Esports Fortnite Betting - History, Tournaments and Top Betting Platforms
If you’re living in a society, you must have heard about Fortnite whether because your friends find it fun to play, the kids you know are doing Fortnite dances, the news anchors are discussing record-breaking concerts held by real people within the game during the lockdown, or NoobMaster69 is beating the depressed Asgardian demigod playing it in the highest-grossing movie of all time. Hopefully, you’re not sick of it and actually feel enthusiastic about playing it yourself, or at least exploring enough to make measured bets and win some cash.
In a nutshell, Fortnite was meant to be an online survival game played in teams of four where you would gather resources, build fortifications with traps, and coordinate your actions to protect certain objects from monster hordes. The game was fairly popular as it was, but then its developer, Epic Games, added another mode called Fortnite Battle Royale, and things exploded for them overnight.
The title is self-explanatory, the game was fashioned a lot after PUBG with 100 players being dropped onto a large map from a flying bus (uhm, yeah, the game has cartoonish graphics and some absurd elements which only make it more appealing and recognizable). The goal is to find weapons, get upgrades, and eliminate other players to be the last man standing (or the team). And one more important feature for this genre is the toxic storm responsible for shrinking the safe area and eventually making the remaining players run into each other. That way, the rounds last just long enough not to make things boring, and it’s especially important when there are viewers.
How to Choose the Best Fortnite Esports Betting Site
Besides what’s been mentioned already, the game being free and supporting all the platforms were major contributions to its huge success. The streams and tournaments followed, and with them, bookmaking and some sweet Fortnite esports earnings. And this is the guide that will help you recognize those great opportunities and choose the best spots for them.
The Odds
With any game, it’s a matter of how much you can win with or without risking a lot of your money. So, to make things worth it, you will need a trustworthy gambling site that offers the best odds and is not trying to be the only one who’s getting rich. We’re only suggesting a few bookmakers in this guide since the game is not quite popular in that industry yet. And although they are all likely to provide very nice odds, it would do you good to compare them for each particular match.
Tournaments & Leagues
This is another factor to consider, as the odds will do you little good when the bookmaker takes no bets for the tournament. Of course, a lot of sites would not miss a chance to offer the odds for the Fortnite World Cup, but with it canceled, you will need to make sure other contests are covered as well. There’s a good chance that Unikrn or EGB will let you benefit from Dreamhack Open events.
Live Betting Service
When you look at some other esports Fortnite is easily in the top three in terms of being easy to follow and enjoying the game played by pros. What would be even better is if you could watch it directly on the betting site, as well as placing and altering your wagers in the process. That is called in-play betting, and with sites like LuckBox you should be able to easily do that even on a phone when you use a dedicated app for it. In most cases, steaming is done by embedding the Twitch or Youtube players, so there should be no interruptions spoiling your lucky streak.
Fortnite Free Bets and Betting Bonuses
Another advantage you may have by choosing the right site is getting some free bonuses for joining it. That is especially handy when you’re new to online gambling and get some safe money to practice it. The more free money, the better, right? Unikrn and EGB both offer up to $600 this way, only in the first case that will come as a 300% match bonus, and in the second one as a 100% match bonus with some serious requirements you should carefully study beforehand. You may decide those to be impossible to complete and opt for LootBet with its weekly ladder and other rewards instead.
Depth of Market
Here’s another factor that will influence the number of Fortnite betting opportunities you will have. Considering the odds of guessing the winner from out of 100 players on the map (or 50 duos, or 100 squads) aren’t particularly high, it’s nice to have other options you can try to predict. Even though the winner of the tournament is determined by the points he earns over the course of several matches, it’s still a difficult guess. Unless, of course, you’re using in-play betting and become more and more sure as the game progresses.
Nevertheless, it’s nice to have extra options, considering that a gambling site with regular Fortnite coverage is not a very common thing. So, some sites will offer you to bet on players being among a certain number of the remaining characters on a map. Another option is guessing which players or Fortnite esports teams will deliver the most kills. Loot.Bet is known for offering a large number of possible outcomes, although the game's highly unpredictable nature is one of the reasons its matches are often ignored by bookmakers.
Gambling Variety
Since there’s an ongoing argument whether Fortnite should even be considered an esport due to a large luck factor, there aren’t a lot of gambling forms for the game. Something that should be mentioned, though, are Unikrn Connekt and UMode. The first one allows users to play the game and earn points they can spend on getting various rewards on the site. The other mode is quite similar, it also requires you to connect your Fortnite account to the site, but this time you can bet and win money. Unlike regular esports casinos, though, you will be betting on yourself achieving a certain goal. Ideally, you should be the last man standing, but with Umode, it’s possible to earn some money even with smaller achievements.
That’s about it, and there’s definitely no fantasy Fortnite to speak of at this point since the teams and professional players are not that well established yet. Besides, with the games’ open tournaments, there are constantly new faces (or rather nicknames) who manage to steal the show.
Payment Systems and Customer Support
Before you can place bets, you have to deposit some money into your account. And being able to do that depends on the currencies and deposit methods a site supports. Luckily, the sites we have listed should fit in most of the cases since they try to be accessible to as many people around the world as possible. Some, like Unikrn or LuckBox, even offer an array of cryptocoins for that purpose, as well as for withdrawal.
And if you experience any trouble, you want to get answers and solutions, usually as soon as possible. Unfortunately, the aforementioned bookmakers are the only two on our list you may experience some problems and prolonged waiting periods in this department. The rest, however, offer 24/7 immediate problems resolution.
Geo and Reputation
If you decide to go with a Fortnite gambling site that hasn’t been mentioned in this guide, make sure it holds an appropriate gambling license. Only that way can you expect fair play when it comes to the results and transferring your winnings in full. And don’t mind spending some time reading reviews and feedback, even a licensed casino may turn out to be an awful place to gamble at.
So, we can only assure you that our own picks are trustworthy and have a long-running reputation. Even if you choose one or a few of them, though, you will need to make it sure yourself that the residents from your country can access the site and wager money without any limitations. The US players are often forbidden access due to the complicated legal status of online gambling from state to state, so if that’s your case, consider Unikrn with its unique playmodes, they are a great solution.
Fortnite Tournaments
Despite the game's short history, it has been shining very brightly from the start, with almost 700 tournaments being held over these three years. The estimated prize money awarded constitutes an impressive figure of $100 million, and you too can try to benefit from that, either as a bettor or as a contestant. To see what events you can qualify for, you should head straight to the Fortnite Competitive tab on their official site. Meanwhile, let’s take a look at some of the biggest events, past and present.
Fortnite World Cup
When Epic Games reportedly earned $2.4 billion from FBR in 2018, they made it clear they would be investing $100 million into turning it into an esport. A considerable part of that sum, namely $30 mln, went into the Fortnite World Cup, making it a massive event that could not be missed.
The online events were held April through June with weekly qualifiers until the players who made it to the finals took the last stand on July 26 at the Arthur Stadium in Flushing, New York. The three-day event gathered almost 24 thousand visitors, and over 2 million people watched the streams on Twitch and Youtube. Additionally, there must have been millions of those watching it directly within the game, as well as Chinese viewers, but numbers for those spectators are unavailable.
The main competition was split into two events, for single players and for duos. In both cases, the ultimate winner was awarded $3 million, splitting it between the two in the case of duos. The winner was determined based on the points he or the team has earned over six matches, and participants with fewer points received smaller money prizes. Nevertheless, even the finals participants who were at the very bottom of the leaderboard, were awarded $50 thousand per person.
Additionally, the Creative Cup was held within this event with eight teams competing on three maps in different gaming modes. The winning team was awarded nearly half a million dollars, while the least successful team received $195 thousand.
And then, there was the Pro-Am competition, in which 50 duos each made up of a popular Fortnite streamer and a celebrity were competing for a prize of $1 million that would be split between the charities both winners chose. The remaining teams would do the same, operating with prizes that together amounted to $3 million.
After such a grand start, everyone was expecting the following year’s world cup to be even grander, but the Covid-19 pandemic has changed a lot of plans, and Epic Games, to everyone’s surprise, canceled the event for the year altogether. They explained it by saying there were some cross-regional issues for holding the competition entirely online, but it seemed odd they wouldn’t dedicate some efforts to resolve those.
It’s unclear whether they will be able to fix the problems next year or if they may skip another year after such a phenomenal entry onto the esports scene. And it partially explains why many bookmakers are reluctant to provide odds for the game. With the biggest competition not around this year and its future unclear, they prefer to stick to the games with a more steady operation.
Luckily, there are still other Fortnite tournaments happening on a regular basis, so not all hope and betting chances are lost.
Fortnite Champion Series
Nothing changed for the seasonal Champion Series, which were also first held in 2019 but remain a completely online event. Online qualifiers are held each week, starting in the middle of August. Over the next five weeks, three-player teams from six regions (North America – East, North America – West, Europe, Oceania, Asia, Middle East, and Brazil) compete for the chance to be invited to the Season Finals. The Grand Finals take place at the end of October-beginning of November, concluding this event.
There are rewards along the way, and the prize pool for the finals alone constituted $1 million, the top three players receiving $37 thousand each, while those at the bottom of the leaderboard earned $800 for making it to this stage. Obviously, the rewards are less impressive than in the World Cup, while the number of finalists is about the same, about two hundred of them.
It’s also important to note that there are separate Fortnite mobile tournaments for those playing on a console or a phone, and for those using a PC because the latter are known to have a number of advantages.
There are also other tournaments held by Epic Games that may not be regular, for example, $1M Cup and the Nick EH 30 Cup, which are both two-round events held strictly for the NA East region but across all platforms. And if you check the calendar on the game’s official site, you will see that they even feature some other events like the one we’ll discuss next.
Dreamhack Open
DreamHack is a well-known esports tournaments organizer, holding various competitions throughout the year that everyone can participate in. Their first Fortnite open tours took place as early as May of 2018 with a prize pool of $188.5 thousand, while the very next contest that was held in July offered $400 thousand and the five winners taking home $20 thousand each.
This year, Dreamhack has been holding a tournament every month since July, giving out $250 thousand to the best duos representing Europe and North America. Considering that the qualifiers begin with two heats, each having 250 duos, and the finals show 50 duos competing over the course of 6 games, the competition is serious, and despite the open nature, you can expect only the pros fighting in the final matches. If there’s a tournament bookmakers may feature on their sites in the absence of the FWC, it’s this one.
Fortnite Betting Tips & Tricks
It’s up to you to hone your betting skills, but we feel obliged to give you at least a few tips, even if the most obvious ones.
Play the Game to Understand It
If you’re planning to bet based on watching someone’s letsplays or previous matches recordings, we highly advise against it. It takes knowing the game from the inside to be able to predict the players’ next moves.
Watch the Streamers
Do not ignore watching others play, however, especially if they are well-recognized Fortnite names. You can pick up a lot from them and use that later.
Follow Updates
Epic Games constantly introduce new features and change the ways the game is played, so it’s of utmost importance to know all the specific details about the current gameplay.
Choose Your Preferred Betting Method
You may enjoy making a wild guess before the game or making a measured decision halfway into it when watching it live. Either way, don’t despair too early, just bet a little at first and see which works for you.
Try Different Bet Types
There are various types of bets, like prop bets or combo bets, that may provide a higher payout although being a larger risk. But if you enjoy a rush of adrenaline and want to increase the stakes, go for it.
Fortnite eSports Betting Sites
Features:
- A 300% match bonus up to $300
- Umode for betting on yourself
- Multiple cryptocurrencies
EDITOR RATING
This is currently the best place to head for some Fortnite betting as it’s one of the most popular and innovative esports sites. Most importantly, it doesn’t ignore this battle royale sensation and offers an array of options you can benefit off of it. Those are great opportunities for the US punters who may find themselves not being allowed to participate in regular MoneyMatch betting. Whether this is the case or you would actually enjoy playing Fortnite rather than simply watching, these following options should be able to satisfy you.
Unikrn Connekt lets players earn free rewards from playing the game, and the key step to it is connecting your Epic ID to the site. And if you want to take it up a notch and bet some real money, as well as win some, try Umode. It has a similar principle to the previous mode, only this time you will be placing bets on your own performance. The system will analyze your achievements to adjust the goals and multipliers to add some challenge for you, winning back your money and some extra on top of that is perfectly possible.
PROS
- Unique gaming modes
- An esports gambling solution for the US residents
- A match bonus worth up to $300
- Betting on Fortnite streamers
- An array of cryptocurrencies among payment options
- A convenient mobile app for Android and iOS
CONS
- Limited hours for customer support
- Some regions are not supported
Features:
- Extensive list of streamed matches
- Great variety of betting markets
- A eposit bonus of 100% up to 100 USD
EDITOR RATING
With over a dozen game titles, this relatively new site (launched in 2018) has managed to become a great starting point for many esports appreciators. It’s only a matter of time till they add Fortnite to their library, but you may start getting around and betting on other games beforehand. The available games represent different genres, there are CS:GO, Rocket League, NBA2K, DOTA2, Hearthstone, League of Legends, StarCraft II, and others.
The platform's design really stands out, it was meant to be a perfect esports spot that can be just as well accessed via an app. Live betting works smoothly, and it’s all very neat and easy to get a hang of from the start. Depending on the game, there’s a good selection of betting markets and matches to bet on.
PROS
- Fantastic cybersport-inspired design
- As much as $100 as an entry bonus
- A healthy variety of genres
- Several cryptocoins are accepted along with fiat money
- An app providing a faithful mobile experience
CONS
- Fortnite is currently not listed
- Support is accessible via Discord
Features:
- Stylish design and comfortable interface
- Live betting and a variety of bets
- A welcome bonus of up to 100 USD
EDITOR RATING
This is a well-known name in the world of esports gambling since Loot.bet is a frequent sponsor at some of the most iconic tournaments. It has been steadily growing since 2016, expanding its list of games you can bet on. At the moment, there are 25 of them, and although Fortnite gambling isn’t part of the site, with the inclusion of PUBG there is a good chance that things will change very soon.
And LootBet would really be a great spot for that, since its registered users get to participate in the Ladder contest with weekly prizes for those who manage to take the top steps. There are also constant promos, deposit boosts, great odds, and 24/7 customer support.
PROS
- Up to $100 and a free bet for newcomers
- Free bets, spins, and deposit bonuses
- A prizes-rich Loot.Bet Ladder
- Over two dozen esports titles with numerous markets
- Betting on streamers is available
- Slick pro gaming design
CONS
- Fortnite has not yet been added
- No dedicated app
Features:
- A well-established betting platform
- Good choice of tournaments and leagues
- Live betting with several betting markets
EDITOR RATING
This is a sure bet if you’re looking for an old and trusted online gambling spot. Originally focusing on traditional sports and casino games, it recognized esports early enough and added it as a standalone section back in 2015. Usually, you won’t find here any other games than a few classic choices like CSGO, StarCraft 2, LoL, Dota 2, and Overwatch, but occasionally other games’ matches are featured and can be bet on. So, it’s a sound idea to check it whenever there’s a major Fortnite event taking place.
Being an old and established site, it offers great betting tools, a solid number of markets, multilingual around-the-clock support, and competitive odds.
PROS
- Joining the club lets you earn a $10 free bet every week
- Promising odds and a great amount of markets
- Smoothly realized in-play betting
- An established betting platform with top customer support
CONS
- A rather small welcome bonus only comes with some deposit options
- A small number of games, Fortnite is featured occasionally
Features:
- Up to $600 bonus for the first deposit
- Live betting with numerous markets
- A plethora of prizes and promotions
These three letters stand for one of the longest-running betting sites that went online in 2011. It’s safe to say that it was meant to be more than a regular gambling spot taking advantage of newly popular esports. No, its founders who used to be a part of the esports world clearly had a community in mind, and they succeeded, the users chat being a clear proof of that.
You get your regular match betting for about a dozen games, yes. Things that make this platform special are its shop where you spend real money and the points you’ve been awarded to purchase in-game items, real-life accessories, or artifacts for upgrading and customizing your EGB account. There are also lootboxes that may contain any of the above, as well as bonus money and points. The promotions list is constantly updated, featuring special occasions.
So, you can enjoy all that while waiting for the Fortnite World Cup events that are covered by this bookmaker.
PROS
- Up to $600 in the form of a 100% deposit match
- Lootboxes with prizes and a shop to spend points
- A mobile app for both iOS and Android
- A variety of promotions with new rewards added constantly
- Live betting with a good selection of markets
CONS
- Fortnite betting is not a frequent option
- Clearing bonuses may be challenging
FAQ
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How do Fortnite tournaments work?
There are open qualifiers which single players, duos, trios, or squads have to pass first. And in the final stages, the winner gets the largest reward by remaining among the top survivors for several matches, while the other players are usually paid some money as well for having gone as long as they have.
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Where can I find Fortnite tournaments PC?
Just go to Fortnite’s official website and check the Competitive tab, it will have the schedule of the upcoming events. Simply pay attention which tournaments are for PC, and which ones are for console/mobile.
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How to get into Fortnite tournaments?
The official site with the tournaments calendar is where you can also register to participate yourself. The qualifying age is usually 13.
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How to watch Fortnite esports?
You can watch them at gambling websites that take bets on a particular tournament. There is a high chance they will also feature live streaming. If not, just look for Twitch or Youtube streams.
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Which game is more competitive, PUBG or Fortnite?
They are very similar in the basic gameplay, although Fortnite also has materials which you can grind and use to build structures and lay traps, often even during a shootout. Some would consider that as adding a more competitive element to the game.
Conclusion
So, the game is definitely a worldwide sensation, and Epic Games has invested a lot of money into Fortnite esport events. Unfortunately, they have made a step back this year by not holding an online World Cup, which makes it even more difficult for the game to convince bookmakers in adding it to their libraries. Besides, there is a high luck factor, and everyone can enter the tournament. Although this does add some fun and excitement to the game and makes the competitions interesting to follow, it’s just not the same as with some other well-established esports like CS:GO or LoL.
Fortnite has yet to have its stars and viewers favorites. Nevertheless, some sites do see the potential and feature at least some of the largest events. If you are even in the least attracted to this colorful battle royale game, you should probably join the bettors early enough and get some insight before it finally takes its rightful place among other esports betting giants. Depending on your own preferences and other factors, like location, payment method, bonuses you would like to receive, we suggest such recognized betting platforms as Betway and EGB. LuckBox and LootBet provide superb mobile betting experience, and Unikrn is a perfect choice for the US residents or those who enjoy playing the game rather than only watching others do that.