Best Online Betting Sites

What is betting?

Betting is the act of wagering money on a specific outcome or occurrence during a sporting event or game. Today, users who dabble in online betting and wager on almost everything, from the outcomes of sports games and events to the outcome of awards shows, reality television and even political events such as presidential elections.

While betting was formally all done in betting shops, it has since branched out online, allowing anyone over the age of 18 to wager.

What can you wager on?

What you can wager on depends entirely on the online betting site you’re registered at. Generally speaking, most online betting sites will offer commons sports such as football, tennis, basketball, cricket, volleyball, snooker, rugby, horse racing, greyhound racing and many more.

In addition, many online betting sites also allow registered users to wager on sports such as American football, golf, chess and e-Sports games. In addition, many sites accept special bets on television shows, award shows and political events too.

Online Betting

How do you make a bet online?

If you’re looking to make a wager online, all you need to do is deposit and register at an online sports betting website. If you’re unsure of where to register, you can take a look below and look at a few of our favourite online betting sites until you find one you like. After registering, you’ll simply need to find the sport or event you wish to wager on, click the outcome you’d like to wager on and enter how much you’d like to wager. After this, you’ll need to confirm the wager and wait for the result of the game or event. If you predicted correctly, the winnings will automatically be paid out to you.

Bonus and promotions

Similarly to online casinos, online betting sites offer numerous bonuses and promotions. Betting sites generally offer newly registered players a welcome bonus of free bets which can be used to make wagers but only on specified odds or games.

Other promotions regularly offered at online betting sites include improved odds on certain games and cashback on losses made while sports betting.

Payouts and casino games

Payouts at online betting sites work similarly to online casinos in that deposits are made instantly but withdrawals can take several days to reach after once they’ve been processed by the support team. The payment methods accepted at each online betting site depend on the sportsbook but most will accept VISA and MasterCard debit and credit cards, e-Wallets such as Skrill and Neteller. Other common payment options include PayPal, Paysafecard and Trustly.

It’s also worth noting that most online betting sites offer players casino games such as slots, table games and live casino too. The games offered on the site depend on which game providers the online bookmaker has partnered with but may include Microgaming, NetEnt, Play’n GO, Playtech or Quickspin.

How to pick a betting operator?

When looking to register at an online betting site, it’s important to consider several factors. The most important factor to consider is the variety of sports betting opportunities available, which means the site you’re looking to register at should offer a variety of sports games, events and more. The best betting sites also offer:

• A generous welcome package and other promotions
• Accepts various payment options and charges no fees
• Offers players casino games including slots, table and live casino
• High-quality customer support

It’s also important to ensure that the website is regulated by the UK Gambling Commission and has partnered with various gambling charities and services. This ensures your safety and means the site offers fair gambling services.

The best betting sites on the Internet

It can be difficult finding a good, reliable and fun betting site. If you’re considering joining an online betting site, why not read through some of our reviews below to find out which site may be best for you?

Rizk Casino - A great online casino and sportsbook

What is Rizk Sportsbook? Rizk is an online casino that launched back in 2016 and has become hugely popular due to its collection of games and generous promotions. Alongside offering over 800 casino games, Rizk also runs a sportsbook allowing users to wager on various sports event.

Why should I register? As mentioned, Rizk also runs an online casino which allows users to play slots, table games and live casino. The generous welcome bonus is highly attractive, as is the site’s regular promotions and competitions. Other reasons to register at Rizk include:

• Accepts most major payment options with no fees
• Excellent 24/7 customer support including live chat
• Speedy withdrawals

Our Experience: Registration at Rizk is easy and you’ll have an account within minutes. The site is easy-to-use and mobile-friendly which allows you to play casino games and wager on sports whenever and wherever you are. We also found that Rizk’s customer support was incredibly friendly, welcoming and helpful, going out of their way to help us with our questions and issues. However, it’s important to note that Rizk doesn’t offer many table games compared to most other online casinos.

William Hill - A leading UK bookmaker

What is William Hill? William Hill is one of the most-recognised bookmakers in the UK. The firm owns several shops throughout the nation and runs a highly successful betting site where players can wager on various sports such as football, cycling, fishing, e-Sports, horse racing, tennis, basketball and so much more.

Why should I register? In addition to offering an excellent sportsbook, William Hill also provides customers with casino games including slots, table and live casino. Most of the slots are provided by Playtech, a leading online slot develop responsible for games such as the DC Comics jackpots, White Lion and much more. Other reasons to register at William Hill include:

• Accepts PayPal, Skrill and VISA and MasterCard debit and credit cards
• Downloadable iPhone and Android smartphones apps
• Numerous promotions and bonuses for new and regular players

Our Experience: William Hill is one of the UK’s biggest bookmakers and there’s a reason for it. Registration was simple and the site is mobile-friendly and easy to use, which means finding a sport, event or casino game is incredibly easy. Overall, the website offers a huge amount of gambling opportunities and provides users with various bonuses and promotions. What more could you want?

Paddy Power - Ireland’s biggest betting site

What is Paddy Power? Paddy Power is an Irish bookmaker that is well-known and popular throughout the UK. The bookmaker has shops and, similarly to William Hill, runs a popular betting site. Users who register can wager on sports such as football, greyhound racing, rugby, boxing, darts and basketball, plus many more.

Why should I register? In addition to the sports betting opportunities, Paddy Power also runs an online casino consisting of slots, table games and live casino, and it offers bingo games and virtual reality games too. If that isn’t enough, Paddy Power also:

• Offers a generous welcome bonus and other promotions
• Reliable and helpful customer support services
• A mobile-friendly website that can be used on any device

Our Experience: We enjoyed playing at Paddy Power, the website was easy to use and allowed us to wager on our favourite sports and events. What’s more, the huge catalogue of other casino games, bingo and virtual reality experiences provided us with additional entertainment too. The payments were processed quickly and Paddy Power’s customer support were extremely friendly and helpful.

Mansion - An excellent online betting and casino experience

What is Mansion? Mansion is an online casino and sports betting website. The sportsbook allows users to wager on most major sports including football, tennis, golf, volleyball, table tennis and so much more.

Why should I register? In addition to the sportsbook, Mansion also runs an online casino which includes Playtech slots as well as table games and live casino. In addition, you’ll find that Mansion also offers:

• Dozens of promotions for new and regular players
• Accepts major payment options and processes withdrawals quickly
• A unique loyalty points system for extra rewards

Our Experience: Mansion Casino is a great online casino that users can register and play at. The site is mobile-friendly, accepts most major payment options and also offers a wide range of gambling opportunities, from sports betting to casino gaming. The unique loyalty rewards system was fantastic, allowing users to claim additional rewards for playing regularly.

Betway - Britain’s most popular online bookmaker

What is Betway? Betway is another huge online bookmaker in the United Kingdom. It offers several sports betting opportunities, allowing customers to wager on most sports games and events.

Why should I register? Betway is known for offering a wide range of casino games from well-known game providers such as Microgaming, NetEnt and so many others. If that isn’t enough, Betway also offers:

• Lots of unique promotions including a £250 welcome bonus
• Access to its online casino, live casino and e-Sports websites
• Friendly and helpful customer support

Our Experience: Registering at Betway couldn’t have been simpler as we made an account within minutes. The site is extremely mobile-friendly easy-to-use, providing customers access no matter where they are. In addition, the sports betting and casino gambling opportunities provided us with hours of entertainment, and the fast withdrawals meant we weren’t left waiting long periods of time for our winnings, which was great!

Sports betting in a nutshell

In sports betting, you have to risk your money in an 11 to 10 ratio. You risk $11 to win $10 - that extra $1 is called the vigorish, or “vig”. You pay this vig because in sports betting the house has no statistical advantage.

This is how the house makes its profits: Imagine that one group of bettors risked $11,000 to win $10,000 on Team A, and another group risked $11,000 to win $10,000 on Team B. To the house it doesn’t matter who wins, it will use the losers $10,000 to pay off the winners and pocket the vig. Ideally, the sportsbook would like to always have an equal amount of money bet on each team, that is why “point spreads” are offered.

When betting on football or basketball, you’ll have to decide between team A, favoured by 10 points over Team B for instance. You can bet on Team A winning by more than 10, or Team B losing by less than 10 The point spread is not a prediction on the outcome of the game, it’s only a number that will help split the money evenly to reduce the sports book’s risk.

With a point spread, winning the bet is not determined by which team actually wins the game, but rather by the final score of the game. This is how it works: The score of the team favoured to win is subtracted from the number of points posted on the board (the “point spread”). For betting purposes, you have won if you picked the team with the most points after this subtraction.

For example, if the top NFL team were to play against a minor league junior team, the NFL team would obviously be the favourite to win. The oddsmaker would then post odds that might look something like this:

• NFL Team = 1 to 9 (1/9)
• Junior Team = 7 to 1 (7/1)

To win $1 on the NHL Team, you’d have to wager $9. But if you wanted to bet on the Junior team, you’d only have to wager $1 for a chance to win $7.

Now that you have an idea of how and why the odds line or spread is determined, you should realize the importance of shopping around. Because there are so many sportsbooks (online and in live casinos), some books may offer more favourable odds than others. It is in your interest to shop for the best betting opportunity. Over the long haul, getting an extra 1/2-point here, and a point there can add up to substantially greater profits.

How do you know which way to bet? In sports betting the losers are those who rely solely on luck. You will win more consistently if you learn to become a good handicapper. Gather all information available, the latest statistics, trends, weather, home field and team histories. As a sports bettor, you have information available in daily newspapers, sports web sites, and radio or television. Your goal should be to gather as much information as you can. The more effort you put into this task, the more successful your handicapping will be, and the more often you will win.