matches that range from the biggest Overwatch League showdowns to small skirmishes in the Overwatch Contenders season in China.
Unfortunately, it looked like you could only take very basic match winner bets on each Overwatch clash covered. However, if you want to keep your Overwatch betting fairly simple, you’ll be able to enjoy some quick and easy esports bets at Rivalry.
CUSTOMER CARE – Get instant help with your Rivalry esports bets
Whilst the Rivalry betting site is easy enough to navigate around, there will probably come a time when you will need to get some help. We found that Rivalry’s live chat feature gives you the chance of getting a very responsive answer to any questions regarding anything from setting up your account to making your first withdrawal.
In addition to this, there are also email and postal options for getting in touch with the brand. Before you use these customer service features, we’d recommend that you take a quick look at the Rivalry FAQ. This helpful resource is a great place to understand the basics of the Rivalry site, which along with the very useful Rivalry Academy, should give you everything you need to make the most of this promising esports betting service.
PAYMENT METHODS – Card, e-wallet, prepaid card and cryptocurrency options
You might have noticed how Rivalry only seem to mention US dollars on their site and this is because the brand prefers to carry out all of their betting options in this currency. This means that you might incur some currency conversion charges when moving your money around on the site, but thankfully Rivalry won’t add any extra processing charges.
Rivalry have facilitated most of the main payment providers so that you can look forward to using brands like Visa, Maestro, MasterCard, Neteller, Skrill, Paysafecard or even Bitcoin for adding funds to your account. Processing times vary according to the payment method used, but you can make deposits and withdrawals from a minimum of $5. Plus you can also set up a Rivalry account without even laying any of your own money down.
SECURITY AND SAFETY – Licensed for safe and secure Overwatch betting
You won’t have to worry too much about the safety of your personal details and deposits at Rivalry as this SSL-level encrypted site is fully licensed and regulated by the Isle of Man Gambling Supervision Commission. This requires Rivalry to give its customers a fair and transparent esports betting service otherwise they could have their license revoked.
Rivalry have taken some further steps to ensure that your esports bets are completely fair as they have signed up to the Esports Integrity Coalition which aims to stamp out all match-fixing issues within the sport. And with help on hand from GamCare to keep your esports betting fun and controlled, it’s nice to find that Rivalry want to keep you safe and secure.
BETTING ODDS – How good are the Rivalry esports odds?
We’re always keen to see which betting site offers you the best odds for Overwatch. So we compared Rivlary’s odds with ArcaneBet’s odds for Overwatch and were pleasantly surprised by what we found.
Both sites claim to offer a specialised esports betting service, and we found that they both gave you a similar price for your esports bets. If you wanted to bet on Young and Beautiful to beat 6Nakes in an Overwatch Contenders clash, you could get odds of 2.58 from Rivalry and odds of 2.60 from ArcaneBet. But if you wanted to bet on 6Nakes to win this match, you could get odds of 1.40 from Rivalry and 1.45 from ArcaneBet. This once again showed us why you should always shop around to get the best price on your Overwatch bets.
INTERFACE AND DESIGN – Responsive website but no Rivalry app
Whether you are using a laptop, tablet or smartphone, then you should have no problems in using the Rivalry site for your Overwatch bets. There isn’t a Rivalry app at the moment, but the site looked great from the smaller screen of our smartphones, and we could do everything from signing up to placing an Overwatch bet with just a couple of taps on our mobile device.
Whilst many betting sites can feel a little overcrowded, the Rivalry site keeps it simple with large text that clearly displays all of the relevant betting options. Plus everything from the FAQ section to the Rivalry Academy was written in easy-to-understand language so that you didn’t feel too overwhelmed by complicated betting terms. So if you want an easy start with your Overwatch bets, don’t hesitate to check out the intuitively designed Rivalry site.
LIVE BETTING – Live stream your Overwatch bets
Like many other dedicated esports betting sites, Rivalry have implemented the Twitch.tv live streaming service into each live betting match page so that you can adjust your betting strategies accordingly. This is a great way to add some drama to your in-play bets and we can’t think of a better way to enjoy live esports betting.
In addition to this, Rivalry also provide you with a quick run-down of each esports team’s past form so that you can make an accurate prediction of how they will fare. Whilst you probably won’t find too many live betting markets for an in-play Overwatch match here, we found that Rivalry offered an exciting way to wager on this epic first-person shooter in real-time.
LIMITS – Does Rivalry limit your betting stakes?
Nearly all betting sites will implement betting limits so that they can afford to stay in business and you know just how much you stand to win. Sadly, we found nothing in the Rivalry terms and conditions about maximum winnings and so you’d probably benefit from contacting the brand via live chat if you want to know how much you can win with your Overwatch bets.
It’s fairly unlikely that your Overwatch win will deliver a life-changing amount however, as Rivalry only allow you to put down a betting stake of between $0.50 and $25 at a time. This indicates that the site is probably geared more towards casual gamers, although you also have the option of implementing some safe deposit limits if you feel like you want to give yourself a good safety barrier.
OTHER SPECIAL FEATURES – Other things found in our Rivalry esports review
Many esports betting sites will include a few more alternative betting options so that you can enjoy a quick wager on anything from football to horse racing on the side. But it looks like Rivalry is only about esports betting so you won’t find any sports betting here.
In addition to this, you won’t find any casino gaming options like slots, roulette or poker at the Rivalry site as the brand are focused purely on esports like Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, League of Legends, Call of Duty, Dota 2 and of course, everybody’s favourite first-person shooter; Overwatch.
CONCLUSION – Key points of our Rivalry Overwatch betting review
Rivalry have made a great start in their bid to be one of the best Overwatch betting sites around. They covered all of the major and minor Overwatch tournaments and were able to give you Overwatch betting odds that matched many of their rivals. The live streaming service was a nice touch, and we were glad to find that this fully licensed site also had a responsive customer service team that could be reached 24/7 via the live chat feature.
However, it’s clear that Rivalry still have some way to go. There was a lack of information about any relevant betting limits, and we would have also liked to have seen a dedicated Rivalry betting app for mobile users. Whilst the VIP programme was fairly interesting, it’s hard to see how anybody would be able to work their way through all of the challenges in order to get the full $350 bonus amount.
But perhaps the strangest aspect of the Rivalry service was the fact that the Isle of Man-based brand only operate in US dollars which might be off-putting for many UK gamers. However, we think that Rivalry have managed to show that they offer a safe and fun way to bet on Overwatch and so we look forward to seeing how this brand develop from here.