Sunbets Review:

UPDATE: Sunbets is no longer in operation. Please visit our no1 rated betting brand Paddy Power Sports

If you read the news and think you’re on the ball when it comes to current events in the sporting world, Sun Bets has something for you. Alongside its selection of traditional sports betting options, you can take advantage of this site’s affiliation with one of the biggest newspaper brands in the world. Basically, if you enjoy having your finger on the pulse and then profit from it, Sun Bets is the place to play the sports betting game. Looking for more info? We’ve got it covered with our in-depth Sun Bets review below

Being linked to one of the largest media brands in the world should give you at least some confidence that this isn’t a tin pot outfit. Sure, this isn’t a cast-iron guarantee that Sun Bets is safe and secure, but it is a marker of trustworthiness. Naturally, for a bookie to offer bets online in the UK, you need to have a licence courtesy of the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) which Sunbets posseses. Thanks to the UKGC, you can be confident the bets offered are legitimate, the software you’re using is backed by SSL encryption and, importantly, your bankroll is stored in a segregated account.

Under the terms of the UKGC’s licensing policy, all operators must keep their operating funds separate from player funds. So, in the event the site runs into financial difficulties, you won’t lose your money. This dynamic also helps Sun Bets meet the regulatory conditions of the Republic of Ireland’s Office of Revenue Commissioners.

Beyond the paperwork and certificates, this Tabcorp linked bookmaker has a fair reputation with the betting public. iIf here is one issue with Sun Bets it’s that it can be too heavy-handed with its security policies. Some Trust Pilot users have noted that the security team ask for a lot of ID documentation when you make your first withdrawal. This is standard and designed for your own protection, but some users aren’t happy with the way they’re approached or what they see as overkill in terms of the demands made. This negative aside, Sun Bets has all the markers of trust, quality and safety you should be looking for when it comes to betting online.

Sunbet offers a  small selection of depositing options (just two) and no e-wallets (PayPal, Skrill, Neteller) bringing it well below the industry standard. Combine this with the security clearance issues we noted earlier and players haven’t always been complimentary about Sun Bets’ payment options. Although deposits are instant, withdrawals can be sat in the pending period longer than the 24 hour guideline the site’s literature suggests. That means after requesting a withdrawal you’ve got a delay of 24hrs+ before Sunbets starts processing it. Overall, you should expect your deposit to reach your card within 3 to 5 business days which is fine, but it’s not the most impressive service you’ll ever see.

The Sun Bets app is slick, there’s no denying that. When you download the software for your iOS or Android handset, you’ll notice that swiping is the way to get around. Instead of scaling down text or trying to cram a ton of information into a small space, the developers have utilised a carousel-style search function. Put simply, when you want to move through the available sports, you can swipe to move the list of options left and right. The user interface certainly made a refreshing change to the other betting apps we’ve reviewed

Another nice feature you’ll find when you install the Sun Bets app on your handheld device is the betting bubble. Instead of taking you to a new page each time you click on some odds, the bet slip is hidden away in a floating bubble. Located in the bottom right of the screen but fully moveable, this bubble keeps your bets out of sight until you actually want to confirm your selections. This, in our opinion, is great because you don’t have to constantly move back-and-forth between pages when you want to place multiple bets.

Regarding sports you’ll find 20+ different markets to bet on via the app, so unless you’re looking for U18 Taekwondo in Taiwan you should be fair set.

When it comes to online betting offers, Sun Bets promo program kicks off with a £10 free bet. After inputting the bonus code “G10” when you create your first account, and placing a bet, you’ll be given £10 to use on football, horse racing or the site’s daily Sun Boosts. What are Sun Boosts? Put simply, these are enhanced odds offers. Depending on the days, event and time, you can access better odds thanks to Sun Boosts.

In terms of the conditions applied to the Sun Bets free bets offer, you’ll have to stake at least £5 on a singles bet with odds of 1/2 or better. Once you’ve done that, you’ll be gifted £10 within 48 hours. At this point you’ll have 30 days to use your free bet on any football, horse racing or Sun Boosts single. Finally, as is often the case with bonus bets, you won’t receive your stake back if you win.

Beyond the Sun Bets sign-up offer, you can pick up an addition £20 in horse racing bets when you stake your first £10 on the gee-gees, seasonal bonuses such as a free bet if you can predict the Premier League’s top scorer as well as this deal:

Win with any Premier League bet on set weekends if your prediction is incorrect but one of the following happens:
1. Your match winner bet is winning at half time but loses the match
2. Your correct score bet is winning at the 85th minute but ends up losing
3. Your anytime goal scorer bet misses a penalty
4. Your corner match bet goes 4 ahead but ends up losing

Sun Bets is a fairly simple sports betting site that doesn’t try to do too much. This, for us, makes moving from Point A (selecting a bet) to point B (placing the bet), extremely easy. For example, when you want to access one of the available sports markets (identical to the options listed in the mobile section), you simply click on the “menu” option and then “sports”. At this point two boxes will have appeared and you’ll see a list of options.

Once you’ve chosen your sport, you can hide the boxes and scroll through the odds. Finally, once you’ve loaded up the betting bubble (as we discussed in the mobile section), you can review your betting slip, input your bet amount and that’s it. Basically, when it comes to placing a bet, all it takes is three main moves: menu, sporting category, betting slip.

This easy to use interface is partly down to Sun Bets’ in-house tech team, but also Playtech BGT Sports and Geneity. These software providers help bring the odds to life and, more importantly, give you market-leading betting lines for all UK and Irish horse race betting. If you’re a fan of racing this is great news as you can ante-up with the confidence that you’ll always get the best odds available.

In terms of other betting markets, Sun Bets is strong when it comes to football markets and even though it can’t top the odds offered by an operator such as Paddy Power Sport, there is some value there. In fact, when you add in Dream Team betting as well as the unique “In the News” bets that draw from The Sun newspapers top stories, there’s enough scope to eek our some unique value. UK centric football and racing aside SunBets is weaker on European and International markets something to be aware of if that is your thing. This is very much a ‘UK’ betting site in every sense of the word.

As well as good UK football and racing markets SunBets is on on the eSports action. Tabcorp which operated SunBets in partnership with News International also owns eSports bookmaker Unikrn, enabling good esports coverage such as on CS:GO etc.

If sports betting ever becomes a drag, Sun Bets also offers Sun Casino and Sun Bingo from the same players account providing a nice distraction from sports or a way to pass the time in between contests.

If there’s one area where Sun Bets stands out in terms of in-play betting it’s the wealth of information you can pick up. As well as offering news articles (surprise, surprise), you can listen to talkSPORT from inside the desktop site and mobile app. As well as being entertaining, the popular radio station offers professional insights into a wealth of sports, including football, boxing and racing.

Once you’ve dived into the action, finding the latest live bets is fairly simple. After you’ve clicked on the “in-play” option, you’ll see a list of ongoing events as well as the number of bets linked to each. Beyond this, the “upcoming” tab will tell you what to look out for in the next couple of hours. In line with today’s top online bookies, cashout options are available for all bets so you can get out early and not let bad luck spoil your wager.