All About English Bookmakers

English bookmakers are among the pioneers in the bookmaker market. It was in England that bookmaking on horse racing and sports initially began. Some English bookmakers have been around for over a century and are trusted not only in their own country but also abroad, mainly because they are extremely reliable and offer competitive MansionBet betting odds.

The UK decided to legalize the bookmaking business when the Gambling Commission was established. The same year, a law regulating commercial gambling was passed. The Commission was also given authority to regulate the National Lottery in the Commission in that year.

On this site, we provide the ranking of the best English bookmakers and UK-wide bookmakers. All the bookmakers featured in our list are licensed within the UK and are entitled to work on the territory of the country. In this article, we will describe why English bookmakers are so widely spread, outline the quality of their markets and odds, and briefly define the most popular and desired bookmakers in the region.

Pros and Cons of English Bookmakers

English bookmakers are market leaders in contemporary gambling. They are renowned for their trustworthiness, huge bonus schemes, and high standards market coverage. Let's discuss each of these dimensions in greater detail.

Licensing and Reliability:

As mentioned earlier, British bookmakers' operations are overseen by the UK Gambling Commission. This organization not only oversees their business but also fines or suspends licenses in case of default. Therefore, reliability is ensured at every stage of their business—be it quick deposits and payouts or ensuring the safety of personal information.

Match Selection:

English bookmakers typically offer lines on at least 30 sports. The range of betting varies from conventional results to specialized markets. Special attention is given to sports most popular in the UK: football, golf, horse racing, greyhound racing, darts, and snooker. In addition, a wide variety of non-sport bets are possible, including on politics, culture, show business, and even on the royal family. English bookmakers do not, though, have the best odds—margins are generally higher than market average. The only exception is the very highly rated betting exchange Betfair, which does not use traditional bookmaker margins and allows users to determine their own odds—making it possible to get very high payouts.

Bonuses:

Not all bettors are interested in bonuses when choosing a bookmaker. But if you are a bonus hunter, English bookmakers' promotional offers will be of the most interest to you. Useful fact: read attentively the terms and conditions of the bonus programs, as the majority of offers relate to UK residents only.

Regulation of Bookmakers

Gambling in the UK is regulated by the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) for the benefit of the government's Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) under the Gambling Act. This Act introduced a new structure of protection of children and vulnerable adults, and also regulated online casinos.

During autumn, the UK Gambling Commission began working together with Facebook to provide guidance on restricting and regulating gambling advertisements within the platform. The Commission developed a set of user guidelines (Advertising Technology Challenge) that would help establish news feeds and restrict potential harm caused by gambling advertisements. It also worked with Twitter to create similar guidelines. Besides that, in October, anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing laws were amended, requiring operators to perform electronic identity verification on their clients.

How British Players Fund Their Accounts

E-wallets are an excellent option for gamblers due to how fast transactions clear. Withdrawal from an account to a bank may take up to five business days, which is not good if you're transferring between gambling accounts. Withdrawal to e-wallets will only take less than 24 hours, so you can withdraw from one gambling account and deposit to another on the same day using the same funds.

A further advantage of employing e-wallets is cashback. Registration via a company like E-Wallet Optimizer allows you to receive cashback on your e-wallet dealings with Neteller, Skrill, and ecoPayz at higher rates—boosting your overall expected value (EV) from the betting deals you participate in.

Other benefits include immediate Silver VIP status, cashback on all trading transactions and personal online assistance via Skype. These rewards are yours whether you're a current or new e-wallet client. Click on the links above to learn more.