The Best Aussie Rules Betting Sites in 2024
The next sport in our ultimate guide to betting is Australian Rules Football. The surge of interest in the sport has also meant an increase in bettors looking for the best Australian Rules betting sites. This is where we excel – we know the market, and we research the numbers to find you the best possible deal for Aussie Rules betting.
| Best Betting Sites in The United States | Bonus Offers | Highlights | Rating | Secure Link | T&Cs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Our detailed review of the Aussie Rules betting sites features well-known US brands. All the sportsbooks featured on this page are safe and secure venues for US bettors with each one offering unique advantages to customers Here are is our list for the best Australian Rules betting sites and their highlights.
In the next sections, we will compare the chosen sportsbooks, assess the odds they offer and explore the different leagues and markets you can bet on. As all our featured sportsbooks are all licensed and regulated, you can bet with confidence whoever you choose. We will also share some interesting facts about the sport and the best online Australian Rules betting sites, and in the final section, we will give our final verdict.
Aussie Rules Betting Odds
Odds are always going to be the headline difference between sites – even a slight difference in them can make a big difference, especially in the long run. The odds also enable us to work out how much profit a sportsbook is likely to earn from a market, and some offer better odds for some leagues than others.
To check the value for money that the betting sites offer, we have calculated the return to player (RTP) figure on Australian Rules matches. Using four different Australian Rules leagues games and tournaments, we checked the odds that each sportsbook offered for a home win, away win and a draw. We then worked out the amount of return that these odds should theoretically return.
| Australian Rules Betting Site | AFL | VFL | SANFL | WAFL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Betway | 97.38% | 96.32% | 97.85% | 95.13% |
| BetMGM | 96.32% | 95.22% | 94.42% | 95.01% |
| Caesars | 97.03% | 93.41% | 92.82% | 96.72% |
| bet365 | 94.99% | 94.33% | 98.48% | 96.69% |
| BetRivers | 95.92% | 93.13% | 93.96% | 94.32% |
As you can see from the table above, the odds didn’t vary a great deal between the odds offered at the above operators. 888sport offered the highest return to player figure for two of the markets, but there are better options if you will be betting solely on the Australian Football League.
However, while odds are a good indicator of value, it is only a small part of the overall picture. Is a slightly higher return a price worth paying if the customer care is poor? So, while the value offered is important, it is just one of over 50 ranking criteria that we use in all our reviews. We used the same criteria for reviewing all of the top rated sportsbooks for 2024.
What Australian Rules Tournaments Do Online Sportsbooks Offer?
With over a hundred leagues in Australia alone, footy games are played all across the country. It’s understandable that not all online sportsbooks offer betting on all Aussie Rules competitions. The big name operators concentrate on the more popular fixtures. The AFL (Australian Football League) is the sport’s most prestigious competition and these matches are available at all of the best online Australian Rules betting sites
Initially containing just eight teams from the state of Victoria in 1897, today the AFL has 18 teams from across the whole country. However, the fastest-growing area of Australian Rules is the women’s competition. Inaugurated in 2017 with eight founding teams, the AFLW has grown to equal the men’s competition with eighteen teams, and is enjoying a surge in popularity both for watching and betting on.
Common Betting Markets for Australian Rules
While Aussie Rules betting is not the most popular market for US bettors, those that do bet on the sport have a choice of markets that rivals that of basketball. In a popular Australian Rules fixture it isn’t uncommon to have over 200 things you can bet on.
To illustrate this, at the time of writing, BetMGM were offering an incredible 184 different bets you can place on the Collingwood v Essendon AFL clash ranging from if Collingwood would win by more than 40 points to what will be the total amount of goals in the 2nd quarter. Here are some of the most popular bets in Australian Rules;
Team to Win
A very easy moneyline bet in which you are just predicting which team will win. For this type of bet there will only be one of three outcomes. Either the home team wins, the away team win or the game ends in a draw.
An alternative bet is to include the draw with your prediction. So, for example, you can bet that it will either be a home win or a draw. The odds for this prediction will be lower than if you went just for the win, but it does provide insurance.
Over / Under
As Australian Rules games can be high scoring affairs – this makes the over and under market very popular. The sportsbook will set a total figure, and all you must do is decide if the score at the end of the game will be above or below this target.
The score total set by any of the AFL betting sites will contain a half, for example, 45.5, this ensures that the score cannot be an exact match. To clarify using the example of 45.5, a score of 46 would be over, and a score of 45 would be under.
Margin Betting
Sometimes in sport, it’s not a case of who will win but a matter of by how many they will win by. Margin betting is precisely that. You are predicting what the gap in points will be between the teams.
The two most popular markets for margin betting are the 16+ and 25+ bets. As the name suggests, you are predicting there will be either a 16 point or more gap for the 16+ and at least a 25 point difference between the teams for the 25+.
Australian Rules Football Live Betting
Live betting is, in our view, one of the greatest innovations that have taken place within the online betting scene in decades and has changed how many of us bet. In the not so distant past, once an event started the ‘book’ was closed; therefore, you were relying on what happened in the game before and any team news you may have heard.
It used to be frustrating to place a sports bet and back a team to win, only to find out 30 minutes later that the star player is carrying an injury. Live betting lets you avoid this, and now you can watch the action and place bets that reflect what is happening on the pitch.
Live betting also introduces a new level of strategy due to sportsbooks giving bettors the ability to cash-out your bets on selected markets during the game. How many times have you known that a comeback was on the cards and your bet was likely to lose? During the fixture, the Australian Rules betting sites will offer you an amount to finish your bet early.
This changes almost constantly and could see you make a profit or loss on your original stake. If your team started well and took the lead, but now are tiring, do you cut and run for a small profit. Alternatively, your bet is not doing so well and doesn’t look like anything will change on the pitch; it might be worth taking a loss and cashing out to try a different bet.
Sportsbook Bonuses for AFL Betting
Us Americans are a loyal bunch. Whether it’s never changing our energy suppliers or sticking with the same bank for decades, if it’s not broken, we don’t tend to fix it. The same is true with the average bettor at AFL betting sites; they find one they like and stick with it. The competition between the sportsbooks is so intense that they all offer incentives for you to join them.
Taking advantage of these deals can boost your initial bankroll and give you the best chance of seeing a return. Another advantage of more than one account, is being able to assess different factors between the sportsbooks such as odds offered, customer care, payment options and much more.
We currently recommend the above operator to bet on Aussie Rules online while also receiving a fair bonus. As ever with sportsbook bonuses, it is important that you read the terms and conditions so you are crystal clear on how you can best get your hands on the introductory offer.
Aussie Rules Betting Strategy
Having a sound Aussie Rules betting strategy is important, no matter which sport you are planning on playing on and having good knowledge of the teams involved is rarely wasted. For example, if you know that St Kilda normally starts a game well but tend to tire, in their clash with favourites Sydney Swans, backing St Kilda in the Race to 15 market could prove a clever choice.
Another way to take advantage of the fast start would be to back St Kilda to win but cash-out the bet if they take a healthy lead. A tactic we often use is to wait until the favourite team is behind and then back them to take advantage of the enhanced odds. To make things easier for you, we’ve created a shortlist of our top Aussie Rules betting tips:
- Stick to parlay bets with 3-4 selections
- Scan unpopular leagues for games with favourable odds
- Place multiple outright tournament winner bets
- When live betting, make sure you’re watching the game
- Over/under bets can bring fortunes if you study the teams’ previous matches
- Always have a clear budget for your betting sprees
Trying different bet types is also an effective way of either increasing your pay-out or having more chances to win and sometimes both. Parlay bets can provide massive returns but have little or no margin of error. Alternatively, there are several coverage bets that will pay a return even if some of your selections fail.
Interesting Australian Rules Football Facts and Stats
So now you know how to bet on Australian Rules, we hope that our guide should have also given you some ideas on what you’d like to bet on when gambling. In this next section, we are going to have a brief look at the origins of the sport; it’s probably older than you realised! We also find out who was the first Aussie Rules club and who have been the best players in the game.
Australian Rules History
Australian Rules has a long history with the first recorded game taking place between Melbourne Grammar school and St Kilda Grammar school in June 1858.
Tom Wills, who was the captain of the Victoria cricket team, was an influential campaigner for the introduction of laws and clubs for this new game of “foot-ball”. Wills wanted a game that cricketers could play in the winter months that wouldn’t cause as many injuries as the rugby variant they were playing.
Australian Rules Teams
It was Tom Wills himself that captained the first organised senior Australian Rules game in 1858. Such was the popularity of these games that they were also played into the spring.
In May 1859 the first Australian Rules club was founded when Melbourne Football Club was born. To put this date into context, the world’s oldest football club (soccer) is Sheffield FC, they were founded in 1857 so Australian Rules has been played almost as long as football competitively.
Best Australian Rules Player Ever?
We all love to debate who is the best player of all time, and Australian Rules fans are no different.
Wayne Carey gets into most people’s top three. Nicknamed “The King”, the 6 ft 4 in centre half-forward scored 727 goals in 272 games for North Melbourne and Adelaide club sides.
“The Little Master”, Gary Ablett Jr is almost guaranteed to get a mention. The three times AFLCA Champion Player of the Year midfielder also helped with scoring, in 341 games he scored 432.
A statue outside Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) shows the reverence that Leigh Matthews is held in. A one-club man, Mathews played for club Hawthorn from 1969 – 1985. He scored an incredible 915 goals in 332 games. He is regarded as the best Australian Rules player of all time.
If we were handing out awards for the best game ever in Australian Rules, then the classic encounter between Essendon and the Kangaroos in 2001 would surely be the winner! Held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, the round 16 AFL clash saw the greatest comeback of all-time.
Essendon midway into the second quarter was trailing by 69 points. A remarkable fightback saw them claim victory over the Kangaroos by a score of 171 – 159. Now back to the serious stuff, our recommended Aussie Rules sportsbooks!
Aussie Rules Betting for Online Bettors
Despite Australian Rules not being popular in gambling, the sportsbooks offer a surprisingly comprehensive range of both leagues and betting markets. Stat fans will be delighted with the ‘margin of victory’ and the ‘race to’ markets, these are available at all our featured sportsbook.
Gamblers are used to betting on a player to score one, two or even a hattrick on soccer betting sites, but these markets are not available for Aussie Rules. This isn’t a big problem for most people but rather irksome if you are an expert in the sport and are unable to back your player.
After considering the odd levels, welcome offers, markets offered, and customer support, we believe that each one of the best Australian Rules betting sites listed is a good choice for US ganblers. All our rcommended sites are perfectly rounded.
Questions and Answers about Australian Rules
We love hearing your feedback and suggestions for our site, and if you have any questions regarding Aussie rules betting or any other topic, you are welcome to drop us an email at info@bestbettingsites.com.
🥇 What are the best Aussie Rules betting sites?
Our list of the best Australian Rules betting sites includes the most popular sportsbooks around. We believe that they're all competent options that bring amazing bonuses and high odds levels to the table. Additionally, all of our chosen operators are completely safe and secure.
⚽ Which sportsbooks have the best Australian Rules odds?
The sportsbooks with the best Aussie Rules betting odds are listed above. However, in our honest opinion, all of the listed sportsbooks boast quite high odds levels. Although odds are a crucial factor when choosing an operator, there are much more traits that need to be taken into account.
🤑 Is there any bonuses at AFL betting sites I can claim?
Of course, there are quite a few sportsbook bonuses for Australian Rules. However, you should keep in mind that some of the promotions are exclusively for new players, while others are available every week or month. The most popular welcome bonus is the deposit match, but there are some bookmakers which can give you free bets.
🤔 How can I bet on live Aussie Rules Football games online?
You can see the Australian Rules live betting options in the dedicated sections on every sportsbook's platform. You can place money on ongoing matches and, sometimes, if you see that your team is losing, you can finish your bet before the game has ended.