Launched in 1986, Discover is a popular credit card issued in the United States. Discover-branded cards are usually issued by Discover Bank, which means that the transactions are processed through the company's proprietary payment network. Discover cards can't really compare to Visa, American Express or MasterCard in terms of popularity, but there's no denying the fact that many US-facing sportsbooks used to support this brand before the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 was passed, which impacted how credit card companies based in the United States process gambling related credit card transactions. This payment method is not going to be the most popular option from among those covered in our sportsbook banking guide, but it is still worth covering due to the number of card holders out there.

The transaction approval success rates and the availability of Discover deposits have plummeted in recent years, forcing many sports bettors to switch to other, more reliable brands, such as Visa or MasterCard. However, the industry has stabilized somewhat, and the reputable sportsbooks and gambling sites that are willing to invest in high quality services have secured multiple premium payment processors that have dramatically enhanced their transaction approval ratings.

It is costly to achieve this as these payment processors that jump through a lot of hoops to legally process these credit cards do not come cheap, and the low quality gambling sites are not going to make this type of investment. Those sports betting sites that accept Discover card deposits recommended in this guide are aware of the challenges they face, and have all gone the extra mile to get the best possible results for their customers. If you are a cardholder, it is worth giving it a shot due to the improved quality now present for US credit card processing.

Funding your on-site sportsbook account using a Discover credit card isn't any different from using American Express, Visa or MasterCard. Credit card sportsbook deposits all pretty much work the same. All you need to do is visit the cashier menu, select the relevant payment method from the drop-down menu and confirm the transaction. If everything goes as planned, the money should be credited to your balance nearly instantly. However, you should keep in mind that if your Discover card hasn't been tested with an online gambling site before, you can experience variations in your transaction approval. While Visa and MasterCard cards have a success rate of 75% and 50% respectively, both American Express and Discover have a success rate of around 35%.

On a brighter note, online sportsbooks won't charge you on any credit card deposit and even if your transaction gets blocked, you won't lose any money. Furthermore, you don't have to worry about any legal consequences of attempting to make a deposit to an offshore gambling site – as mentioned above, while it can be considered against the rules for US based financial institutions to process those transactions, it's perfectly legal for gamblers to transfer their money as they please.

As mentioned above, the sites recommended in this guide do use premium payment processors, hence their transaction approval ratings do exceed the industry average for US transactions. This is important to keep in mind for Discover Card members as you do have a better change at success at these sports betting destinations. In most instances, Discover Card is considered a USA sportsbook deposit method.

Online sports betting sites don't allow their customers to withdraw using credit cards. Consequently, if you manage to make a successful Discover deposit, you'll have to select an alternative banking method for payouts – and unfortunately, US-friendly sportsbooks usually don't give you all that many options to choose from.

The most popular way of obtaining your winnings is to request a cash out via a bank wire transfer. This allows you to get the money within 14 days from paying a small transaction fee. An alternative cash out method is to use a check by courier, but you have to keep in mind that checks aren't available all over the country and tend to be more expensive. Furthermore, cashing out via a check by courier may take up to 28 days or even more, which means that this method is best suited for high-rollers who wish to withdraw massive amounts of money. That being said, some sites offer one free withdrawal by check per month, and whenever I've used this option, I've had my funds in less than 2 weeks, and experienced no issues in depositing the check into my bank account.

Finally, you should remember that making a Discover deposit or using any other credit card to fund your on-site account prevents you from requesting a Western Union or MoneyGram money transfer withdrawal, as only the players who used this method to make a deposit are allowed to request a payout via a money order.

If you would like to learn more about using the Discover Card, you can use the following information to contact them:

Discover Card Official Website: www.Discover.com

Discover Card Email Contact: Only account holders can send an email. Simply log into your account and access their message center.

Discover Phone Contact: 1-800-347-2683