Betfair Review

Rating: 4.5
Betfair offer great odds on football and horse racing for sports betting fans, and is simple enough to use after a quick look at the comprehensive help topics and asking any questions on the free user’s forums. The variety of sports betting is unlimited. Betfair has a very new and exciting way to interact with other online punters. It should be clearly understood that Betfair is not really an online bookmaker in the traditional sense, but a marketplace where sports betting fans come together to make their own odds and spreads.

Sports Covered

  • Horse Racing
  • Football
  • Auto Racing
  • Baseball
  • Basketball
  • College Football
  • College Sports
  • Golf
  • Hockey
  • NASCAR
  • Rugby
  • Soccer
  • Tennis
  • Boxing
  • Cricket
  • Darts
  • Formula1 Racing
  • Handball
  • Snooker Pool
  • Gaelic sports
  • Australian Rules football
  • Hurling

General Information About Betfair

Betfair is an entirely new kind of online sports betting site. It is a part of the exciting future of bookmakers, where punters act as their own bookies to set the odds, as opposed to UK bookmakers who use the fixed odds systems, such as Coral. It is more of a betting exchange, where like-minded individuals choose to bet on selections or create them themselves. A revolution in UK bookmaker’s and worldwide betting practices followed this historic day in 2000 at the Oakes races, when the first sports betting market opened to trade.

Betfair is a bit like a trading post for sports betting fans, or a virtual bookie crossed with the London Stock Exchange, where the punters can choose the odds themselves, as long as they can find another person to match their bet. A good analogy would be to compare this market to an eBay for punters, and it works in a similar way, with masses of users trading bets across the internet. As a part of the free forums, Betfair help developers make applications centred on the use of their website.

It does not look or feel the same as a traditional online sports betting company websites, because it is not, but Betfair retains all the excitement of the chase, and the odds on football and horse racing are often significantly better than the fixed ones offered at the local high street bookie or online sports betting site. With all this innovation going on and over 15,000 bets placed each day, it is not hard to see why Betfair won the Queen’s Award for Enterprise in 2008.(especially as she is an avid racing fan) The direction Betfair has pried open for online sports betting sites to emulate will no doubt be pushed open by thousands of companies attempting to duplicate the success of Betfair, but to do this, they must first amass the loyal following this company has gained in its none too lengthy history.

Fans say the experience of betting on sports at Betfair is the next best thing to actually being at the event, because of the give and take and involvement with other punters.

Why Choose Betfair As Your Ultimate Betting Destination?

  • Accounts in many currencies
  • Nice varying print size on homepage
  • Websites in many languages
  • Better odds than the fixed-odds bookies offer.
  • Innovative approach to sports betting.
  • Free forums
  • Great customer support from all over the world.
  • Good help features

Pro Review of Betfair UK bookmakers for Online Sports Betting

It is hard to describe a typical visit to the Betfair site because of the best features of it is the diversity and changing nature of the bets and punters, different at every moment of the day and night. The excitement is palpable, with odds constantly varying, especially around the time of major sporting events.

The site owners claim a 20% advantage over the odds from bookies that use the old fashioned fixed odds system. While we could not verify that exact number, for sports betting on major events such as premier league football, big races and some North American sports meetings, it was as close to that figure as not to need any further proof for our testers. A suggestion for newcomers would be to visit at an off-peak time, for an initial session, to slip slowly into the maelstrom of its mad market activity. To jump right in at the busiest time of the week, which is typically Saturday on Sunday afternoons in the UK, can be confusing for those not familiar with the way it works. Once you get past the difference to regular online betting sites and start to revel in the feeling of being in a market with thousands of other punters, the whole experience is totally exhilarating.

Customer Support Services

Website: www.betfair.com
E-mail: support@betfair.com
UK telephone betting: 0870 9080 121
UK customer support: 0870 0110 444

Fast Facts

  • Bonus and Free Bet Offers
  • Bet £10 and get £30 in free bets
  • (These may change from time to time)
  • Odds Format: European style (for example odds = 3.75)

Currencies Accepted

  • HKD
  • USD
  • AUD
  • SEK
  • CAD
  • DKK
  • NOK
  • EUR
  • GBP

Maximums and Minimums

  • Maximum Bet: Limited by market forces at the time of placing the bet and the balance of your account.
  • Minimum Bet Not applicable.
  • Maximum Payout: Not applicable.
  • Minimum matches required: Singles
  • Minimum bet: 4
  • Maximum bet: No maximum
  • Maximum winnings: No maximum

Accepted Methods of Payment

  • Solo
  • PayPal
  • Visa Electron
  • Maestro
  • Visa Delta
  • Visa
  • MasterCard
  • Moneybookers
  • ClickandBuy
  • Wire Transfer
  • Western Union
  • Cheque
  • Laser Card
  • BPAY
  • NAB
  • Neteller

Accepted Methods of Withdrawals

  • Neteller
  • Solo
  • Visa Electron
  • Visa Delta
  • PayPal
  • Maestro
  • Moneybookers
  • Wire Transfer
  • Cheque
  • Laser Card

Languages Supported

  • English
  • Cantonese
  • Danish
  • English
  • German
  • Spanish
  • Italian
  • Chinese – Simple
  • Swedish