# Online sports betting

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-sports-betting/996541>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [January 23, 2024, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-sports-betting/996541 "2024-01-23T13:53:59Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Yelnick\_McWawa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/839c29/32.png) [@Yelnick\_McWawa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yelnick_McWawa)\
**Post date:** [January 23, 2024, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-sports-betting/996541/1 "2024-01-23T13:53:59Z")

</div>

How does it work, financially? Do venues such as FanDuel and DraftKings have direct access to your bank account? Can you bet with a credit card? How long after the game ends do you have access to your winnings? Do they automatically sent money to PayPal (or your checking account) if you win, or must you log on and tell them to send the money? If you have net winnings for a year, I assume they send you a W-2G.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\
**Post date:** [January 23, 2024, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-sports-betting/996541/2 "2024-01-23T14:09:43Z")

</div>

You have an account there. You transfer funds into it. You can bet from what you have in there, no more. At any point you can add to it or transfer all or part of it back into your bank.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Yelnick\_McWawa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/839c29/32.png) [@Yelnick\_McWawa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yelnick_McWawa)\
**Post date:** [January 24, 2024, 11:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-sports-betting/996541/3 "2024-01-24T11:03:35Z")

</div>

How long after the game ends do you have access to your winnings? That day? The next day? 48-hours after the final whistle?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Schnitte](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/schnitte/32/9033_2.png) [@Schnitte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Schnitte)\
**Post date:** [January 24, 2024, 12:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/online-sports-betting/996541/4 "2024-01-24T12:16:52Z")

</div>

I haven’t done much online betting, but in my experience your winnings are credited to your account (with the betting provider) pretty much immediately after the game ends. Withdrawing it to your PayPal or bank account may take a couple of days, however; also, if you got your credit in your betting account as part of a promotional offer, there may be restrictions on withdrawals.