League of Legends is the world’s most-watched esports, and has been for over a decade. There’s just so much depth and excitement to this game that it keeps pulling in record-breaking viewership. With how big the competitive scene is, there are tons of opportunities to bet on LoL matches, and we’re here to help. In this guide, we’ll show you how to approach LoL betting with some research, strategy, and insight to make smarter LoL predictions.
The League of Legends betting scene has seen steady growth over the past decade. If you’re looking to get involved, you will catch most of the action on the biggest tournaments the ecosystem has to offer.
First Stand, the Mid-Season Invitational (MSI) and the World Championship (LoL Worlds are the three of the most anticipated international events of each season. But aside from those three, you can bet on regional leagues like the LCK (Korea), LPL (China), the LCS (North America) and the LEC (Europe). Only the best teams in the world can participate in these events, so you can guarantee that you’re betting on players who know the game well and play with integrity.
You should also keep an eye on regional strength. The LCK and LPL have been the most dominant regions in the past few years, but some teams from the LEC are also pretty competitive.
When you’re choosing where to bet, you will typically find two types of sportsbooks.
LoL betting is very unique because of how draft strategy works. Before every professional game starts, teams will enter a drafting stage, where they will ban and pick heroes. Drafts and team compositions are extremely important, and even have the power to decide which team wins before the game begins.
There are also patch cycles and meta shifts. The game usually releases updates, where champions get buffed or nerfed. Teams not only have to figure out which champions are currently the strongest, but they also need to adapt and learn that playstyle before everybody else.
Finally, there’s the question of domestic form vs. international form. Some teams perform exceptionally well against other teams in the same region. However, when it comes to international events, they tend to crumble.
So, there are a lot of elements to keep in mind when making LoL predictions, and that’s what keeps the scene spicy.
When looking to bet on LoL matches, you cannot just look at the matchup and place all your money on your favorite team. Betting doesn’t work like that, especially in esports like League of Legends. You need to think about several things before locking in your bet, which we will discuss below.
Just like traditional sports or any other esports title, a team’s recent form is very important. Before you lock in a League of Legends prediction, we highly advise you to check the teams’ last five to ten matches.
If a team is on fire, it might be because the meta fits their current playstyle, or all of their players are playing exceptionally well. Meanwhile, if a team has a lot of red on their recent results, they might be struggling to adapt to the meta, or there might be internal issues going on behind the scenes.
That said, it’s still very important to factor in context. If a team has several losses, but those defeats were handed to them by only the top five teams in the world, then those results are warranted and they might be able to take down opponents of similar ranking.
As we’ve touched on earlier, meta and champion pools are crucial for teams. Outside of mechanical skill, teams also need to work on adaptability, which is how well a team can quickly change up strategies to follow what is currently working for everybody else.
Teams that have players with flexible champion pools typically thrive when the meta changes, as they are ready to adjust to changes on the fly.
The result of the drafting phase can give you an idea of what to expect. It is relatively common for teams to completely outdraft another team, which usually translates to a very easy and quick win.
But outside of analyzing which team will win the map, you can also use information from the draft to make educated picks on total kills or durations, because some lineups are made for early-game snowballing, while others might be designed to drag the game late.
Finally, it’s always worth checking out the head-to-head history between two teams. Some teams always seem to have an edge against others, which is likely due to draft advantage or playstyle. The playstyle of some teams just naturally works well against others.
League of Legends betting isn’t just placing a wager on your favorite team and hoping for the best. There are more markets to select from, meaning more opportunities to make money. Here are the most common match prediction markets you’ll see on LoL betting sites:
| Betting Market | Description |
|---|---|
| Match Winner/Moneyline | Betting on which team will win the match. |
| Map Winner | Betting on which team will win a specific map within the match. |
| Map Handicaps | Giving a virtual advantage or disadvantage to a team in exchange for better betting odds. |
| Total Kills or Duration (Over/Under) | Betting on whether the total number of kills or map duration is over or under a fixed line. |
| Tournament Outrights | A long-term bet placed on which team will win the entire tournament. |
| Live Betting | Betting as matches are playing out, allowing bettors to read momentum shifts. |
If you’re new to LoL betting, we advise you to stick to the easiest market, which is the Match Winner market. But over time, once you’ve gathered more experience, you can branch out to other markets like live betting or totals.
Image: Kalshi
New betting markets are cropping up in the esports world, and in now we have the possibility to buy event contracts on LoL esports on outcomes on sites like Kalshi, Polymarket and OG.
In these markets, you can buy and sell contracts based on outcomes that aren’t limited to which team will win a match. Instead, you can trade contracts on things like which team will win Worlds, or whether a specific player will be crowned the MVP of the tournament. Then, you can sell these contracts mid-way before the result is even determined.
These markets are quite different from traditional betting sites, as they are based on crowd sentiment and what the general community thinks. That is why you might get better LoL betting odds for certain events.
Since LoL has some insane viewership numbers and fanbases, these prediction markets have huge potential. So, if you like analyzing things outside of a League of Legends match, you can use prediction markets as a solid alternative.
Before you start betting, it’s very important to exercise responsible gambling. Esports betting should always be treated as entertainment, not a reliable way to make money. Only bet with what you can afford to lose. Be sure to take a break if gambling no longer feels fun.
Featured Image Source: Riot Games
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