Because online sports betting is illegal in the United States, most online sportsbooks are based in foreign countries. The Caribbean is a popular location for these online sportsbooks. Even though they are based outside of the U.S., they are run by American bookmakers. This practice is known as offshore bookmaking.

How Offshore Bookmaking Works

The offshore company acts like a bookie broker. A bookie sets up shop with the offshore company. The offshore bookmaker provides passwords and PINs to the bookmaker, who distributes the information to his clients. When the clients gamble, the information goes into the bookmaker’s account. The offshore bookmaker, acting as a legitimate business venue, handles all the financial transactions.

In essence, the offshore bookmakers are set up as real businesses, as long as they remain offshore. Once someone representing an offshore bookmaker tries to make a deal (or make a collection) on United States’ soil, he can be arrested and prosecuted for breaking gambling laws.

Advantages to Using Offshore Sportsbooks

Offshore sports betting allows large betting limits – which Nevada does not – and makes the privacy of the bettor a top concern.

It is also the most convenient method of sports betting. The betting is done from the comforts of home. There is no need to wait in long lines (as at the casino sportsbooks) or wait for days (as with a personal bookmaker) to collect winnings; the bettor’s account is credited almost immediately after the sports contest has taken place.

Many offshore sportsbooks are run by former Las Vegas bookmakers. They understand how the bookmaking business operated, and the best offshore bookmakers are highly professional.

Plus, offshore sportsbooks will more varied bets than straight sports contests. In Las Vegas, the only legal type of betting in sportsbooks is on athletic competition. In offshore sportsbooks, bettors can places wages on the Academy Awards, presidential elections, how the stock market will do – just about anything they can think of. Similarly, those using offshore sportsbooks are not limited to how they can add proposition betting to their wagering.

Disadvantages to Using Offshore Sportsbooks

The biggest disadvantage to using offshore sportsbooks is the uncertainty that the business is honest. Internet companies are not known for their long-term financial stability, and the sportsbook may not be financially solvent enough to pay off bets. But there is no way to check this.