Betfair Sportsbook can provide a variety of markets to compete with the best and are one of the largest online sports betting companies around. Despite being one of the younger sportsbook products on the market, Betfair has already gained increasing popularity due to it"s special offers and features that has helped endear themselves to the punters. Betfair offer a top mobile service, prompt customer service through their polite and helpful (around the clock) call center and a feature called price rush which means they will match the best possible odds (from their partner betting exchange) and in many cases punters walk away with best odds on some of the most popular events.
Pros
- Good sport coverage and markets
- Very competitive odds
- Great mobile app/site.
Cons
- Few bonuses and promotions.
- Big effort to cross sell other products
- Low limits in some areas
Overview
Betfair has several offices around the UK and Ireland but since 2011 has operated out of Gibraltar. Betfair was on the London Stock Exchange at Betfair Group PLC until its merger with Paddy Power in 2016 and now trades under the name Paddy Power Betfair. Betfair opened it"s doors in 2000 and since then it"s grown to make revenue of nearly £500m per year with the fixed betting odds sportsbook service becoming available in early 2012. Betfair employs nearly 2,000 members of staff and claims to have nearly 4,000,000 customers, which makes Betfair is the largest online betting company.
Bookmaker Review
Betfair's sportsbook is growing in popularity rapidly with punters who recognise that innovations such as Betfair price rush puts the customer first and shows that customer satisfaction and retention are something that Betfair consider. Their merger with Paddy Power in 2016 only serves to compound their continued growth in making them the biggest online gaming company in the world.
When you land on the Betfair page you"ll be offered several sign up offers and promotions, but it"s easy to see where you need to click to navigate to the sports book. Betfair do also offer the usual extras of gaming, casino, bingo, slots, arcade and more. Betfair is a basic and easy to use site. There are plenty of market options available on the sportsbook. Managing your accounting, depositing and withdrawing is all just as easy as playing. Limits are quite attractive and you"ll have no problem depositing, withdrawing or betting large amounts.
Betfair"s sign up free bet gives you £30 to use and consists of of 3 x £10 free bets is useful for people staking that amount and one of the more straightforward free bet offers in the industry. Minimum betting odds are only 1.50 and if you win, the winnings are yours. The rollover requirements are relatively straight forward, unlike many other bookmakers.
One of the big positives about Betfair in-play experience is that now they"ve introduced in-play punters can feel like they have that added level of control in sticky situations, as Betfair give you the option to cash out your bet for a guaranteed profit whilst the game is still in-play. With Betfair"s range of live streaming options you can watch your Horse Racing bets and Football bets play out which furthers the experience.
Although the website is nice enough, a lot of people bet on the go these days. The mobile betting app is clean, quick and easy on the eye. It"s very easy to use and provides a fun and simple betting experience. There"s nothing worse than rushing to place that last minute bet and encountering a slow, laggy, complicated mobile application.
A lot of Betfair"s support revolves around phone support but they"ve always been very quick to deal with issues and are available around the clock. Overall, Betfair is hard to beat because it combines the best of sportsbook, exchange, in-play and streaming, and the limits, deposit and withdrawal options and customer support combine to make for a reliable experience for professional bettors.
Likelihood of being limited at Betfair
Betfair does have it"s limits when using the sportsbook, and trying to stray over these is possible but will put you on the radar of the eagle eyed traders, so it"s best to avoid that. You can submit a request to place a higher stake to a sportsbook trader, but again, this only highlights your activity to the powers that be. Betfair is the choice of many professionals using the sportsbook and tales of being limited seem to be few and far between. Again, the risk of limiting is always present at literally any bookmaker if you are a sharp punter and you"re beating the SP. You should still exercise caution and avoid patterns of activity that will draw attention to yourself, but on lack of present evidence, it may be that Betfair won"t be as quick as some others to limit you.
Betting Markets at Betfair
The Sportsbook also comes with an attractive range of betting markets. Like any best bookie, there"s a wealth of betting markets with good limits when it comes to Horse Racing bets, Football, US Sports and other major sports. Asian Handicap, over/under, 1x2, match results as well as points totals and quarter by quarter or half betting markets are all available and most of them offer the ability to cash out on the sportsbook.
Whilst the range of betting markets is pleasing, the quality of their odds isn"t always. It"s a shame to report that Betfair aren"t quite there yet when it comes to matching the industry average, but odds are improving as this new product continues to grow. Again, the price rush is really something to look out for, as your bet can go from below average odds to a clear industry leading best odds.
But a positive here is that because Betfair do offer higher limits than a number of other bookmakers, whilst you sacrifice profit through average odds on some market, a professional bettor may still end up making more because of those higher limits. If you"re a more casual punter looking for some thrills and spills, then Betfair offer plenty of promotions around some of their most popular betting markets.
Deposit/Withdrawal Options at Betfair
Any major credit and debit card is accepted for deposit and withdrawal options. Both are instant, and debit cards do not demand any fees. Credit cards demand a small fee and it is the customer's responsibility to know if there are any additional fees from the credit card provider. The withdrawal options by Betfair are the same as what is offered below, with a 2.5% fee generally being applied unless you are using Skrill or Debit Card.
Below is a table of accepted deposit amounts for Ladbrokes customers.
Deposit Options
| Payment Method | Type | Fee | Process Time | Min Deposit | Max Deposit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Debit Card | Free | Instant | 5 | 20000 |
 | Credit Card | Free | Instant | 5 | 20000 |
 | eWallet | Free | Instant | 10 | 32500 |
 | eWallet | Free | Instant | 10 | 32500 |
 | eWallet | Free | Instant | 10 | 6000 |
Withdrawal Options
| Withdrawal Method | Type | Fee | Process Time | Min Withdrawal | Max Withdrawal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Debit Card | Free | 1-5 days | 5 | 20000 |
| Credit Card | Free | 1-5 days | 10 | 20000 |
| eWallet | Free | 0-24 hours | 5 | 37500 |
| eWallet | Free | 1-6 hours | 10 | 20000 |
| eWallet | Free | 0-24 hours | 10 | 5500 |
Countries Betfair is available in
Betfair clearly state in their Betting Terms and Conditions which countries are affected by localised and national gambling laws.
People in the following countries are able to open an account with Betfair: Armenia, Australia, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Egypt Estonia, Finland, Georgia, Germany, Gibraltar, Greece, Guatemala, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macau, Malaysia, Malta, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Panama, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Ukraine.
If you are in one of the following countries, then you are unable to bet with Betfair: Canada, Cuba, China, DR Congo, Eritrea, France, Greenland, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Ivory Coast, Japan, Lebanon, Libya, North Korea, Portugal, Somalia, Sudan, Turkey.
Betfair License Information
For those in the UK, Betfair is licensed and regulated by the Gambling commission, Licence Number 000-039561-R-319411-002. Betfair International Plc is licensed and regulated by Malta Gaming Authority, Licence number: MGA/CL3/454/2008.
The following extract is taken from the Betfair website: "Fixed Betting Odds & Multiples bets are placed with PPB Counterparty Services Limited which is licensed and regulated by the Malta Gaming Authority. Licence Number: MGA/CL2/294/2006 12 March 2013, and for customers in the UK, licensed and regulated by the Gambling Commission, Licence Number: 000-039439-R-319330-003".
Betfair Contact Information
If you would like to discuss a query with Betfair then you can visit the contact us section of the website, which offers online chat. A drop down box allows the area of your query to be identified, and Betfair will then provide you with some FAQ answers. From this section you may choose to progress to online chat support.
Telephone support is also available. Betfair will first take you to an FAQ section once you have selected a topic you wish to discuss, but also provide the below phone numbers should you still wish to contact them.
- UK: 0344 871 0000
- Ireland: 1800 944 000
- Other: 0044 203 059 8888
Should the Betfair website be unavailable due to technical difficulties or essential maintenance, then you can still manage your accounts and place sports bets using the following phone numbers
- UK: 0844 871 5000
- Ireland: 1800 719 915
- Australia: 132BET (132238)
If you wish to contact Betfair by post then you can reach them on the below address, although this Corporate address is not a specified option if you are looking for support.
Waterfront
Hammersmith Embankment
Chancellors Road
London
England
W6 9HP