Football is the world’s most popular sport for betting. Everyone has an opinion and their opinion is always right – until it isn’t. But which bookie should your you choose? That’s the question this page is designed to answer.
There are dozens of online betting sites on the market – from the usual big-name suspects, to bold new entrants looking to offer something different. What doesn’t help is that practically every betting site offers football markets. You’ll have to narrow down your selection some other way – whether it’s the biggest bonus, the most free bets or the best mobile app. Once you’ve checked out our reviews you’re sure to have found a favourite.
How to Find the Best Football Betting Sites
Our list of top licensed football betting sites in the Republic of Ireland features some of the best options available online, but it’s up to you to decide which one is your ideal bookie. Let’s take a look at what you should expect when picking out a top online betting site.
The Best Football Leagues in the World
Football is the world’s game and its global appeal is undeniable. So whether you’re looking to bet on the Premier League, or even the Champions League, you should keep an eye out for a bookie that provides you with a variety of football betting options. The best football betting sites in Ireland provide coverage of men’s, women’s and youth football matches across the globe, but at the very least, you should expect comprehensive coverage of the following major football leagues and competitions:
- UEFA Champions League
- UEFA Europa League
- Premier League
- Championship
- FA Cup
- EFL Cup
- League 1
- League 2
- La Liga
- Serie A
- Ligue 1
- Bundesliga
- Eredivisie
Football betting doesn’t have to stop once the season is over, however. International competitions such as the prestigious World Cup, European Championship and Copa América provide players with the chance to wager on football throughout the summer months too.
A Huge Range of Online Betting Options
Gone are the days where you simply place a bet on your favourite team to win and hope for the best – there are a range of betting opportunities for punters to sink their teeth into every single day. Let’s take a look at some of the ways you can take advantage of great prices throughout the season.
- Match betting
- Match result
- Both teams to score
- Result & both teams to score
- Over/under goals
- Double chance
- Handicap
- Outright betting
- Correct score
- Match Betting
The most popular types of football bet are those placed on a single match. These are placed before kick off and winning bets are only paid out once the final whistle has been blown. In some cases, your wagers are placed on the outcome after 90 minutes, while others include extra time and penalties, should they occur. This is always clearly stated beforehand. Let’s take a look at the most common pre-match betting options available to online punters.
Match betting
The most popular type of football bet are ones placed on a single match. These are placed before kick off and winnings bets are only paid out once the final whistle has been blown. In some cases, your wagers are placed on the outcome after 90 minutes, while others include extra time and penalties, should they occur. This is always clearly stated beforehand. Let’s take a look at the most common pre-match betting options available to online punters.
Match Result
The most attractive option for many is the match result. It’s as simple as it sounds; pick a winner or a draw.
Both Teams to Score
Some matches are too tough to call, even for the bookies. so if two teams have a similar price to win the match, it means there’s no clear favourite. This is good news if you feel confident about making a pick, but you’ll want to steer clear of the match result bet if you’re uncertain. A great alternative is betting on both teams to score.
Result & Both Teams to Score
The ability to combine the match result with both teams to score is a relatively new addition to football betting. You’ll find great value here, but as you might have guessed, it’s much harder to land a winner when wagering on two outcomes.
Over/Under Goals
Much like the both teams to score market, betting on the over/under is a great alternative to wagers on the match result. This is simply the amount of goals the match will feature. Not only is it useful for close contests, though; you can also use it to find better value in matches where the price on the bookies favourite isn’t favourable to punters. Most of the best betting sites in Ireland allow you to bet over or under on 0.5, 1.5, 2.5 and 3.5 goals.
Double Chance
This market involves some compromise from both the punter and the online betting site. Punters can cover two of three possible outcomes, such as ‘win or draw’ or ‘home team win or away team win’.
Handicap
The handicap market is arguably the best place to find value when there’s a huge gap in quality between two teams. An FA Cup match could see a Premier League side pitted against a League 2 team, for example. In this instance, there’s little chance of the League 2 side winning and a bet on their Premier League opponents are likely to provide minimal returns. To provide incentive for bettors to wager on these events, football betting sites use handicaps to level the playing field for bettors.
The handicap is applied to the scoreline, so if you were to bet on ‘Team A -1’, they would simply have to win by more than 1 goal.
Outright Betting
You don’t have to restrict your betting to the events of a match. You can bet on the outcome of leagues and competitions, too. Outright bets are usually placed before the season kicks off, but are usually available throughout the season too. Here are a few common examples of outright betting markets:
Competition winner • Top Goalscorer • Promotion and relegation
In-Play Betting Options
When searching for your ideal football betting site, you’ll want to make sure it features an array of in-play betting opportunities. Also referred to as live betting, these markets give you the chance to place football bets on a match that’s already underway. So, if you didn’t place your pre-match bets in time, or didn’t fancy the odds on offer, in-play betting is a solid alternative. Odds change in real-time based on the events of the game, giving you a chance to gauge the momentum of the game and make a more informed decision.
Several top online betting sites livestream matches to allow you to keep up with the action, however, some leagues and competitions, such as the Premier League and Champions League, are only available to watch via sports broadcasters like RTÉ and Eir Sport. If you can’t watch a game live, you can always keep up through live updates provided by your chosen betting site.
Live betting can also provide more value for your betslip. For example, let’s say you wanted to bet on Manchester City to beat Burnley, but City concede early on. They may still be odds on favourites, but if you fancy them to overturn the deficit, you’ll get better value than you would have in the pre-game markets.
The Best Live Stream Betting Sites
Watch the Action Live From the Betting Site
The best sports betting sites allow you to livestream sporting events to go along with the option of in-play markets. Most sportsbooks will require your account to be funded and for you to have placed a bet within the last 24 hours to access these streams, but it means that you can watch some of the biggest sporting events in the world without a TV subscription. Livestreaming can really enhance your betting experience – watching the action unfold live means you can make informed decisions when it comes to in-play betting or cashing out. It’s definitely something worth bearing in mind when you make your choice of sportsbook.
What is Cashing Out?
This is one of the best features of online sports betting. If you’ve placed a few bets before you may already be familiar with how cashing out works. It basically allows you to take out any potential winnings you may have from a bet while the game is still going on. So say you’ve backed Arsenal to win but, while they’re 1-0 up, you can sense the momentum beginning to change. A cash out option puts you in control of your bet and allows you to collect a portion of your potential winnings. Similarly, if things aren’t going well, you may want to cut your losses and cash out any sum that you can, rather than losing all of your stake.
Boost Your Potential Winnings with an Accumulator
One of the most popular forms of football betting is the accumulator, or acca. These allow you to place a single football bet on two or more different selections and, in order for you to win, each of your selections must win. The real beauty of accumulators, however, is that the potential winnings can be enormous. The odds of your various selections are all multiplied together, increasing the reward for winning. From an initially small outlay, you could be in for a huge profit should you win.
But as you are likely to have worked out, with a greater potential reward there comes a great risk – losing just one leg of your accumulator will lose you the whole bet. That’s why the top betting sites feature acca insurance, which will refund you your stake as a free bet. These aren’t available on all football betting markets and only work on five-fold selections and above, but they’re a great safety net should just one selection fall through.
Specials and Promotions
The top bookmakers provide fairly similar offerings when it comes to odds, betting markets and features such as cash out. So the very best betting sites use a range of specials and promotions to stand out from the rest.
If none of the existing football betting markets give you what you’re looking for, you can create your bet at sites like William Hill via Twitter, through the hashtag #YourOdds.
Some bookies even offer early payouts and money back specials. PaddyPower’s ‘2 Up You Win’ promotion pays out if your chosen team is winning by two goals at any point during the game, regardless of the final score. You could very well receive winnings for a losing bet.
Types of Football Bonuses
Bonuses are an important factor for most punters looking for new football betting sites. Bonus funds can help boost your bankroll at the most and, at the very least, get you familiar with a new betting site. Every top football betting site wants to attract new customers, so there are a bunch of welcome bonus offers out there, but there are also a few betting offers for regular bettors too. Let’s have a look at a few of the most common welcome offers.
Matched Deposit
The matched deposit bonus is pretty straightforward; make your first deposit and your bookie will match it up to a certain amount. You might find a football betting site that welcomes you with an offer of 100% matched first deposit up to €300, for example. In this instance, you’ll be able to bag as much as €300 in bonus funds. There are usually stipulations that come with such large welcome bonuses, such as an expiry date and minimum odds requirements, so be sure to read the terms and conditions before claiming your football betting bonus.
Free Bet
Free bets are the most commonly found bonus at football betting sites. They’re offered as both welcome bonuses and existing player promotions, and you’re likely to find one at just about every good bookmaker. A common free bet offer is ‘bet €10, get €10’. Here, all you need to do is make a qualifying bet and bet €10 to receive your free bet. Terms and conditions apply, however, which will limit your use of the free bet, so be sure to keep an eye out for those.
Money Back Offer
More of a consolation prize than a reward, the money back offer gets your stake back if you don’t land a winner. You’ll usually have your stake returned as a free bet coupon, plus there’s almost always a cap on the maximum amount refunded. Despite this, it’s a decent offer, especially if you’re looking to back the underdog.
Enhanced Odds
In order to stay ahead of the competition, bookies can offer enhanced odds or price boosts on certain markets. These will usually apply to specific games that are likely to have big audiences. So if you’re looking for the best odds on a game that’s covered by pretty much every sports betting site, this is a great way for a sportsbook to stand out.
Betting on the Go
Pretty much every good football bookie offers a mobile app these days, with no additional registration required. Some betting sites in Ireland also offer free native mobile apps, most commonly to Android and iPhone users. You’ll be able to get to your favourite betting markets lightning-quick – perfect for in-play betting, where every second counts.
An added benefit to betting from a mobile app is that push notifications allow you to keep up to date with new promotions and the ever-changing football odds. So with no need to be tied to your desktop, check out the best mobile betting apps today.
Make the Most of Our Football Betting Tips
With so many options at your disposal, filling your betslip can often be a daunting task. You might be lucky enough to win off a hunch, but many turn to tips when betting on football. There are plenty of football betting tips sites and social media pages out there, but they should always be approached with some caution.
While there’s nothing wrong with backing a tip on your betslip, we’d always recommend doing your own research too. A quick look through the league table, head to head stats and recent form is a great way to remain in the know, even if you do follow a tip. It’s also important to remember that no result is guaranteed —even by the most successful tipsters— so never bet more than you’re willing to lose.
If you’re looking for an introduction to betting on English football, our top tips for betting on the Premier League and Championship are sure to give you a nudge in the right direction.
How to Pay for Your Football Bets
The best online bookmakers will take bets through a variety of payment methods these days. Let’s have a look at what you can expect to find.
Debit Cards
Almost all online betting sites will take debit card transactions from a range of providers, including Mastercard, Visa and Maestro. Debit transactions are one of the most popular payment methods with online football betting and probably the most familiar to punters with your winnings are available to withdraw as cash within a maximum of 5 workdays.
E-Wallets
Most casinos and sports betting sites will have e-wallet options available like PayPal, Neteller and Skrill. These e-wallet options are totally free to sign up to, are totally secure and are often your best bet to make quick withdrawals. A slight issue, however, may be that certain offers and promotions won’t take e-wallet payments so it is advisable to check the terms and conditions of a bonus or casino to understand the site’s position on e-wallet options.
Are You Ready to Bet on Football?
Now you know exactly what to expect from the best football betting sites in Ireland, it’s time to pick out your favourite. All you need to do is compare the featured bookies on our list and follow our quick links to register, claim your bonus and start betting on football!
Your Questions Answered
There’s an incredible range of options for betting, from Europe’s biggest league and cup competitions to more obscure competitions around the world. Some of the most popular competitions include the Premier League, Championship, Champions League, Europa League, FA Cup, Carabao Cup, La Liga, Bundesliga, Serie A, MLS and the World Cup.
Accumulators are all the rage these days – and with promotions like Acca Insurance, they’ve become even more appealing. Many online betting sites offer accumulators, but not all. Refer to our top bookmakers table above and expand to read more – this will tell you whether they could be your new weekly acca destination.
There’s no site that we can definitively state as the best odds when it comes to football. Bookmakers offer competitive odds, so you’ll usually find that the prices on offer are pretty similar, especially for the bookies’ favourite. Plus, with matches taking place across the globe pretty much every day, new prices are set just as often. So your best bet for finding the best odds is by comparing the prices offered on the markets you’d like to bet on. While small margins won’t make a huge difference in your returns for an individual bet, these do add up over time and when you place accumulators, so it’s well worth shopping around.
You’ll find plenty of sites and social media pages featuring tips from ‘expert tipsters’ across a number of leagues, including the Premier League and Championship. While there’s nothing wrong with following these tips, it’s important to remember that there’s no guarantee that your bet will win. Even the most successful tipster’s track record has no bearing on their future performance. We’d recommend doing your own research to avoid blindly following tips.
This varies depending on which football betting site you choose to sign up with. Many have requirements that must be met to gain access to live streams. Fortunately, this is usually pretty straightforward; you’ll need to have a funded account or place a minimum stake on the event you’d like to watch.
All licensed gambling sites, including football betting sites, are required to provide industry standard encryption technology to ensure that all transactions are safe and secure. So if you use a payment method that requires sharing sensitive information such as your debit card details, encryption makes this data unreadable in the unlikely event it gets into the wrong hands.
