Is sports betting the same as playing casino games?

Are sports betting and playing casino games the same?

The short answer is a definite “No”.

But why, when you can lose money in either case?

Sports betting and casino gambling are often grouped together under the broad heading of games of chance. But the comparison, as we stated, is misleading.

While both involve risking your money and uncertainty about winning it back, their mechanics, structures, and potential for sustainable profit are fundamentally different. Casino games are engineered with fixed house edges that guarantee the operator an advantage over time. Sports betting, by contrast, leaves space for knowledge, analysis, and strategy to influence outcomes. 

This is where professional tipsters Betinum come to the scene.

We specialise in identifying inefficiencies, guiding bankroll management, and applying disciplined punting models to create value. And when you follow our advice you start winning and growing your bank.

On the other hand, a slot machine or roulette wheel offers no opportunity for long-term success, sports betting can reward those who operate with skill and structure. And this is why we decided to write this article – to show you that sports betting, especially when following a tipster, offers superior potential to win money, compared to normal gambling. 

So let’s start! 

Sports betting vs Online Casino: House edge and operator margin

Casino games operate with fixed, predetermined house advantages. That’s how they win their money.

According to studies, most slot machines return between 92 % and 98 % to players, implying a house edge of 2–8 % over the long run. 

This means that if a slot has an RTP (Return To Player) of 96%, for every €100 wagered, the machine will on average pay out €96, and keep €4 as profit for the casino.

Table games such as baccarat and blackjack typically offer even lower margins under optimal play, often in the 0.3–1.5 % range. These percentages are structural and cannot be overturned by player strategy. So in the long run, the casino is mathematically guaranteed to prevail. 

Speaking of maths, by contrast, mathematical football predictions generate revenue through margins embedded in betting odds. Academic research has measured bookmaker gross margins at approximately 4.5 % across major markets. Practitioner analyses of common betting lines in European markets demonstrate similar bookmaker margins. For instance, a balanced football match priced at 1.91–1.91 (decimal odds) on each team equates to an overround of approximately 4.8 %. 

This structural distinction underpins the fundamental difference between the two activities: casino gambling offers no realistic opportunity to achieve break-even in the long term, whereas in sports betting the lower margin creates space for informed analysis, disciplined staking, and professional guidance to generate consistent opportunities.

What do you as a player actually gain?

Enough with the numbers, raw data, maths and theory. What matters most to any bettor is the practical advantage: what can be gained by following structured sports betting rather than falling into the randomness of casino play?

The key difference is that sports betting allows you a tangible profit by playing disciplined and following the guidance of professionals. A professional tipster filters out noise, highlights only value opportunities, and steers clients clear of markets where the odds are stacked too heavily against them. The benefit here is not just about finding easy winners, but about saving bettors from avoidable losses.

Beyond selection, tipsters provide a framework. They advise on staking plans to protect bankrolls, monitor betting markets for price shifts, and diversify across competitions to reduce exposure. In other words, the gain is not merely financial: it is structural discipline. 

Casino play offers no such system, because the operator just wants your money. Football betting on the other hand, with the right guidance of course, transforms chance into a process that can be managed, measured, and scaled.

What did we learn, are Sports betting vs Online Casino the same? 

No, they are not. 

Casinos thrive on the promise of quick thrills and big wins, but every spin and every hand edges you closer to loss. That’s how they get you to play more.

Sports betting, when guided by expert tipsters, is different: it rewards strategy, patience, and insight. You won’t win big from 1 bet, but you will make money consistently every month. So you can treat it like investing by betting.

This is where Betinum helps you win. With our free predictions subscription plan, you can sample our football predictions and start making some bank. Real predictions, good odds, visible and accessible stats. 

And then you can get our premium plans – where we share the best predictions for the day. They’re designed to put you ahead of the curve, turning betting into something sustainable rather than speculative.

So what did we learn? Do you keep gambling against the house, or start betting with structure and discipline?