Welcome to our guide to the best football betting sites which takes a look at the UK top bookies for May 2024.
We run the rule over the best sites to bet on football online, analysing which platforms to trust for the best footy odds, product features, free bets and promotions.
Bet £10 Get £40 In Free Bets
Bet £10 Get £40 In Free Bets
Bet £10, Get £40
Bet £10, Get £40
Bet £10 Get £50 In Bonuses
Bet £10 Get £50 In Bonuses
£35 Free Bet + 10 Free Spins
£35 Free Bet + 10 Free Spins
Bet £10 & Get £30 in Free Bets for new customers at bet365
Bet £10 & Get £30 in Free Bets for new customers at bet365
Bet £10, Get £30 in Free Bets
Bet £10, Get £30 in Free Bets
Bet £20 and get it back as cash if it loses
Bet £20 and get it back as cash if it loses
Bet £10, Get £20 In Free Bets
Bet £10, Get £20 In Free Bets
Bet £10 Get £30 in Free Football Bet Builders
Bet £10 Get £30 in Free Football Bet Builders
Bet £10 Get £20 in Free Bets
Bet £10 Get £20 in Free Bets
Every week brings scores of fresh football betting opportunities. Deciding which ones to bet on can sometimes be daunting, so here we spotlight a handful of matches over the next seven days that we’re particularly interested in.
Aston Villa vs Liverpool – We’ll start the week with this match between English Premier League table neighbours on Monday, May 13. Liverpool are the favourites to win, according to the bookies, but both teams have won only two of their last five games, so don’t let that put you off if you’re a Villa fan. Kick-off is at 20:00.
Tottenham vs Man City – This is another EPL match, and it kicks off at 20:00 on Tuesday, May 16. We think that this match is a bit more clear-cut, with Man City having won all five of their last five matches and Tottenham winning just one and losing four.
Brighton vs Man Utd – We think this will be an interesting match on Sunday, May 19. The bookies seem to fancy Brighton to win, so anyone who fancies United to do the business can get odds of around 2/1. The kick-off is at 16:00.
Our betting experts have rated, reviewed and ranked the UK’s top 10 football betting sites. We’ve compared factors such as best odds, free bets and offers, number of markets, best app and features such as Bet Builders to come up with our list.
At number one on our list of the best football betting sites in the UK we have placed BetMGM. This is a relatively new site for the UK, but it has been running in the US for several years. The UK version of BetMGM launched in 2023, run by those betting experts who also run LeoVegas and BetUK.
The football betting options at BetMGM are brilliant, and you will be relieved to hear that they are not based on American football! There’s full coverage of the UK’s Premier League, plus all the top global, continental and national football competitions. One real bonus though is the free-to-play £2 million Golden Goals competition – win the massive prize if you correctly predict the final score in six games, with weekly prizes for near misses too!
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Fixed odds betting may be the number one betting market in the UK, but there are alternatives. There’s exchange betting which usually gives you betting odds, and spread betting. SpreadEX is long-established as the top spread betting football betting site in the UK.
If you really know your football, then spread betting with SpreadEx could be your way to go. Spread betting rewards you for the accuracy of your predictions, far more than fixed odds betting. The only downside is that you are punished, financially, if your prediction is wildly inaccurate. SpreadEx offers plenty of information about spread betting and the risks involved, so make sure you are informed before your first spread bet at Spreadex.
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Betfred is one of the best-known names for sports betting in the UK, so there is absolutely no surprise that it has made the cut for the leading UK football betting sites. Fred Done established his first betting shop in 1967, and has gone from strength to strength ever since.
This betting site was one of the first to embrace the internet era, and some critics might say that it does not look as if the site has been updated since! That’s a mere quibble, as for football betting you can bet on Betfred. Coverage of both the EPL and UCL is outstanding, and you often get special bonus deals on specific matches, so keep an eye out for top promotions when the big teams are going head to head!
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People familiar with QuinnBet may be surprised to see its inclusion on our top football betting sites top ten. That’s probably because, in Ireland at least, QuinnBet is synonymous with horse racing. QuinnBet was created in 2017 by leading Irish entrepreneur Seán Quinn but is now run by his son, also called Seán.
Just because QuinnBet is synonymous with horse racing does not mean that its football betting options can be ignored. QuinnBet is ideal for football, with full coverage of football from all corners of the globe. Decent offers too with the Create-A-Bet bet builder which will inspire most football betting fans to give this site a chance.
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Bet365 is simply the biggest betting site in the UK. More people bet at Bet365 than any other site in the UK, and the company is one of the UK’s biggest … and they are British, remaining in the UK while other companies have moved their operations abroad. Bet365 is synonymous with sports betting in the UK, so you may be asking why it only makes number five on our list.
Well, for a start bet365 commits the heinous sin of calling football ‘soccer’. Secondly, the site just looks … ugly. Navigation is hardly a breeze, either. All this is something of a shame as bet365 often has good deals, including the (almost) unique offer of paying out football bets should your backed team go two goals up.
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BetUK is one of those sites that seems always to be new, but actually it’s not. BetUK has been around for over a decade, although it has only really come to prominence in the last few years, thanks probably to a well-deserved makeover.
If you have been paying attention you’ll know we’ve already mentioned BetUK once, as it’s run by LeoVegas, the same people who run BetMGM. The football options at BetUK are exceptional, and the brand is an official partner of EPL dominators Manchester City. Look out for the daily BetUK football specials, offering enhanced odds on specific top games.
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What’s this? Another Irish site more famed for football betting in our best football betting sites UK list? Whatever is going on? Well, truth be told it is very hard to ignore PaddyPower, and we found ourselves unable to ignore PaddyPower when constructing our top ten football bookies list.
Never ones to shy away from controversy, PaddyPower seems to have calmed down of late. But there’s still plenty to like about the site, such as their ‘power prices’. These are selected combo bets which, if wagered upon, will give you significantly powered-up odds! They are also one of the very few sites to offer multi-match bet builders!
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For many years people have used LiveScore to keep in touch with football events, no matter which event, and where they happen to be. If you wanted to know the latest happenings in any football game, then consulting the LiveScore site was your best choice. You could even set notifications so if a goal goes in during a match you have a keen interest in, you’d be quickly informed.
It seemed only natural for LiveScore to branch out into sports betting, which it did early in 2021. This is an excellent site, with plenty of opportunities that will thrill football betting enthusiasts. Odds boosts are always available, as is the free-to-play Squads game in which top-notch performances from your elected EPL players really pay you dividends.
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We’ve mentioned fixed odds betting several times in our top ten list, and touched on spread betting, but now we come to the third main football betting option – exchange betting. This is where you exchange your bet with a fellow punter or punters who is/are betting the opposite way to you. The key aspect of exchange betting is that you get better odds (usually) than with fixed odds betting.
Betfair is by far the most popular exchange betting site available in the UK, and its football coverage is exceptional. You can literally bet on anything at Betfair as if a bet is not available at the site, you can contact them and they may offer you odds for it. Oh, and just in case exchange betting confuses you, fixed odds betting is available too.
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Virgin Bet now has nothing to do with Richard Branson (the company that purchased Virgin Bet from the beardie entrepreneur did so on the understanding that they could retain the Virgin name and logo), and indeed is run by the same people behind LiveScore Bet. There are many similarities between the two sites, but there are many important differences too.
One similarity is the coverage of football on Virgin Bet, which is very, very good. You can check out the site’s price boosts at any time, and the extensive football in-play markets. Virgin bet also has the free-to-enter FIVES game, which – to be fair – is LiveScore Bet’s SQUADS game, just with a different name!
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To compile our 10 top football betting sites, we’ve looked at multiple aspects of every UK bookmaker. Here’s the criteria we use to choose our best online betting sites for football.
An important ranking factor is to look at which site has the best football odds. While free bets and bookie bonuses get football fans through the door, we’re looking for the sites that offer value long-term.
Live football betting has never been more popular as fans increasingly look to bet on the go from their iPhone or Android device. Therefore, we consider the best sites for in-play football betting as a key part of our review criteria.
Football Bet builders are big business and now pretty much all the top UK football betting sites offer them. Bet builders let fans completely customise their bet with same-game selections on everything from passes completed, to red cards and goals from outside the box.
Accumulators – or accas – are often the main reason fans bet on football online. To find the best site for football accumulators, we look at how easy it is to quickly build accas, best acca odds and bookmaker offers such as acca insurance or acca boost.
This criteria looks at the breadth and depth of each bookie’s offering. We’re looking for a wide range of competitions and matches to bet on but also a deep offering of market type, such as player props, outrights, specials and stats betting.
An estimated 70% of online betting revenue came via mobile devices in 2020, meaning bookmakers that don’t offer a slick mobile experience are missing out badly. Our rating system judges the best apps to bet on football, looking at user experience, reliability, speed and many other factors.
Getting money into and out of your account is clearly a priority for football bettors. We take into account the betting sites with easy deposit and withdrawal flows, including choice of payment methods, time taken to process withdrawals and security.
No bookie review would be complete without a look at the promotions and offers, including free bets and bonuses. We consider new customer offers but also existing customer bonuses when picking our top football betting websites.
Last but certainly not least is a look at the betting sites for football you can trust. All the bookies in our reviews are licensed by the UK Gambling Commission.
At Safest Betting Sites we have an experienced award-winning team of football betting industry experts, who have reviewed and rated hundreds of UK bookies over the years. We don’t mean to brag, but we really do know what we are talking about. Most of us like the Saturday acca at the bare minimum, but we all have experience in placing bets. We are always looking for new football betting sites too, as we like to keep on top of the UK football betting industry.
It’s our aim therefore to be the kind of football betting information site that we would like to find ourselves. We’d want news on new sites, plus information about the latest deals, bonuses and promotions from established bookies, and useful advice on football betting strategy. It’s our aim to be so useful to the average football betting punter, that such people head back to our site, time and time again.
We want to be number one, and we can only do that if we establish a genuine sensation of trust, which is precisely what we always strive to do.
Whether it’s a new football betting site or an established brand, almost all bookies offer bonuses such as free bets. Football betting bonuses are typically created to attract new customers but many bookmakers have existing customer offers to keep their players betting on football.
Compare the best football betting offers, with details and promo codes of the UK’s top 10 sites.
Bookie | Free Bet / Bonus | Promo Code |
BetMGM | Bet £10, Get £40 | No code needed |
SpreadEx | Bet £10, Get £40 | No code needed |
Betfred | Bet £10, Get £40 | WELCOME40 |
QuinnBet | £35 Free Bet + 10 Free Spins | No code needed |
Bet365 | Bet £10, Get £30 | No code needed |
BetUK | Bet £10, Get £30 | No code needed |
Paddy Power | £20 losing bet refund | YSKWEX |
LiveScore Bet | Bet £10, Get £20 | No code needed |
Betfair | Bet £10, Get £30 | ZSKAHD |
Virgin Bet | Bet £10, Get £20 | No code needed |
Here’s some examples of football betting offers for new customers:
Many bookies also offer existing customer bonuses in an effort to retain your loyalty and keep you playing. Sometimes referred to as “reload offers”, here’s some examples of the types of existing customer offers from UK bookies.
When opening an account with a new football bookie in the UK, you’ll almost always be able to claim a bonus.
Browse offers in our list of top football betting sites and check if you need a promo code – usually you don’t. Then it’s as simple as following the steps to get your free football bet added to your account. Typically the flow looks like this:
Sometimes you will have to wait for your free football bet to be credited but if you are in any doubt, contact the bookie’s customer support.
Depending on the bookmaker and the offer, your bonus will vary. It might be a single free bet, it could be split into smaller free bets such as 4x £5 or even a bundle of different bet types such as £5 free football bet and 50 free casino spins.
In-play football betting is offered by pretty much all UK football betting sites. As the name suggested, it’s a feature that offers live football betting while the match is ongoing. Depending on the football betting app or site you’re using, the options will vary.
Some bookies offer a rich in-play betting experience that almost mirrors their pre-match offering, whereas some only provide a limited selection of in-play markets, such as next goalscorer or match result.
The best sites for in-play football betting also provide stats and graphic visualisations in close-to real time, meaning you can follow the action closely even if you’re not able to watch the game.
And then there’s live streams – many competitions have deals with UK football betting apps to provide live streams of matches embedded in the betting experience.
Football Bet Builders are big business in the industry these days, with most UK bookies introducing the feature since around 2021.
Depending on the bookie you’re with, the name will vary – whether it’s Build-a-Bet, Create-A-Bet, Bet Builder, they’re essentially the same thing. The option to combine same-game multiples into a single bet. Some sites such have expanded to include multi-game Bet Builders.
The options are vast, with selections ranging from player props such as “to have a shot on target” to team totals such as “more than 4 bookings”. Some top UK football betting sites also offer the option to combine multiple Bet Builders into your football accumulator.
The addition of player props and stats betting means the best football betting apps and sites offer hundreds of markets on matches in most of the top leagues.
One thing to bear in mind is that most football betting markets apply to regular time only – not including extra-time or penalties unless stated otherwise.
Here’s our guide to the top betting markets offered by all UK football betting sites.
The match result is the straightforward, go-to market and it’s often called ‘1X2’ at online football bookies. It’s just a bet on the final outcome of a match.
This player market lets you bet on the first goalscorer, last goalscorer, or a player to score at any time during the match. There’s also markets such as “to score a hat-trick” and “to score twice”.
Correct score is one of the most straightforward football betting markets. Just predict the exact score at the end of the match.
Short for ‘both teams to score,’ with BTTS, you decide ‘yes’ or ‘no’ based on your preference. There are also BTTS markets for each half of the game.
Over/Under can be applied to various scenarios. Usually, a line is set on goals, corners, or cards. Simply choose whether there will be more or less than the line set by the bookie.
Double chance lets you bet on two outcomes of a match. For example, one side to win or draw, making either result a winner for your bet.
Handicap betting involves the bookmaker giving one team an advantage or disadvantage to level the playing field. For example, if Team A has a -1 handicap, they must win by two or more goals for your handicap bet to win.
HT/FT lets you combine the result at half-time with the full-time outcome. For instance, if a team is expected to dominate, you can back them to lead at both half-time and full-time.
Pro gamblers might spend hours seated in front of their PCs searching out the best football betting odds for their predictions. But that’s not something we don’t have the time to do, and we suspect it might be something that you don’t want to do either! To this end, we always look for sites where the mobile betting betting experience is exceptional.
All the top football betting sites make their mobile-optimised version of their site an exceptional, user-friendly experience. We champion those that make mobile betting simple, speedy and rewarding. If a site has a downloadable app that you can install to your iOS or Android-powered phone or tablet, then that’s cause for a Peter Crouch-style robot dance!
The best football betting apps on iPhone and Android devices now match or better their desktop equivalents, with purpose-built products offering a great user experience. Features supported by the top football betting apps include:
Unsurprisingly, Premier League betting is by far the most popular choice among UK fans but there are competitions all over the world and throughout the year to enjoy. Here’s a quick overview of some of the most popular.
England
Spain
Germany
Italy
France
Argentina
Brazil
Netherlands
Portugal
New to football betting? Want to get some top tips on how to get the most out of your football betting endeavours? Then you’ll hit the back of an onion bag with these tried and tested nuggets of advice when betting on football.
It’s no surprise that there are so many bookmakers catering to fans of Britain’s favourite sport. What might have surprised you is just how good the best football betting sites are. For example, the American brand BetMGM has adapted beautifully to the British market, and the other sites featured here are similarly impressive. Have fun picking your teams and good luck with your bets!
Bet £10 Get £40 In Free Bets
Bet £10 Get £40 In Free Bets
The best new football betting websites in the UK include BetMGM, BetUK and Tebwin.
You can tell if a UK betting site is trustworthy as it will have a UK Gambling Commission licence.
No, all UKGC licensed bookmakers need to verify your account with ID, especially if you want to make a withdrawal.
It is the same as a ‘1X2’ bet except that you cannot back the draw. If the game you are betting on ends in a draw, your stake is returned to you.
You can but don’t expect to stream EPL and UCL matches, as they are tied up with terrestrial media deals. You’ll be able to stream European football leagues (non-UK) at sites that do have football betting streaming.
Peter is one of the most well-known and well-respected names working in the field of online sports betting today. Having a Bachelor of Arts degree, Peter has worked for many high-profile publications in the industry, both online and in the real world. He joined the SafestBettingSites team in 2021 and has provided millions of words ever since. When not writing, Peter enjoys performing and writing music, gaming, reading and he is a massive movie buff, with a particular love of Japanese cinema and anime.
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