BetDSI
QUICK FACTS
Established in 1998
Located in Costa Rica
cos@betdsi.com
The name BetDSI stands for Bet Diamond Sports International.
BetDSI doesn’t have a glorious past (http://www.onlinebetting.com/betdsi/). They experienced all kinds of trouble and complaints from the start. They had to fire most of their staff before being acquired by BetCRIS in 2003. Things started to get better and better from that moment on.
pros
Good reputation: The trust factor is always key when selecting a sportsbook. BetDSI is an established brand that provides peace of mind. I have known them since the early days of online gambling and have had an account there for over 10 years. I have a lot of faith in BetDSI.
Displaying betting trends: What strikes me first when looking at BetDSI’s lines are the little boxes next to each odds indicating the percentage of bettors that have backed this option. That’s a pretty neat feature! For example, the image below shows 68.2% of the sports gamblers have taken the Washington Nationals on the money line, while the remaining 31.8% picked the New York Mets straight up:
Good odds: Their lines are pretty competitive. You get dime lines on Major League Baseball money lines and a 20-cent spread (i.e. -110 lines) on run lines or totals. You are getting -115 lines on other baseball leagues (Japan, Korean, Mexican), which is pretty standard. On big name soccer (football) leagues like Argentina Primera Division, Brazil Serie A, USA Major League Soccer or English Premier Division they are offering -110 lines, as opposed to -115 lines on smaller leagues like Japan J League, Spain La Liga 2 or Bolivia Liga Profesional. As far as the WNBA is concerned, we are getting 20-cent lines which is fine. In summary, their juice is not great but I would grade it as above-average.
Enticing bonus for new players: The welcome bonus consists of a 50% free play up to $300 that comes with a decent 10x rollover. Unlike most bookies, BetDSI calculates the rollover on the deposit amount only (instead of the deposit+bonus amount which makes it more difficult to obtain the bonus). You are also entitled a 50% casino bonus up to $300, which is optional. If you accept the bonus, you must meet a 40x rollover which, this time, is computed based on the deposit+bonus amount.
Great rewards program: At first sight it seems like there are no reload bonuses at BetDSI because their “Promotions” page does not have any mention of them. However, such bonuses are included in their BetPoints Rewards Program. Let me summarize the key points of the program:
- You start at the Gold level. You move up to the Platinum level once you have accumulated at least 30,000 BetPoints over the past 12 months, and you reach the Diamond level if you managed to get over 300,000 BetPoints;
- How do you get awarded BetPoints? You get one point for every dollar wagered on spreads or totals on major sports (money lines are excluded). You may also receive a half point upon betting on props, futures, soccer, 3-way hockey lines, tennis, golf and other sports (see list in the fine print here: https://www.betdsi.eu/loyalty-program/rewards.asp). For the sake of calculations, they are taking the lesser of the “risk” and “to win” amounts.
- The reload bonus conditions depend on your level. Gold members get a 10% free play up to $500 with a 3x rollover. Same thing for Platinum members, except the maximum bonus goes up to $750. A major step is taken for Diamond members who receive a 15% free play up to $3000 (wow!!), but this time with a 5 times rollover requirement.
- Platinum members accumulate an extra 10% on BetPoints compared to people having the Gold status, while Diamond members receive an additional 10% on BetPoints versus the Platinum level.
- The program serves sports bettors not only for reload bonuses; you can redeem points in exchange for cash, gift cards, airline miles or merchandise.
Good player support: BetDSI’s customer service is top-notch. I have used their live chat on several occasions and got great support every time within a very short waiting time. They are very polite, too.
High betting limits: Their betting limits may be the largest among sportsbooks accepting action from US players.
cons
Steep payout fees: All withdrawals over $300 incur a $50 fee, unless your preferred method is Bitcoin. That’s pretty expensive.
Mediocre website: The interface is far from spectacular. Not much color, nor breath-taking images.
Hard-to-beat lines: Generally speaking, their lines are pretty sharp. In other words, they stay close to the general consensus which makes them hard to beat in the long run.
Few prop bets: The number of markets is okay, but BetDSI is definitely lacking proposition bets.
- Bank draft / Cashier's check (only available for USD accounts)
- Bitcoin (only available for USD accounts)
- Person to Person transactions (Western Union and MoneyGram)
- Bitcoin (only available for USD accounts)
- Visa, Mastercard and American Express (only available for USD accounts)
- Bank wire
- Person to Person transactions (Western Union and MoneyGram)
STORY 1
A forum poster asked about the best sportsbooks when it comes to the withdrawal process. The first answer that came up was the following: “DSI has always been great to me, with a very quick payout process. In fact I just requested a certified bank check on the 6th (day after the super bowl) for $3,000 and they shipped it priority thru FEDEX and the check was at my door 3 days later on Thursday. They say that these checks (being international from Canada) can sometimes take a while for your bank to clear them but mine cleared overnight”.
SOURCE: http://www.covers.com/postingforum/post01/showmessage.aspx?spt=40&sub=102394626
ANALYSIS: You shouldn’t worry about receiving your money with BetDSI. They have a very solid reputation.
STORY 2
People are discussing BetDSI on a discussion forum thread; nothing negative except a guy who is annoyed by them posting NFL lines one day after others.
SOURCE: http://www.therxforum.com/showthread.php?t=1050276&p=12071357
ANALYSIS: Again, we are hearing good comments about BetDSI.
STORY 3
A player got upset after getting promised to get his bitcoin deposit fees reimbursed by BetDSI, which they didn’t. The original poster did not get much support from the two people that responded: “Young man they are an excellent book.” “Hate to break it to you........you're going to find VERY FEW, if any, books better than Bookmaker/DSI if you're in the U.S. I wouldn't piss them off too bad.....you may come to regret it one day."
SOURCE: http://www.covers.com/postingforum/post01/showmessage.aspx?spt=9&sub=102428289
ANALYSIS: I have noticed a strong tendency by forum posters to defend BetDSI whenever a player files a complaint against them. It really shows how trustworthy they are.
STORY 4
A player asked for a review about BetDSI. Nice words from all the people that got involved in the thread.
SOURCE: http://www.covers.com/postingforum/post01/showmessage.aspx?spt=9&sub=101671863
ANALYSIS: Sports bettors don’t shy away when it comes to bashing sportsbooks when they feel they got unfair treatment. And yet, I couldn’t find a single story that made me feel unsecure about BetDSI (which isn’t the case for the vast majority of my other sportsbook reviews, if you’ve had a chance to read them!).
BetDSI started off on the wrong foot in the early 2000s, but has gotten back on the right track since its acquisition by BetCRIS in 2003 and shared ownership with Bookmaker.eu. They have gained an impeccable reputation; that’s a major element in their favor. Unlike many other sportsbooks I have reviewed, I’ve got absolutely no problem recommending them.
The negative points I brought up were their withdrawal fees which are on the higher end of the spectrum, the lack of proposition bets and the sharpness of their lines. The latter is a bigger issue; they are tough to beat (much like Pinnacle, another giant whose betting limits are also pretty high).
However, the good characteristics clearly outweigh the bad ones. Their lines are competitive, I like their bonuses and their reward program (BetPoints), not to mention their five-star customer service. If you like betting large sums of money, BetDSI’s limits are hard to beat.
In summary, BetDSI is a great option for all types of players, even more so for US players and big gamblers.