Closed Betting Sites

Since coming to the UK market in Feb of 2019, STS have been busy. In a little over 6 months they secured their own licence from the UKGC having initially operated on a white label licence, and punters would do well to take note of them.

The brand are the dominant force in their native Poland and a quick glance at their sports book explains why. There are around 50 different sports categories made up of a great mixture of mainstay favourites like football, tennis, and cricket, alongside some great niche options that anyone looking for new markets to sample would enjoy perusing.

They operate using an interesting platform which you don't often see too, TG Lab, so the site feels unique and has a few practical features that you might not have seen before, such as a slider for filtering events by when they are starting.

Esports play a large and important role at STS and if this growing market is of interest to you then there are few places better to take your business. In fact, it might be the best esports bookie out there.

What’s more, the experience at STS is a hassle free one. The website is bright and simple to understand and use, while the terms are fair and written in plain English – no confusing jargon here.

You can start with a minimum deposit of £10 to get you going and there are usually one or two offers to have a look at too, although this isn’t really a bookie for bargain hunters. Withdrawals are quicker than average, though.

The mobile app is yet to appear for UK customers but the mobile optimised website does the job just fine, with intuitive design and lacking nothing when it comes to features; cash out, virtual sports, stats, etc are all available on both mobile and desktop platforms.

This is definitely one for the live bettors among you.

In a lot of ways, Novibet has tried to be all things to all people, and in doing so, it doesn’t quite push far enough to get noticed in any one area. Until you go to the in-play section, that is.

Their package is fantastic to use, a real asset to the site and a Godsend to the professionally minded bettor. This is because it combines cash out, lots of interesting betting lines, plenty of events to bet on, and a great user interface; when you add the event stats and the separate historical stats tool into the mix you have everything you need.

Elsewhere things are good without being exceptional; if this were 5 or 6 years ago I might be raving about it. For example, the odds range from middling to good but will not usually be top of the list; there is loads to bet on but you will find more at other sites; payment terms are fair but are matched by others.

Saying all that, it’s a fully rounded bookie that is worth having in your portfolio. Aside from the storming live betting area the average prices are beefed up with a lot of enhanced odds, super odds, and some promotions, plus there are loads of daily coupons.

I’ll give them extra credit where it's due too, customer support is on hand 24/7 and includes all the usual methods as well as Skype… and fax machine. Still got one of those knocking about? Someone does no doubt, but the main point is that Novibet are pulling out all of the stops to look after their customers.

For such a new sportsbook Mansion Bet is packed with features. The phrase ‘hit the ground running’ has never been more appropriate.

YourBet is a mobile only feature that allows you to add selections to a pre-existing bet; cash out is of course readily available; pulse betting markets are also out in force, and can give a slow game a shot in the arm by placing a bet on a specific event occurring in the next few minutes. These innovative features are all courtesy of the fantastic SBTech sportsbook platform the site is built on.

This also makes Mansion Bet a great place to bet on live games, granting access to 20,000+ in-play events each month. Live streaming is not yet an option but there is a superb live graphic, and given the speed with which they developed and released their sportsbook app live streaming won’t be far behind.

Of course, Mansion Bet did have a bit of a head start since they are the first sportsbook to come from the well-established Mansion casino group. This no doubt provided firm foundations, not to mention plenty of resources when developing the brand, and this is evident in how many promotions are running at any one time; price boosts, money back if offers, acca boosts, and competition specific offers adorn the promo page.

As if all of this wasn’t enough, they also have a sport comedian as their ambassador in Darren Farley, so if you like a giggle while you wager you should get one for free at Mansion Bet.

It’s refreshing when a new bookie comes along with its own style instead of just slapping their branding on the same old site as everyone else. 22Bet haven’t exactly broken the mold with theirs - it’s similar to others from Tonybet’s roster - but it still makes a change to the norm, and you can get pretty much anywhere on site within a few clicks.

22Bet are keen on the promotions, and although the casino outranks the sportsbook here, the sports promotions are interesting and tend to align with sporting competitions of the moment - it’s a good sign of things to come.

There are thousands of daily markets to explore across more than 50 regions, so if there is a fixture happening and you know about it, chances are that 22Bet will have odds available for it. This is good stuff from a bookie that is barely a year old.

Those of you that like to do your research and crunch some data will be happy with the statistics tool at 22Bet. There’s a lot of useful info in there allowing you to really hone in on your selections and learn a bit more about the team or player you are betting on. This is useful if you want to expand your activity into markets you haven’t bet on before.

Perhaps most importantly of all, there is a double whammy here in that the odds at 22Bet are high across the board and the withdrawal time frames are relatively fast. Combine this with an ever-growing number of markets and you have a serious contender on your hands.

The elusive and mysterious Mr Green is a true gentleman of the sports betting world, and as such he delivers only the classiest of sportsbooks to his customers – with a little help from platform provider Kambi, of course. This partnership allows the company to provide a more personalised service and a website that works equally well on desktop or mobile.

Their sports list is especially impressive, numbering almost 40 on their busiest days, and although this is of course dependent on what is going on in the world of sport, market depth tends to be strong regardless. Plus, odds are usually on par with the competition if not offering slightly better value on some second tier sports.

Although Mr Green are an independent bookmaker they are a true innovator in the industry, creating the Green Gaming Predictive Tool in 2017 which was designed to combat problem gamblers and revolutionise the online gambling sector. Mr Green therefore takes a strong positive stance on responsible gambling.

This is backed up by a stellar customer service department which is on hand 24 hours a day 7 days a week via live chat, phone, and e-mail. That sort of service isn’t available everywhere, and shows the commitment Mr Green has to its customers and their safety. What’s more, the team are extremely knowledgeable, friendly, and seem genuinely happy to hear from you. Classy.

If you have ever been on a night on the town and ended up in a casino at the end of it, there’s a weighty possibility that it would have been a casino owned by the Genting brand; they run physical casino’s in most big cities and have been in operation since 1965, and the GentingBet online sportsbook is their most recent venture.

This means that they have a lot of resources behind them and they flex these financial muscles by way of free bet promotions (as well as others) on the biggest sporting events of the moment. This keeps their offers relevant and interesting so punters are sure to stay engaged.

The sports list itself isn’t anything out of the ordinary but there are always loads of football coupons, while horse racing is also covered comprehensively and best odds is offered on all UK and Irish races. The virtuals section is worth a mention too, and GentingBet seem pretty proud of it themselves; the action is interesting and the graphics are impressive – you can even see the jockey’s shirts rippling in the wind as they ride.

The website, on the other hand, is a no-frills affair built on the FSB framework, but if you favour operational simplicity over snazzy graphics and processing power intensive website features then you will find the site nice and breezy as well as being a doddle to use.

Market depth does suffer a little outside of football, but if you are someone who enjoys a good mixture of betting entertainment encompassing online casino, real life casino, and sports betting, GentingBet serves as a good catch-all.

This is one for punters who prefer to wager here, there and everywhere rather than sitting down for a dedicated period of time at a desktop computer. The clue is in the name with Mobilebet – it is designed first and foremost for mobile phones and tablets, and it is one of the market leaders in this area.

If ever proof were needed that the betting experience needs not be diminished by using an app it is here. The app has everything you would expect from a comprehensive desktop site and it is nice and easy to use too.

Not that the desktop site has been neglected; both products contain a shed load of sports and betting options, and those of you that are familiar with ComeOn may get a feeling of de ja vu - Mobilebet is their sister company, both being owned and operated by Co-Gaming Ltd of Malta and run on the SBTech platform; another sign of quality.

Mobilebet also operate a reward scheme which makes up for their limited selection of promotions, awarding points for activity, even just for logging in each day, which can then be traded for bonus enhancements and free bets. This actually makes things simpler than messing about with individual offers for specific sports or events.

There are around 35 sports on the list most days, and that includes all of the usual suspects, but where else could you bet on Headis? What do you mean you have never heard of it? If table tennis and football spent a clumsy night together, Headis would be the result. Give it a watch, it’s hilarious.

For a newer betting site Premier Punt has a lot of great betting features that punters enjoy using, which sees the company leap frogging ahead of some of their similarly aged competition.

A bet builder, cash out, and fast markets all help to give the brand a more fully rounded package to offer new customers - alongside their welcome offer. Promotions aren’t exactly plentiful, but there are daily price boosts alongside one or two other existing customer offers than can be used to get more out of your bet.

They have chosen to work with the celebrated SBTech as their platform provider which means that in-play betting is a real treat here. Alongside developing what I think is the best match graphic in the industry, SBTech are also responsible for some of the most popular sports betting innovations which you can also enjoy at Premier Punt.

Despite having a lot to offer, the website is kept simple in design and layout making it accessible to anyone old or new to sports betting, and of course, Incentive Group Ltd are fully licensed and regulated in the UK. In fact, Victor Chandler of BetVictor fame is one of their advisors so they are unlikely to fall foul of naivety or inexperience.

From interesting beginnings as a fantasy football betting website, Premier Punt have developed quickly to become a company that offers a sportsbook to match much bigger rivals, as well as having their fingers in many other interesting pies.

A cursory glance at the RedZone Sports website is all you really need to figure out what their specialty is: American Sports. Baseball, Basketball, Ice Hockey, and American football are available in abundance, and not only in the good old US of A.

This is a sportsbook that digs deeper, and offers Baseball from Mexico to South Korea, Basketball from Argentina to Australia, Swedish Ice Hockey and American Football markets from Canada. It is a truly global book but the style is pure red, white, and blue.

More traditional UK punters shouldn’t run away though, because the football category also boasts great depth – although of course they call it Soccer – and there are plenty of other British favourites too, including horse racing and plenty of specials targeted to the UK customer.

RedZone also keep things interesting with some innovative bet types like Glory Goals and Glory Runs to go along with a modest set of promotions including best odds guaranteed and a reward scheme offering free bets. Bettors who enjoy a stacked promotions section may be a little disappointed, but the general odds are competitive, especially when it comes to their forte.

All of this great content is powered by the robust SBTech platform, granting access to great features like cash out, fast markets when betting live, and a good level of in-play stats too. It’s bolshy, confident, and ever so slightly louder than necessary, just like… well, like America.

SportNation was originally launched as BetonBrazil, named after former Scottish international Alan Brazil, but sadly for poor old Alan his name wasn’t enough to encourage new punters, so the company re-branded in 2017.

The re-brand also saw the sportsbook improve significantly, to the point that you can now bet on over 150 different football leagues from around the world and find 150+ betting lines on top tier fixtures. That is a good indicator of what SportNation are all about, depth and variety.

You might have heard tales of unreliable odds, and while this can sometimes be the case there is still usually plenty of value to be found even before you take into consideration the plethora of promotions and the excellent loyalty scheme. These are varied too, often covering bet refunds, free bets, referral bonuses, daily specials, and of course the reward points. Plenty to get your teeth into and plenty of ways to squeeze extra value out of your wagers.

What’s more, the reward scheme doesn’t just reward big spenders, there are ‘prizes’ available in all shapes and sizes so even those with smaller budgets can enjoy loyalty rewards relative to their activity on the site.

The SBTech platform means the interface will be familiar to many of you, but SportNation manage to put their own stamp on it with some effective graphics that aren’t too taxing on loading times, so they don’t slow things down any. This is indicative of their attitude in general, they do things differently here.

The £25 minimum deposit/withdrawal for Paypal (but not other payment methods) will no doubt be a sticking point for some bettors, but if you like throwing high stakes around then you will be in good hands - the maximum payout on football, for example, is £500,000 in any 24 hour period.

Sports fans who like to really take control of their betting experience and the interface they use will enjoy this new bookie from ProgressPlay Ltd. VStar Bet is the name and providing an adaptable betting platform is the game.

I really enjoyed being able to minimize the side bar to give the bets themselves more room, or collapsing markets I didn’t want and favouriting those that I bet on often. There is probably a bit more of a learning curve to this site than at some others but it’s well worth the time, resulting in what feels like a professional bettors’ ideal place of work. The only issue I found was that sometimes the odds can be difficult to spot because they are quite small.

Football, tennis, American sports and Esports are all very busy categories here, and those who follow MMA will also find plenty to bet on, but with more than 40 sports in total, including oddballs like biathlon and petanque (it’s a real sport, honest!), you are never going to struggle to find an interesting bet to place.

Live betting is a strength at Vstar Bet with live streaming, lots of cash out availability, and clearly marked bet types that are eligible for combi bets. There is also the option to multi-view in order to track more than one event at the same time. Lot’s going on here.

The backroom features aren’t quite as impressive to use as the sportsbook interface but they all function perfectly well, while promotions don’t seem to be particularly forthcoming just yet. This isn’t the case for the associated casino, however, so fingers crossed the sportsbook will get the same treatment soon. Support is 7am-11pm.

Although the Energy casino has been in existence since 2012, the sportsbook was only bolted on in 2016, and in the few short years since then this brand has really taken off, even winning the SBC Rising Star in Sports Betting award in their maiden year.

The website, using black and yellow as primary colours, is striking and easily identifiable, which also makes it very easy to scan for information. Coupled with the layout and styling this makes the site very user-friendly and great for quickly assessing numerous possibilities. It could perhaps be quicker, but then couldn’t they all?

Of course, it is the value to the punter that will be one of the major considerations in many punters’ minds, and there is good news on this front; Energy Bet have some of the best odds in the business. High payout rates make this a lucrative bookie to bet with, and remember that you are earning energy points when you bet too, and when you trade them in at the energy shop this increases the return even further.

Loads of payment options plus an original and detailed in-play package that is full of stats and features only enhances what is already a great place to bet, although a lack of live streaming, low daily withdrawal maximums, and limited customer service opening times could be an issue for some.

The range of sports covered surpasses 50 and includes some interesting lesser spotted options such as lacrosse, surfing, and various video games esports markets, and while market depth doesn’t quite match up to the big boys the average bettor will be more than happy with what’s on offer.

The nice thing about Bethard is that they were set up by a group of real online gambling enthusiasts, so they understand things from the punter's point of view and not just from the bookies'.

That might explain why they opted to use the SB Tech platform to build their site, it really is one of the most user-friendly interfaces in existence and offers a huge and diverse range of betting features, bet types, and sports markets that Bethard are happy to take advantage of. At this bookie you can bet on football from around 60 countries worldwide, tennis, American sports, even odd sports like bandy are listed.

The fantasy football feature will appeal to many sports fans, and features you would expect to see like live betting, statistics, and cash out are all available too and handled with panache.

The promotions seem to favour the casino over the sportsbook, but they have enlisted the help of Zlatan Ibrahimovic to help promote the brand, so there is no concern over their commitment to sports betting, and their commitment to their customers is equally evident based on their 24/7 customer support service.

This is a fun and complete bookie with great potential, and certainly worth a few moments of your time.

Simplicity is the key over at MustardBet. Their website is devoid of any impressive visuals, graphics, promotional banners or anything like that – but then that is the way it is supposed to be.

This is a betting platform that isn’t trying to wow its customers, rather it just wants to make it as easy as possible for them to get their bet on. This site will no doubt appeal to the unfussy bettors among you, as long as you like betting on the most popular sports.

There are only 12 different categories on the sports list here, and while it would be easy to see this as a negative, if you are someone who only bets on football and tennis and tends to stick to the bigger fixtures then this site will make your life a heck of a lot easier than those hosting thousands of sports and markets to search through.

Navigation is all handled using the sports list with various drop downs filtering the sports by country, then league/competition, then showing specific fixtures. The main bulk of screen real estate isn’t really put to use until you open your event and start looking for bets to make.

The site works best and feels more complete on mobile actually, which I have a suspicion it was truly built for. The no frills approach improves the handling of the site no end and you can whip from one fixture to another in no time.

You can bookmark specific leagues etc to make things even quicker, but this isn’t a place to come for promotions. Saying that they handle their odds themselves so can offer good value at base level without needing to complicate things with free bets, bonuses, and other promo’s.

Apart from sounding like a bit of a tantrum, GiveMeBet is a new stripped back sportsbook with a youthful feel from a promising parent company.

Market range here is very good for a smaller bookie, with more than 30 different sports available to bet on and some scattered daily specials to beef them up. Market depth is a little on the light side, however, so it’s not the busiest of books as of yet, but there is plenty of potential.

Barely a year old and they already have a decent amount of live betting going on, plus cash out and fast markets to go with it. This shows willing and makes the in play area a fun place to be – fast markets can really set the pulse racing during an important fixture.

It’s an extremely user-friendly site too with a thoroughly modern interface that will be familiar to most. This familiarity could be seen as a negative or a positive I suppose, but for me it keeps the site clean and my eye naturally knows where to look to find what I’m after.

As you might expect from a new online bookie, the support hours are a little limited at 12:00 – 22:00 daily, but then again, since GiveMeBet are a UK facing company this should enshroud the majority of local fixtures.

There is a lot of work still to be done here - more payment options would be a good place to start - but GiveMeBet are progressing at a steady pace. A good framework is in place and with a few more regular customer promotions and a healthier market stock this could be a very popular site with a new generation of bettors.

Antanas Guoga is the man behind the brand at Tonybet. You may recognise the name, he’s a professional poker player and entrepreneur from Lithuania, and he isn’t shy when it comes to promoting himself. But it’s not about Tony, it’s about his online bookies, so let’s delve in and have a rummage.

The website is a bit plain, to be honest, and very very grey, but what it lacks in style it makes up for in usability and originality. It’s one of the cleanest sites I’ve used, and although the layout is less typical than usual it is equally intuitive, and refreshing too. Although page loads can be slightly clunky.

In-play betting seems to be the focus at Tonybet, and indeed, live fixtures dominate the homepage as well as being ever present on the final third of the screen. Within the in-play section itself you can easily scan the current fixtures sport by sport, while at the same time jumping between the score tracker/match graphic of any fixture that takes your fancy. Very useful for getting a snapshot of the game so far, and helps to make up for the lack of live streaming.

Market selection isn’t as robust here as at some other sportsbooks, numbering around the mid-twenties, and market depth is reduced too, but regular bettors will have plenty to choose from; 650+ football markets at 4pm on a Monday is still pretty good going, and being a European bookie there are some interesting and unusual leagues and markets on offer.

There’s not much in the way of promotions for sports bettors though, these seem to be reserved for casino and poker players, but withdrawals are timely, there is a good app, and there are loads of payment methods including Paypal and even Bitcoin.

If there was a university degree course in launching a new sportsbook then the guys behind MoPlay should teach it - even though this is their first attempt. This is arguably the best new betting site to hit the internet in years.

It's built on the SBTech platform, which in my opinion is the best of the bunch, and they have opted to include virtually every extra feature on offer. That means that MoPlay not only pushes to the head of the pack of the new breed of online bookies, but there is not a great deal to separate them from some of the real old hands either.

So what have they got? Well, a list of around 35 sports with great depth of market is a good start, interesting and wide-ranging offers along with odds upgrades, plus live betting with cash out, a bet builder, and plenty of fast markets available. The only thing missing is live streaming, but the way things are looking it won't take them long to bolt this feature on.

This is a truly modern bookie and as such their mobile game is strong - in fact, the 'Mo' in MoPlay is a nod to this if you hadn't already guessed. The mobile app is almost flawless, easy and fun to use and built with the user in mind, and the mobile optimised website works equally well.

I'm not usually so gushy about new bookies, but MoPlay have managed to stand out from the get-go and for all the right reasons. If you consider yourself to be a bettor of the modern age then you need to have a look at MoPlay. Oh, and they are also the global betting partner of Manchester United already. No biggie.

You’ve got to give it to Royal Panda, they are an independent company making waves in a crowded industry, and although they are probably better known as an online casino thanks to their furry black and white mascot, they also operate a top-notch sports book.

This came along only 3 years after their initial launch as a casino in 2014, and coincided with a 3-year deal to sponsor QPR football club, clearly marking their arrival on the sports betting scene.

They worked with BetConstruct to provide their sportsbook interface, and while it functions slightly differently to what regular sports bettors might be used to, it is just as effective a product, and comes with some great live in-play betting features, such as a multi-view option, live streaming, cash out, and a bet builder.

This is a powerful site with lots of components, and the deeper you go into it the more complicated it becomes, but while there is a slight learning curve the payoff is well worth it, allowing the punter to handle multiple facets of their betting activity at the same time without having to go backwards and forwards from one page to another.

Promotions for the sportsbook can be scarce, but they are always more inventive than the competition, and they sometimes run best price offers on sports that aren’t usually associated with this sort of offer. Plus, the loyalty scheme isn’t restricted to bonuses and free bets, there are physical rewards such as clothing and high end electronics.

You might think that a company which is not even a year old would still be finding their feet, but Volt are firing on all cylinders, offering an online casino, a sportsbook, an interesting loyalty scheme, and tons of cool betting features straight out of the gates.

The loyalty scheme is based around the internal currency, Volts. These are earned for activity but you can also boost them substantially by completing ‘missions’ found in your Volt Zone. They really aren’t shy about giving them away and the punter decides what they are used for; free bets, real cash, the choice is yours. This scheme might be a little gimmicky for some, but it’s certainly rewarding.

Live betting is especially noteworthy at Volt because the multi-view interface allows the punter to keep a good eye on up to four fixtures at a time while still being able to browse everything else. This is a fantastic achievement making the live betting tool one of the jewels in the crown of this sportsbook.

What a lot of newer companies can offer is a much more personal level of customer service, and Volt are a case in point. A smaller client base equals less demand, so customer service reps can respond almost instantly, and live chat is a 24/7 service meaning late night punters need never suffer alone.

Not that you are likely to be suffering; the site is brilliant to navigate and the layout works in the punters favour – it is also a breath of fresh air, successfully doing something new without making life difficult. The company are also regulated by both the UK Gambling Commission and Maltese Gaming Authority so you can wager with peace of mind.

It can be difficult to make an impact as a new bookmaker in a sea of pre-existing household names, but 21Bet don’t seem to be phased by that, and so long as you aren’t wedded to the idea of a dedicated mobile app, they could be worth adding to your portfolio.

The company managed to sign up more than 20,000 new customers in its first six months of business, helped no end by a 3 year sponsorship deal with Wolverhampton Wanderers, but still, that’s one way to make an impact as a new bookie.

You can regularly choose between 30+ different sports and the number of pre-event markets available at any one time climbs into the 10’s of thousands; this shows some serious chops for a fledgling bookie.

Eagle eyed darts bettors can often find some very attractive prices here, while those that bet on football and tennis are also in for rewarding odds on popular fixtures. The winning cap of £100,000 could put off those of you that like to play with huge stakes but the average joe can enjoy these odds worry free.

With a few years under their belt 21Bet have been able to prove their worth by utilising most of the great features that industry veterans promote, as well as proving that they can be trusted by paying out before anyone else on Wolves winning the EFL Championship in 2018.