Betsafe Sports Review:

Founded in early 2006, Betsafe has quickly developed a reputation as a top sportsbook. Known for their “No Bulls**t Betting”, Betsafe gets straight to the point, offering competitive odds on a huge selection of sporting events and fi

Proud partners of Manchester City, 1 FC Koln, and rugby giants Saracens amongst others, Betsafe has enjoyed a growing profile, thanks to their hookups with some of the biggest names in sports including Conor McGregor. Today, Betsafe has grown into a bookmaker with over 450,000 customers internationally, and operations spanning across 100 different countries. So all well and good but how does Betsafe sports fare in the nuts and bolts of a sports betting operation? Read our in-depth Betsafe review below to find out.

Betsafe is headquartered in the international gambling hotspot of Malta, and operated by its parent company, BML Group Ltd. While Betsafe is arguably the most recognisable name from the list of brands operated by this company, they are far from alone, with the likes of Betsson and Mr. Smith held under the same corporate umbrella. As far as financial strength goes, you can trust Betsafe, as a huge company and a significant player in the global betting market, to stand behind your bets.

There’s peace of mind in betting with a well-established corporate bookie, and that’s something Betsafe offers at a canter. But digging a little deeper, there are plenty of other trust signals that support Betsafe as a worthy destination for your betting business.

Betsafe is heavily regulated, with licenses from several different authorities, targeting the various global territories and jurisdictions they operate in. For UK players, the main one here is the UK Gambling Commission. Operators in the UK market are obliged to be licensed by the Gambling Commission to operate within the law, and they provide amongst the strictest criteria for operators anywhere in the world.

Beyond that, Betsafe is also licensed in Malta and Alderney, for their business outside the UK. While these additional layers of licensing don’t necessarily cover UK players, it’s still good to know there is not one, not two, but at least three different independent organisations keeping an eye on Betsafe. Alderney specifically is a rigorous licensing jurisdiction. It’s indicative of the trust and confidence they have in their sportsbook that Betsafe is willing to jump through extra levels of regulatory compliance.

From a security point of view, Betsafe is similarly covered. Their website and mobile platforms offer secure, encrypted access, relying on industry-leading SSL encryption to keep your information rock-solid. Payments are handled by recognised third party processors, who add their own layers of encryption into the mix, to create a betting service that is probably as secure as you can hope to find anywhere online.

Reputation is all important for betting sites, and most of the big names have managed to upset a few customers over their time. Betsafe is no exception, and there are negative reviews about their service online.

It’s always the most aggrieved customers who leave the most and worst reviews, and this is borne out from researching their reputation online. However, as a percentage of their players, this vocal minority is just that – a tiny subset of the overall picture. Generally complaints revolve around punters not realising that free bets winnings needs to be ‘played through’ or not meeting ID verification standards.

Payments with Betsafe are straightforward, and the big name payment methods are supported, including PayPal. Payments on the withdrawal side are subject to a holding/pending process, which generally takes up to 24 hours. From there, you can expect cleared payment in 2-5 banking days, or instantly on approval for Neteller, Skrill and PayPal. Minimum deposits start at £10, while withdrawals are available from £20.

Betsafe has good apps, available for iPhone and Android users. The apps have won awards for their design and ease of use, and also allow access to casino, live casino and poker services through the same account.

The app is styled to resemble the Betsafe website, so you’ll feel at home switching effortlessly between the two as required. There’s also the added bonus of live-streaming events directly to your device, so you can get as close to the action as possible, even if you’re on the go.

The apps can be downloaded from the App Store, or directly from the dedicated mobile page on the Betsafe website. The in-browser mobile experience is more limited than you’d find with some competitors, and instead of including the catch-all of a functional mobile-ready website, Betsafe prefer instead to channel all mobile players directly to the apps. Not exactly a big deal when the apps are as good as they are, but it’s worth mentioning for those players who have non-iOS, non-Android devices.

New players are invited to claim the welcome bonus as they sign up for an account. This stands at a 100% deposit match of up to £30, so essentially, you can double your deposit up to the combined value of £60. The minimum deposit to qualify for the bonus is £10, and there are a number of terms and restrictions applied to the offer. This is standard practice for any bonus of this kind, but it’s important to know the specific limitations on this bonus offer before you sign up and put it to use.

The Betsafe bonus is only open to new players, so you won’t be able to claim it if you’re opening your second or subsequent account with Betsafe. This rule is applied strictly, so don’t chance your arm unless you’re a brand new player to Betsafe. There is a 6x wagering requirement for the deposit + bonus amount before you can withdraw any winnings, and you’re given a window of 30 days to make the bonus work.

You also can’t claim the bonus if you deposit via either Neteller or Skrill, and odds of 4/5 or 1.80 are required for any bet to contribute towards your playthrough requirement. So that means for the full £60 deposit + bonus maximum, you need to wager £360 on events at odds of over 1.80 to withdraw on the bonus.

This is an ok offer, and while nobody likes restrictions on their bonuses, you could do a lot worse. It is a  a difficult hurdle to overcome profitably, but by no means impossible if you place your bets wisely. There’s pros and cons to deposit bonuses over free bets offers as a new punter betting promotion and it does come down to the type of bettor you are.

You’ll also find other bonuses and promotions running throughout the year, with many tied to specific events, including enhanced odds sign up offers and other price promotions. There are event free bet promotions from time to time, including the exclusive mobile free bet – like the £10 free bet every week until you win, from mobile players. You can access the full range of available promotions at any time under the ‘Promotions’ tab at the top right of the main menu navigation.

Betsafe has a strong selection of markets, organised by sport and event type. Minor sports are represented with a few lines of chess and Gaelic sports if that’s your thing.There are also specials and non-sporting events like politics available too, and you can quickly jump between top level markets through the menu that runs down the left hand side of the screen. It’s also easy to use the sports menu to identify in-play events, as well as special Price Boosts that might be available at any given time. Overall navigation is nice and clear and compares well to more cluttered sites, yes that means you Ladbrokes and Will Hill.

The odds are comparable to any other big brand bookie, and it’s always worth factoring in Betsafe if you’re looking for the best price on any given event. Betsafe Boosts, Acca Promotions and other odds enhancements are also available, and you can uncover these easily by clicking the relevant menus from the main betting screen.

With 450,000 customers globally, Betsafe has to be doing something right. In the selection of markets and the odds available, you see what this means in practice – competitive odds, a wide selection of markets and specifics, and a platform that is intuitive to understand and operate whether you’re playing on desktop or any mobile device. 

By default, the main betting screen lists events that are currently in-play, as well as events that are coming soon. Clicking on any of these events opens up the markets available so you can make your selection, and you can bet on a range of outcomes once the action is underway.

Live streaming is also available for in-play events, including for customers betting on mobile. However, there are a number of restrictions in place as to who can access live streaming, and several conditions you have to meet before you can watch a particular event.

You must have a positive account balance, and have placed a bet within the last 24 hours to be eligible to live stream. There is also a limited range of events offered, and any that are live streamed are subject to an intentional lag behind live time, effectively limiting any fast-mover advantage. As in-play functions go, Betsafe isn’t the best, and doesn’t compare to the likes of Betfair Sports, Paddy Power Sport and Bet365. However, they’re not too far behind, and you shouldn’t let this put you off what is an otherwise very impressive sportsbook.