The National Times - Week 0 Betting Promotions Span Sportsbooks and Prediction Markets

College football’s Week 0 schedule opened with eight games, including TCU against North Carolina at Dublin’s Croke Park in the Aer Lingus College Football Classic. Betting operators promoted a range of welcome offers around the opening slate, although eligibility, account verification and local gambling rules apply.

Bet365 advertised $365 in bonus bets after a new customer deposited at least $10 and placed a $10 wager, regardless of whether that qualifying wager won. Fanatics offered to match as much as $1,000 in FanCash for users who registered with the code NYPOST26, opted into the promotion and placed an eligible Week 0 bet.

BetMGM said it would return a losing first wager of as much as $1,500 in bonus bets, usable for seven days. Registration required selecting the offer and state, creating an account with the code POSTBET and making a deposit.

FanDuel promoted either as much as $350 in bonus bets or a separate TCU-North Carolina offer providing $100 in bonus bets after a $1 wager if at least one point was scored. The general offer required registration, a deposit of at least $5 and a qualifying bet.

For the bet365 promotion, users were directed to create an account, make the minimum deposit and then place the required wager on any Week 0 market. Fanatics required the promotional code at sign-up and an explicit opt-in before wagering. BetMGM users had to select the applicable state and offer before entering POSTBET, while the returned credits applied only if the initial wager lost.

DraftKings offered $200 in bonus bets after a $5 wager and did not require a promotional code. TheScore Bet advertised a reset of as much as $1,000. Its registration instructions called for account creation with the code NPNEWS, email verification and a deposit.

FanDuel’s two alternatives carried different qualifying conditions, so users could not assume the headline values worked the same way. DraftKings described its bonus as available immediately after the qualifying $5 bet. TheScore Bet required registration through its application or website and use of its code before verification and funding.

Prediction-market offers were also tied to the first week. Kalshi offered new users $25 after they completed $25 in trades using the code NYPMAX. The code had to be entered during registration, followed by identity verification, a deposit and the required trading volume.

Polymarket advertised a $20 bonus for users who registered with NYPMAX1, deposited at least $10 and completed at least one real-money trade. The stated minimum age was 18, subject to access and legal restrictions in a user’s location.

The Kalshi process required downloading the application or using its website, entering the code during account creation, verifying identity, funding the account and completing the trade requirement. Polymarket similarly required an application download, registration, verification and deposit before the bonus was credited. These were trading offers rather than conventional sportsbook bets.

FanDuel Predicts directed new users to create an account in its app and complete identity checks before unlocking the available offer. DraftKings Predictions said new users could receive as much as $200 in prediction dollars after registering and completing at least $5 in trades.

FanDuel Predicts asked users to provide an email address, set a password and complete identity verification. DraftKings Predictions required a new account and at least $5 of completed trades. The source did not specify a fixed cash value for the FanDuel Predicts offer, so its precise benefit depended on the terms shown to an eligible user at registration.

The headline values are not equivalent to cash and cannot be added without regard to their conditions. Some depend on a losing initial bet, others require specified trade volume, and bonus credits may expire or carry limits on withdrawal. Prospective users need to review each operator’s current terms, age requirements and availability in their jurisdiction.

V.Bennett--TNT