Bet365 are one of the biggest bookmakers in the UK. They're a private, family-run company based in Stoke-on-Trent and continue to grow at a rate of knots. They claim to have close to a million customers worldwide and now employ upwards of 600 people.
The company began in 1974 as a series of betting shops dotted around the Midlands and North-West. During the late 1990s, a telephone betting division was set up and an online operation followed shortly afterwards. In 2005, bet365 decided to sell their several hundred shops to Coral and instead focus more on their fast-expanding online business.
This year’s Grand National Meeting gets underway on Thursday, culminating in the world’s greatest race on Saturday 9th April 2011. As always, bet365's great range of offers will ensure you get the most out of the action from Aintree. bet365 Price Promise
bet365 will be constantly updating our prices to ensure that we are best price on every horse for all Aintree races that are shown live on the BBC this week. This applies to all bets placed from 10am each day when a race is being televised live on the BBC. Best price or joint best price will be matched from the following list of Bookmakers - Ladbrokes, William Hill, Paddy Power, Coral, Totesport and Boylesports. Best Odds Guaranteed still applies. Excludes ante-post prices. So place your Horse Racing bets safe in the knowledge that the bet365 price is the best price. Enhanced Place Terms and In-Play Betting
To give you even more each-way value, we will be paying 1/4 odds on the first five places in the Grand National! You can also bet as the race unfolds at bet365 using their fantastic In-Play section, with markets including Race Winner and Match Betting available throughout the meeting.
If your free bet also wins at odds of 4/1 or more, you qualify for a free bet on the next Feature Race. Keep backing those winners and we'll keep giving you free bets! Feature Race 4/1 Free Bet Offer
Their Feature Race 4/1 Offer includes all races that are shown live on the BBC. Back a winner at 4/1 or more in any of these races at the Grand National Meeting on Thursday, Friday or Saturday and you can have a free bet to the same stake on the next Feature Race. With superb offers, In-Play betting and fantastic Live Streaming, bet365 is the best place to enjoy the Grand National Meeting. Read full review »
Hits
- Quick, easy-to-use website taking you to wide range of markets
- Strong In-Play betting service, covering virtually every live event.
- Very reputable brand, fair-minded and efficient customer service.
|
Victor Chandler set up the high stakes bookmaker as we know it back in 1946. The operation is now run by his son, another Victor Chandler, and the firm has developed a reputation for honesty, integrity and a willingness to accommodate high-stakes customers. Based in Gibraltar, Victor Chandler has been online since 1994 and were the first UK bookmaker to offer customers tax-free betting. All new users get an introductory bonus of £25. Read full review »
Hits
- You won't find your account restricted if you hit a winning run
- Impressive range of Asian Handicap markets (where margins are traditionally tighter than normal odds)
- A bookie who look after their customers in terms of cashback offers and good customer service
|
Boylesports has been established since 1989 and they have quickly grown into Ireland's largest independent bookmaker. When you sign-up use the Boylesports promotion code "MAXIMUMBONUS" to guarantee the maximum new user deposit offer.
All users get a massive £40 free bet
Click here to go to BoyleSports Read full review »
Hits
- Excellent customer service, including live chat
- Give other bookies a run for their money on the big football matches
- Strong trading department for UK & Irish racing
|
Paddy Power have been established since 1988 and are currently Ireland’s largest bookmaker. Although widely respected, they have something of a controversial opinion within the betting industry due to a number of close-to-the-bone marketing campaigns and their tendency to pay out on outcomes before an event has even been settled.
Get a free £100 bet now at Paddypower Read full review »
Hits
- They have some excellent traders who provide tight odds and a vast range of markets
- Ridiculously early pay-outs – sometimes on matches which haven’t yet taken place! Superb range of special bets
|
When it comes to bookmakers with experience, they don’t come any bigger than William Hill. The Leeds-based company were founded in 1934 and, like main competitors Ladbrokes, operate over 2,000 licensed betting offices in the UK. In addition to shops and online, Hills have a huge telephone betting operation and claim to now have nearly 300,000 customers.
Read full review »
Hits
- Very simple and easy-to-use website interface
- A strong reputation for being safe, secure and well-established
|
Stan James is a privately run bookmaker that originally began with a small group of betting shops in Berkshire. Founded by bookie Steve Fisher in 1973, Stan James is still family run and Steve's son Peter is the MD.
Stan James has only a small number of shops in the UK and a larger internet and telephone betting operation in Gibraltar which handles millions of pounds of bets per day. Read full review »
Hits
- Excellent In-Play service, providing tight margins in real time.
- Website interface is attractive and easy-to-navigate
- Generally provide extra value to customers with enhanced odds and special markets
|
Hits
- One of the most familiar and respected names in the British bookmaking industry with over 75 years experience.
- First-class racing service, incorporating competitive odds and enhanced place-terms.
|
Hits
- They are a massive betting company and, as such, they’re pretty much the safest ones to bet with.
- Strong customer service, always seems to be well-manned.
- Huge range of languages available and plenty of European focus on sports and markets
|
Hits
- Great free bet offering – up to £50. Plus lots of extra free bets and promotions available for existing customers which is good to see
- Competitive odds on UK racing and football, betting to particularly tight margins on Premier League and Champions League
- If you’re a fan of placing multiple bets, you’ll regularly find that Betfred offer to add extra to your coupon winnings, eg check out their 7th Heaven Bonus Coupon where you get enhanced odds providing you place a minimum treble.
|
Sportingbet was founded in 1998 and the sportsbook website was launched in October that year. They have been listed as a plc on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) of the London Stock Exchange since 2001. The company have acquired several smaller betting companies along the way, the most notable being SportingOdds.com in June 2002, which was recently integrated into the SportingBet brand. Read full review »
Hits
-
Great odds on a range of sports
-
Excellent global coverage – a good bookie to have an account with, no matter what your language or favourite sports are.
-
Strong free bet offering of up to £25 in Free Bets
|
Hits
- Attractive website, with lovely clean lay-out
- Fantastic reputation and brand within the gaming industry - one that can be trusted
- Bright range of sporting markets with good reliable odds
- Obvious potential for growth and improvement
|
Bwin, formerly known as betandwin, was founded in 1997 and has been listed on the Stock Exchange since 2000. Based in Gibraltar, they are not particularly big in the UK but have huge presence across Europe, especially in countries such as Spain and Germany to the extent where they now claim to have over a million customers worldwide Read full review »
Hits
- Brilliant football coverage - name a league and they'll have odds
- Comprehensive In-Play product – possibly the most dynamic and complete in the industry
|
PartyGaming are best known for PartyPoker, which is just about the biggest online poker room in the world. PartyCasino, PartyBingo and PartyGammon make up their portfolio, and they are licensed and regulated by the Government of Gibraltar.
The company were founded in 1997 and were one of the first gaming operators to produce a significant online offering. They continue to lead the way with their propietary software and are renowned for cutting-edge graphics and functionality. Read full review »
Hits
- Stand-out odds regularly available, especially on the big football matches
- Speedy website and bet placement with a minimum of fuss
- You're betting with one of the biggest and best brands in the gaming industry
- Knowledgeable and polite customer services on a 24/7 basis
|
Jennings launched their online operation in Summer 2008 adding to the 70 licensed betting offices and the telephone betting service in place. Read full review »
Hits
- Nice, clean and welcoming website. Includes aesthetically pleasing colour scheme and simple navigation
- Some great odds on horse racing
- Generous new customer bonus, which is better than most competitors
|
Betfair is the trading name of Betfair Limited, which was founded in August 1999 by Andrew "Bert" Black and Edward Wray.
Unlike fixed odds bookmakers such as William Hill, Ladbrokes and Coral, betfair is a betting exchange, allowing customers to choose whether to back a selection or instead effectively act as the bookmaker themself and lay a selection instead.
The first ever sporting market traded on betfair was the 2000 Oaks and, in the space of nine years, betfair has become the world's biggest betting exchange and effectively revolutionised the betting industry in the process. Read full review »
Hits
- Amazing interface
- Better odds on the more popular markets
- Betfair Starting Price product
- Ability to lay as well as back
|
Centrebet went online in 1996 and were the first out of any sportsbook in the southern hemisphere to accept bets over the net. Read full review »
Hits
- First-class racing service, which is seperate from the other sports (both in website terms and range!)
- Willing to accept what many might describe as a ''man-sized'' bet on the European soccer leagues
- Bet to a lower % on most sports, compared to many UK counterparts, especially the ''Big Three''
|
Expekt.com (as they're keen to call themselves) were founded in 1999 and now claim to have over 1.5 million customers worldwide. Read full review »
Hits
- Range of markets probably leads the way, on selected sports
- One of the industry leaders when it comes to Asian Handicap betting
- Very efficient and polite customer service
|
BET24 was founded in 2001 by Holger Kristiansen, the man behind the Danish Odds game “Oddset-spil” which was the most successful game in Denmark during the mid-90s. Today the company servers users in more than 70 countries around the world. BET24 holds a UK and Maltese gaming license. Read full review »
Hits
- Bet slip functionality is neater than most
- Occasionally have standout odds on certain sporting events (you just have to find them!)
- Decent free bet offering
|
Bet Direct have been online since 1998 and were acquired by 32 Red in 2006. 32Red subsequently sold them to Stan James in 2007. Beforehand, they were owned by the Littlewoods group, most famous for the football pools side of the business.
They were one of the first UK companies to set up a telephone betting operation but it is only recently that they have revamped their website to ensure it's of a similar standard to competitors. Read full review »
Hits
- Good all-round bookmaker, offering competitive odds on a range of sports
- Innovative promotions such as free bets on selected races and football cashback offers
- Good greyhound betting and racing service
|
Canbet are starting to make waves in the UK market. The sportsbook was established in 1995 and have something of a reputation for accepting huge bets and rarely limiting customers stakes, even if they're winning a whole heap of cash. Read full review »
Hits
- It's very rare that your maximum bet size will be reduced on any sporting event
- There are more handicap and Asian Handicap opportunities than you can shake a stick at
- When you win, the money flies back into your bank account
- Fantastic opening bonuses
|
Sporting Index have been around since 1992 and have been the world leaders for sports spread betting for many years. Although this type of wagering is still a fairly niche concept, it appeals greatly to customers looking for extra volatility when it comes to betting on sport.
Read full review »
Hits
- They are the biggest sports spread betting company in the world; being well-established and FSA-regulated is very important for customers
- An excellent website in terms of colour scheme, lay-out, navigation and bet placement
- Strong range of markets for a range of sports; they have expert traders that cater for every type of customer
- Quality customer service - there's very rarely any hanging around in a call queue
|
The tote were originally founded in 1928 after Parliament allowed a company to be created to offer Pools betting on horse racing. In return, Tote promised to return a percentage of profits back into the horse racing industry which they’ve done ever since. ‘The tote’ can still be found at all UK & Irish racecourses and they now have over 450 high street shops. Their online operation was launched under the guise of Tote BetXpress in 2002, with the Totesport brand being officially launched in 2004.
Read full review »
|
Blue Square was launched in May 1999 and has grown into one of the biggest online UK betting companies. In January 2003, the company was acquired by Rank, a leading UK entertainment and leisure company. They now claim to have over 750,000 customers and have certainly come a long way since they were established.
Read full review »
Hits
- Strong range of markets
- Plenty of additional content, such as bluesq TV, i-Bar and Radio Centre
|
Free £10 no deposit bet on the 2012 Grand National
Grand National 2012 odds - Junior and Synchronised market leaders
2012 Grand National to be BBC's last as Aintree showpiece moves to Channel 4
Racing Odds including the 2012 Grand National – West End Rocker and Always Right backed
Paddy Power Grand National advert - First Look