North Carolina sports betting is just a few days away, and the launch will usher in my favorite sportsbook to the state — bet365. Here are the offers available:

The UK-based operator is estimated by some to be the biggest sportsbook in the world, though their entrance into the U.S. has been a bit slower than some of its competitors. They first launched in New Jersey in 2019, then it took a few years to get live in its next state but has added eight total states in the last 1.5 years.

In North Carolina and nine other states, you’ll pick your launch offer from a landing page after registering.

We recommend you take the guaranteed bonus bets, unless you’re going to max out the insurance. The insurance requires a $1,000 first bet to maximize, and if it loses you’ll be refunded in bonus bets, so if you’re not comfortable with that, just take the bonus bets.

If you were to hedge the insurance bet, you’d get about $450 cash, so it is more valuable. But again, that requires a pretty decent investment upfront.

Sportsbooks call these offers many different things — no sweat bet, first bet insurance, first bet safety net, first bet on the house. But they all work the same.

Say you deposit $1,000 and put it all on the Hornets at +300 against the Celtics:

bet365’s bonus bets expire in seven days now, but you can spread them across any wagers you’d like.

But you’ll now have to turn these bonus bets into cash to recoup what you invested.

So say you take $100 in bonus bets if the Hornets lose and put it on UNC to beat Duke at +110.

This offer is a bit more straightforward — though in North Carolina you’ll get $200 if you pick this one, and in all other states you’ll get $150. Just deposit $10, bet $5, and you’ll get your bonus bets to use on anything. Those bonus bets also expire in seven days, but can be split up into any increment you’d like. They are not preset amounts.

The only small caveat with this offer is that your first $5+ wager must be on anything -500 or longer; and longer in this case means -300 or -150 or +150 are OK, but -550 is not. You also need to deposit $10, even though the first bet only requires $5 or more.

1. North Carolina (Monday)
2. Arizona
3. Indiana
4. New Jersey
5. Ohio
6. Virginia
7. Louisiana
8. Kentucky
9. Iowa
10. Colorado