Betting Sites – The Complete Guide To Betting Online

At BettingSites.co we’re experts at betting online and we’re here to share that knowledge with you – so if you’re looking for recommendations of the best betting sites or trying to hunt down some free bets, then you’ve come to the right place.

Before we delve into the more detailed information we wanted to quickly introduce our current top overall sports betting sites, which provide an excellent starting point for any budding pundit:

Best Betting Sites For December 2024

Bet £10 & Get £50 in Free Bets

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Bet £10 & Get £50 in Free Bets for new customers at bet365. Min deposit requirement. Free Bets are paid as Bet Credits and are available for use upon settlement of bets to value of qualifying deposit. Min odds, bet and payment method exclusions apply. Returns exclude Bet Credits stake. Time limits and T&Cs apply. Registration required. #ad

Bet £10 Get £30

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18+ New customers only. Opt in, bet £10 at odds 2.00+ within 7 days, no cashout. Get 6x £5 Free Bets, set events at odds 2.00+. 7 day bonus expiry. Debit Card / Apple Pay payments only. Click for T&Cs. Please Gamble Responsibly. #ad

Bet £5 Get £20

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18+ New UK+IRE customers. Paypal and certain deposit types and bet types excluded. Min £5 bet within 14 days of account reg at min odds 1/2 = 4 x £5 free bets. Free bets valid for 4 days on sports, stake not returned, restrictions apply. T&Cs apply. #ad

£30 Matched Bet If Your First Acca Loses + Spins

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New UK customers only. Min Stake: £5. Maximum Free Bet: £30. First bet on a Football or Horse Racing multiple with 3+ selections. Overall odds: 3.00 (2/1) or higher. Free Bets available upon settlement of the qualifying bet. 100 Free Spins on Gold Blitz (£0.10 per spin) credited on settlement of qualifying Acca bet. No wagering requirements on free spin winnings. Debit Card deposit only (exclusions apply). This offer is valid 7 days from the new account being registered. 18+ BeGambleAware.org. Bet the Responsible Way. Full terms apply. #ad

Bet £10, Get £50 in Free Bets

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New customers only. Register with BETFRED50. Deposit £10+ via Debit Card and place first bet £10+ at Evens (2.0)+ on Sports within 7 days to get 3 x £10 in Sports Free Bets & 2 x £10 in Acca Free Bets within 10 hours of settlement. 7-day expiry. Eligibility & payment exclusions apply. T&Cs apply. #ad

Bet £5 + Get £20

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18+. UK+IRE only. Min first bet £5 at odds 1/2 or more. Tote and Pool excluded. Must be placed within 14 days of account reg. £20 credited as 4 x £5 free bets. Not valid with Cash Out. Free bet valid for 4 days. Free bet stake not returned. T&Cs apply. #ad

£50 Deposit Bonus

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New bettors; Code SPORT; Wager deposit & bonus 8x; Max qualifying bet stake=initial bonus; Valid 60 days; Min odds, bet and payment method exclusions apply; T&C apply; 18+ #ad

Bet £10 Get £40 in Bonuses

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18+. BeGambleAware.org. New GB customers only. Min £10 debit card deposit. Place a £10+ bet on sportsbook at min odds 1/1 (2.0) each leg. Receive 2 x £10 free bets within 24 hours of bet settlement, and further 2 x £10 casino bonus the next day.T&C’s apply. #ad

50% Back as a Free Bet up to £35

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We've enhanced our Sportsbook Welcome Offer, giving new UK customers the opportunity to get 50% back as a Free Bet up to £35 plus 10 Free Spins! T&Cs apply | 18+ New UK Customers Only | BeGambleAware.org #ad

You might notice that the sign up bonuses listed above are all given in British Pounds (GBP). The reason for this is pretty simple – we’re Brits ourselves and so tend to naturally be biased towards the UK (we also run a separate dedicated UK betting website which maintains a regularly updated list of the best UK bookmakers that may be of interest if you’re from Blighty).

Most of the betting sites we list on this site will, however, also accept customers from other, non-UK countries and many of them offer bonuses in other currencies – such as Euros or US Dollars. Having said this, the one country that has very limited options is the USA, where red tape and general bureaucracy often get in the way of betting online. At time of writing none of the betting sites we list currently accept customers from the USA.

Sports Betting Guides

American Football

Athletics

Baseball

Basketball

Boxing

Cricket

Darts

Football

Formula 1

Golf

Greyhound Racing

Horse Racing

Ice Hockey

MMA

Rugby

Snooker

Tennis

 

Upcoming Events of Note

Horse Racing Fixtures

Major Sporting Events

As well as providing guides to betting on various sports – such as the best betting sites for horse racing – we also offer detailed coverage of the bigger events in the sporting calendar. Each guide is updated throughout the event and in many cases also serves as an index of match or race previews.

For each event we provide tips and stats as well as the tournament rules, format and even a bit of history. You can find lists of these guides below, broken down by sport (although we also cover a few other events that don’t fit into any of the categories, such as the Super Bowl).

Betting Online Versus At A Local Bookmaker

In case you haven’t quick picked up the hint yet, we’re pretty big fans of betting online rather than doing it in person in a betting shop – assuming your country allows such activities, of course. There are many reasons for this, ranging from the sheer conveniene of doing it on your own time and wherever you like through to the value you get online.

So lets give you a quick run down of the top reasons to bet online:

1. The Odds – First and foremost, you’ll generally get better odds online compared to a brick and mortar bookie. Part of the reason for this is that the local bookmaker has additional costs – such as the rent on the shop and staffing costs – but there’s also less competition. The bookie knows that if you’re at his shop you’re unlikely to leave and walk 10 minutes down the road to a competitor if you don’t like his odds, wheras online you can quickly jump from site to site to find the best deal. Sometimes you’ll find better odds in a shop, particularly when a line is moving quickly and they’re slow to act, but on the whole we’ve found better prices online.

2. Convenience – By definition, placing a bet in person requires you to physically be there. This means leaving the comfort of your sofa or whatever bar you may be in and trundling off down the road. And if you win, you’ll have to go back to collect your winnings. In contrast, thanks to smartphones and tablets bets can be placed online from virtually anywhere – and yes, that includes the little boys room if you’re so inclined.

3. Betting Offers – Part and parcel of their being more competition online is that the betting sites will fall over themselves to get your custom. And this isn’t limited to beating each others odds – most sportsbooks also will offer you a welcome bonus when signing up which ranges from £10 all the way up to a massive £200, given in free bets in your account. Some of the bigger sites also run frequent (almost daily) promotions such as money back specials, enhanced odds and bonuses. And whilst some of the high street bookies do offer some of these promotions in store, in order to claim you’ll need to go back to the bookies with your slip, which also requires you to realise you’ve triggered an offer – meaning you could miss out if you forget or weren’t aware.

4. Live Betting – Most online bookmakers, or at least the decent ones, offer a wide array of in-play betting options on a variety of sports. So if you prefer the fast paced nature of betting on a match that’s happening right now, or simply want to hedge a losing bet, you will have a lot more opportunity to do it online.

5. Streaming – If you mainly head to the bookies so you can watch the 2:15 from Newmarket on their TV, you may want to lake a look into live streaming. Many betting sites offer streams of all UK and Irish horse and greyhound races, as well as racing from around the world. Plus, some even offer it on other sports such as tennis, cricket, basketball and international football.

In fact, the main advantage that the high street betting shops had over the online betting sites was the ability to immediately get your hands on your winnings in cash. However even this is a non-issue these days as many of the big UK names such as Coral, Ladbrokes and Betfred allow you to bet online but then collect your winnings from any of their shops.

Responsible Gambling

Before we proceed any further we wanted to bring up the subject of responsible betting. It’s important when participating in any kind of gambling activity to make sure you’re in control at all times – for the majority betting is a fun and entertaining pastime that adds an extra bit of excitement to a sporting event, but for some it can become a destructive habit.

As a general rule of thumb we recommend that you should only bet what you can afford to lose and never chase your losses. And if betting is making you unhappy, depressed or stressed then simply don’t do it – it’s supposed to be enjoyable so if you’re not enjoying it, don’t do it. In the words of the betting industry – ‘Take Time To Think’’.

If you do feel like you need some help or advice about a potential gambling problem that you or somebody you know may have, then there are a number of fantastic impartial organisations you can turn to for assistance- including Gamble Aware and Gamblers Anonymous.