"Bonus funds", "restricted balance" and "withdrawal-restricted bonus" all describe the same thing: money in your account that you can play with but cannot take out yet. This page is about the bookkeeping. It shows which part of your balance is locked, what moves the wagering counter, what sets it back to nothing, and how long you wait for a bonus to arrive in the first place.
Three kinds of money in one account
| Type of money | Can you withdraw it? | Wagering | Typical source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cash balance | Yes, at any time | None | Your deposits, settled cash winnings, FreeBet winnings |
| Restricted bonus | Not until wagering is complete | Usually 10x the bonus | Casino bonuses, free spin winnings, direct bonuses |
| FreeBet or token | No, it is not money as such | None on FreeBet winnings | Welcome challenges, Back Up Bets, PromoCodes |
The middle row is what this page deals with. A FreeBet is a different animal: it has no wagering, and when it wins the net winnings go straight to your cash balance. That is explained in detail on our free bet page, while spin winnings, which do land in the middle row, are covered in how Sportingbet free spins are credited.
What "10x" means in pounds
Sportingbet's help pages describe wagering as staking a multiple of the bonus amount, typically "10X". Since 19 January 2026, UK rules do not allow more than 10x on any bonus, so any 35x or 40x figure quoted for a UK account is out of date.
Take a £10 casino bonus at 10x. The target is £100 of qualifying stakes. Here is one way the counter can move:
| Step | What you play | Counts towards £100? | Running total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 25 slot spins at £2 | Yes, £50 | £50 |
| 2 | A roulette bet covering 70% of the table, £10 | No | £50 |
| 3 | 15 slot spins at £1 | Yes, £15 | £65 |
| 4 | 18 slot spins at £2 | Yes, £36 | £101, complete |
Step 2 is the trap. Roulette bets that cover more than 67% of the table do not count towards wagering. The stake leaves your balance, and the counter stays put.
Whether anything is left at the end is a separate question. Wins and losses along the way change the bonus balance, and it can reach zero before the target does. Whatever remains once the counter hits £100 is released to cash.
What is locked, and what is not
Wagering locks the bonus and the winnings made with it. Your deposit stays yours. That sounds generous until you see the condition attached: requesting a withdrawal while a bonus is active can cancel the bonus and everything it has won.
An example. You have £20 of deposited cash and a casino bonus that has grown from £10 to £14. Withdrawing the £20 is possible, but if you do so before finishing the wagering, the £14 may disappear with it. Decide first whether the bonus is worth completing; if it is not, letting it go is a perfectly reasonable choice. The Offers tab's More Info screen shows your progress and lets you pause or delete an offer.
The rules that stop the counter
Several kinds of play either do not count or put the bonus itself at risk.
- Stakes above £2. While playing with a casino or live casino bonus, the maximum is £2 per spin or hand under Sportingbet's Standard Promotional Terms for the UK.
- Wide-coverage roulette. Bets covering more than 67% of the table are ignored for wagering.
- Cashed-out bets. A sports bet you cash out does not count. If you place £10 at 6/4 (2.50) and take a Cash Out offer before the match ends, none of that £10 goes towards wagering, whatever the cash-out value.
- Bets placed with FreeBets. They never count towards another bonus.
- Bets placed before opt-in. Only bets after you opt in to an offer count.
Irregular play: what can void a bonus
Sportingbet's terms allow it to cancel a bonus and its winnings when play looks designed to extract the bonus rather than to bet. The patterns named include:
- Low-margin betting, where you cover most outcomes so the result barely matters.
- Hedging, such as backing both sides of the same event.
- Staking 50% or more of the bonus on a single bet. On a £10 bonus, one £5 stake already reaches that line.
Most of these never come up in ordinary play. They catch people who treat a bonus as a puzzle to solve rather than a bit of extra play. The full set of promotional rules, including how these clauses fit together, is summarised on our bonus terms page.
How long a bonus takes to arrive
Unless an offer says otherwise, bonuses are paid within seven days of qualifying. A welcome FreeBet or a casino bonus that has not appeared straight away is not necessarily missing. Check the offer's progress in More Info before contacting support, and keep in mind that only bets placed after opting in count.