Sky Bet Sports Betting Review (2024)

Important

Sky Bet offers are no longer available or not accessible from our site. You can check out similar betting offers here.

꧅ Because of this betting juggernaut’s immense reputation, the question isn’t so much whether its site is any good, but whether it is good enough to truly distinguish itself from the other household names of the industry.

With an incredibly versatile selection of markets, they certainly have the ambition to soar among online betting’s very best. But do they have the consistency to take flight? Our review will test every vital element🐽 of Sky Bet’s sportsbook so you can decide for yourself whether they are worthy of your consideration.

The registration process isn’t just your first impression of a site, it’s also a powerful indicator of how an operator values the user experience. With that in mind, we’re happy to say that registration is as straightforward as you could possibly hope for, and only requires a few minutes to complete the whole thing.

ಌ We’re going to take you through our personal experience of registering with Sky Bet so you can see how easily it is done.

Step One. The first step simply requires you to provide your first and last name.

Step Two: Next is sharing your date of birth💃. In accordance with the laws of the UK, you must be a minimum of 18 years old to use the site. This is therefore not just used to identify you, but also to prevent underage users from accessing the site.

Step Three: Provide your post codeꦺ and you’ll see a drop list of options to select from. Pick yours and you’re ready for the next step. Do note that only residents from the UK and Ireland can use this site.

Step Four: Next up is your email address🦂. This will be used to gain access to your account if you forget your log-in details , as well as to receive promotional offers should you opt in.

Step Five: You’ll now need to select a username, 𒈔which is the name that will appear on your account and what you will use to log in.

Step Six: You’ll need a phone number▨ for security purposes; however, contact will only be made if there is a serious security threat to your account.

Step Seven: There are a couple of security questions𓄧 here to help you unlock your account should you forget your pin or end up locked out for any reason.

Step Eight: Instead of a password, Sky Bet utilises a six-digit number system✨ to log in. This helps keep your account safe in the event of other passwords being made vulnerable.

Step Nine: This is the last step before we move onto banking options. It simply asks whether you would like to receive promotional materials, and also to confirm that you have read and agree to their terms and conditions, including privacy policy.

Step Ten: The last step of the registration process is to add your debit card details🍎 on the following form. It is important to note that if you do not wish to add your banking details at this time, you can simply close the page and your account will be registered.

As you can see from the registration process, banking with Sky Bet is incredibly easyꩵ. So long as you have your information at hand, it should take mere minutes at most.

The default here is to utilise a debit card as your payment option. Specifically, the options include Visa Electron, Visa Debit, Mastercard Debit, Maestro and Solo. Keep in mind that at the time of writing, Sky Bet is only available to residents of the UK and Ireland, and credit cards are no longer accepted.

There are no additional fees and deposits are instant.

Withdrawals can take between 2-5 working days🍎, which is expected and fair for this payment method. The minimum withdrawal amount is £10. You will need to utilise the CV2 number if you wish to make a deposit over £30.

The only other options right now are Google Pay and Apple Pay﷽, although of course, not in conjuncture with a credit card. Your minimum deposit is £5, deposits are instant, and withdrawals should take between 3-5 days.

Because Sky Bet takes customer security seriously, KYC checks are in place𝔍 to ensure that you are who you say you are as well as to ensure that the site is not processing money utilised for any kind of criminal process.

If you are asked to provide information, you may need to showcase a source of funds, which could include a payslip. In addition, they may need some identification𓆉, such as a passport or driver’s licence. You can get complete information on documents needed through their excellent FAQ.

While Sky Bet offers an immense betting experience, some may be disappointed by the lack of the likes of PayPal or cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin𝕴. This is especially a shame considering that PayPal used to be an option but has since been removed.

Nonetheless, the banking options will be plenty for the overwhelming majority, there are no fees, deposits are instant, withdrawal times are as expected, and the whole process is incredibly intuitive – perfect for newcomers.

Sky Bet get off to a pretty much perfect start with a £20 in free bets when staking £5 offer.

꧒ This is a sportsbook-only offer, however, casino and poker fans need not despair. They have the option of starting off with 20 free spins and £10 in free tournament tokens respectively.

Clearly, Sky Bet aim to consistently provide all kinds of players great ways to start off their online betting journey with them without needing to break the bank.

So, let’s start with getting the bonus.

All you need to do is register and enter your card details, and place a £5 bet at minimum odds of 1/1.

You’ll then get your bonus as two £10 free bet tokens. These can be used on any single or each-way bet, except for virtual sports bets.

🐈 No promo code is needed. No maximum winnings are stated. No wagering requirements are suggested.

The stake is not included to your winnings – which is common. Less common is the fact that free bets are not subject to expiry. However, do keep in mind that you need to place your £5 free bet within 30 days of registration for this to remain a welcome offer. In addition, a strict one-per-customer rule 𒐪is in effect to prevent people from taking advantage of its exceptional generosity.

This Sky Bet welcome offer is available to all UK residents.

It’s important to note a couple of key things about the promotional offers at Sky Bet. The first is that all promotions are subject to change either wholly or in part. This means that we can only give you an idea of the kind of bonuses to expect as they may be adapted between the time of writing and your registration. That’s why we always recommend you check out those terms and conditions yourself.

𒅌 Furthermore, you may also get personalised promotions through your contact details, such as your email.

At the time of writing, there are enhanced accas, “#Request A Bet”, boosted odds on specific odds and markets, free bets, a Super Six Jackpot (where you can receive up to a quarter of a million pounds for guessing six correct scores), and free bets alongside that awesome welcome offer.

🅰 Important too, is that Sky Bet really make an effort to utilise exciting new sporting events as a basis for new offers, meaning they are as creative as they are valuable.

VIP/Loyalty Service

In addition to the many amazing promotions provided by Sky Bet, there is also the Sky Bet Club, where you can choose a weekly reward on top of all the other goodies.

These options include free bets, free spins and in-play free bets. Each requires a minimum of £25 bet,ౠ which is so much less than comparable loyalty schemes that often price themselves out of being accessible to many users.

🍎 This cements Sky Bet’s status as a betting site which provides amazing promotional value for all players, not just the high rollers.

Sports

🔯 We’ve discussed the immensity of the selection at Sky Bet and there really is no better example than pre-match sports markets. Although Sky Bet is only currently available in the UK and Ireland, that doesn’t stop the market variety from being truly international.

The likes of aussie rules betting and NFL betting join UK classics like horse racing betting and UK football betting for a truly complete sports betting experience. Because of the depth at which these are covered, you can expect several dozen markets on key events, as well as all kinds of lesser-known leagues.

There’s also plenty of creativity in those markets, with great specials from tournament winners to the transfer market. The odds quality is strong too.

Utilising the overround – which is the amount of all markets converted to a percentage to show the bookmakers margin, we found them to be very competitive, with three markets coming at between 103-107%. For instance, a match between Man City and Chelsea had an overround of 105%, below many competitors.

🐈 There’s also immense statistical detail including line-ups, team, player stats, as well as things like pitch details and relevant previous results.

While we can say that they have a reputation for having very high maximum amountsꦓ, this is at the discretion of the bookmaker and can change with the individual event based on market liquidity. This remains the case for all subsequent forms of betting as well.

Esports

At the time of writing, we found Dota 2, CS:GO, Rainbow Six, and Halo all available with markets from all around the world. The number of submarkets very much depends on the individual game, but as an example, a game between Invictus Gaming and EHOME had 23 markets to choose from – much more than average for this kind of betting.

We checked several markets for margins, that particular match, for instance, came out at around 106%, which is around typical as we tended to see them around the 105% to 108ꦉ% overround mark. This is especially good when you consider that many operators provide lesser odds on esports than traditional markets. We are happy to say that this does not appear to be the case here.

Other Specials

✨ The creativity we’ve seen from Sky Bet may be their most underrated element, from interesting promotions to great sports specials. In addition to them are also non-sports related specials, which can cover pretty much anything they think interesting to the user.

🐼 Typical examples available at the time of writing include Dancing On Ice winners, as well as the next James Bond. There were dozens of markets across these other specials overall. Again, maximum stakes here entirely depend on the individual market.

Cash-Out & Bet Builder

Sky Bet is a cash-out betting site, with the feature broadly available across all sorts of sports markets🙈. However, it is entirely down to them which markets they choose to make available for cash-out.

It is also available on accumulators, and the maximum cash-out amount is £500,000💦 on any single bet or acca. There does not appear to be any partial cash-out or auto cash-out at the time of writing, however, its use is both broad and the cash offered generous, which we think will make up for it for most people.

﷽ In addition, there’s a bet builder available on the bet builder app. You can also “#Requestabet” through their Twitter account, so almost any market you can think of can be made available at Sky Bet.

While there is no guarantee your suggestions will be accepted, it is likely so long as they are reasonable. They are broadly considered one of the finest request a bet sites out there.

ꦗ As impressive as the pre-match offering for Sky Bet is, their live selection might be even better. You can tell just how proud they are of their live selection as in-play betting options are often the first advertised.

The selection of betting markets is as immense as its pre-match counterparts. 𒐪There’s virtually no difference between the number of submarkets and sports available between pre-match and live betting, except where it is logically impossible (such as for an Oscar winner or for first half betting during the second half of a contest).

Best of all, though, is the excellence of the live coverage.

🍨 First off, live streaming is available on an awesome number of contests, from horse racing to the likes of the Indian Super League and international tennis matches. It appears there’s about as much live streaming coverage as would be logistically and legally possible.

ꦬ Beyond that, there’s also excellent graphical and statistical coverage. Even if you can’t watch a game, they make sure you can follow the contest in impressive detail.

To cut to the chase, the security at Sky Bet is exceptional.

Let’s start off with licensing. They are covered in Great Britain through their licence with the UK Gambling Commission and elsewhere through the Alderney Gambling Control Commission.

Beyond that, your details are kept safe via Verisign SSL technology.

ౠ The privacy policy is comprehensive and fair, and they also go above and beyond many other competitors in helping you understand any key points which may have an impact on your privacy.

Their responsible gaming efforts are also praiseworthy, allowing you to set deposit limits, activate cool-off periods, self-exclude from some or all betting products, set reality checks♊ to manage your time spent gambling, alongside advice and outside gambling support.

Sky Bet even allow you to break down your losses and profits for a bird's eye view of your activity. Back all this up with a solid reputation and a simple complaints procedure through the dedicated email ([email protected]ꦜ) and we have as complete an operator in this regard as we have come across.

A great betting site does not always mean great customer service, so we were relieved to discover that not only does Sky Bet have excellent help information – both detailed and easy to understand, but also round-the-clock customer service. There are a few key ways of getting in touch with customer service, the most prominent of which is live chat.

As you can see, live chat is available 24/7🍬. They always responded instantly, night or day, across the multiple times we tested them, and were able to answer our questions each time. This was also the case when it came to the mobile app.

Another key option is email – this is perfect if you want a more permanent record of communication with the site. They state that their aim is to get back in touch within 72 hours🐽, but we found them able to respond within an hour, and got a very comprehensive answer to some more complicated questions.

⛄ They also have a phone number. However, this was not available due to staff working remotely as a result of the pandemic. All we can say is that it would typically, according to customer service, also be available 24/7.

In both options and execution, we consider Sky Bet's customer service to be exceptional.

𓃲 In terms of looks, the only objective criticism we have of Sky Bet is that some may find it’s a little busy to begin with. However, considering the immense amount of betting options and promotions which need to be fit into a page of theirs, this is something that can hardly be avoided beyond a certain point.

Within a small amount of time though, we think most will get over the initial barrage of options and find Sky Bet to be one of the most user-friendly betting sites out there. This is incredibly important for sports fans to make the most of the excellent variety of markets as well as the great statistical details and live streaming options.

Speaking of live streaming, we also found the site to be pretty much flawless from a technical perspective൲. It’s only available in English, but that’s understandable considering it is primarily available in the UK.

﷽ A site with great design makes its mammoth content easy to swallow.

Everything we’ve tested in this review so far was also tested extensively on mobile๊, which we are happy to say more than lives up to the standards set by its desktop bigger brother.

Available on both the Apple and Google Play store🎐, they are the perfect miniature version of what we have explored thus far. No stone appears left unturned in terms of bringing all those markets and promotions to the app. And not only do they succeed in making the mobile experience work, but we would also say in some design areas it is even better, even more intuitive, than the already excellent desktop counterpart.

It appears too, that our feelings are not unique, as the app also has some of the best reviews of any operators we’ve seen across both Android and iOS platforms. And we agree, it is one of the best betting apps out there.

൩ Our review is all about the sportsbook, so this won’t count towards our rating. We are of course aware that plenty of our readers are looking for a sportsbook that can also be a jack of all betting trades.

🅰 Well, Sky Bet should more than have you covered.

Their casino is one of the best in the business, from its amazing selection of slots to live casino. This excellence is kept up with on Sky Bingo – an immense showcase for their scale and technical prowess. The same could be said for Sky Poker♎, which has dedicated software and tournaments aimed at taking on the industries juggernauts.

The only thing we would say is missing would be a dedicated betting exchange. Beyond that, Sky Bet has pretty much everything you could want covered to an incredibly high standard.

💮 And those looking beyond the sportsbook need not miss out on promotions either, with a huge roster of promotional options for all kinds of betting.

♓ Sky Bet presents itself as a true everyman of an operator, dedicated proudly to the mainstream UK and Irish betting markets. Their variety is immense, but they aren’t offering anything especially niche.

However, most bettors will find plenty to love here. A broad appeal also does not mean mediocrity, as there are many areas in which Sky Bet is exceptional🌃. Just look at the sheer variety of markets, the extent of the live coverage and the excellence of the promotions.

🌃 Perfect for the casual user, but with enough scope for higher rollers, we can recommend Sky Bet to pretty much anyone looking for a mainstream sportsbook experience and who are happy to use debit cards for banking.