Live Sports Betting at its Best

Along with mobile gaming, live betting is a real game changer that brings together the excitement of betting on sports with the ability to react in real-time to maximise your chance of winning. Live betting (also called in-play) has the thrill factor which simply didn’t exist five years ago and will take your betting to the next level.

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We all have gut feelings, we all have those moments when we just know something is going to happen. Whether that is the identity of the next goal scorer, a sending off, a rank outsider horse winning or even who will get the next point in a tennis match. Live betting lets you turn these gut feelings into cash.

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I am an avid football bettor and one of the biggest frustrations for me personally when betting on football was never knowing what players would be picked, that used to impact greatly when betting on the first goal scorer.

On quite a few occasions I would pop to the bookmakers on my lunch break and place a bet for an evening kick off only to find later that the star striker was on the bench or the manager was putting out a weakened side. Live betting has totally changed the way I play, very often now I won’t place a bet for the first 10 minutes so I can get a feel for the match and judge my bets accordingly.

Overview of the Top Live Sport Betting Sites in the UK

There are hundreds if not thousands of sites out there that all promise to deliver the best live betting experience and quite often there are subtle differences between them which can affect the enjoyment you have. But don’t worry! We have played on all the best (and worst) sites and will share this knowledge with you so you can make an informed choice on what site to use.

888sport live betting
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888sport is our top choice for live betting, as you can see by the screenshot, the interface is great in its simplicity. Even on a mobile or any device with a smaller screen it is so easy to see the available markets and the bigger sized buttons mean even people with fat fingers like I have can make selections quickly. The action in the match is shown as a graphical representation of the pitch with events in the game clearly highlighted. Stats on the game are shown as small but useful icons.

Ladbrokes live betting
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There was very little in it for our battle for top 2, there is a lot to really like from Ladbrokes offering! The visual depiction of the event is excellent with all the action being shown with graphics is both informative and somewhat hypnotic. Stats fans will love the fact that all key information is available at a glance and Ladbrokes even break down the attacks into normal attacks and dangerous attacks, this really helps predicting if a goal is likely. The downside is that the grey buttons to make selections are rather dull and uninspiring but at least there is a gap between the buttons.

What Can I Bet on With Online Live Betting?

There is very little that you cannot bet on! For football matches the range of bets is huge, even for a Vietnamese Women’s football match you will find at least 30 markets to play on. Let’s have a look at some of the most popular online sports for betting and the types of bets you can place at online bookmakers.

Football In-play Betting

Bet Type Description
Result Predict if the game will be a win for a team or if a draw will happen.
Both Teams to Score Simple and popular bet, will both teams score, yes or no?
Draw no Bet Pick a team to win, if the match ends in a draw you get your stake refunded.
Match result with BTTS Both teams to score and the team selected to win.
Handicap Betting A team is given a head start, the odds will increase the more of handicap you give.
Total Goals A very popular bet, a simple under or over of a certain amount of goals.
Correct Score With this bet you predict the exact score at end of normal time.
Half Time / Full Time You predict what will be the outcome at both halftime and fulltime.
Total Goals Odd/ Even Will the full time score consist of an even or odd number?
Half with Most Goals Will the first or second half see more goal action?

It’s worth mentioning that the markets are heavily increased for major football matches, for example if Liverpool were playing Manchester United then you would see markets for next goal scorer, a player to score 2 or more goals, the timings of the next goal and lot’s more.

Tennis In-play Betting at UK Betting sites

I am relatively new when it comes to betting on tennis but I found it surprisingly great fun to bet on! As points are won so quickly and often, it can almost feel like being on a slot machine as the action is so fast and furious.

Bet Type Description
Match Winner Which player will win the match?
Point Odds are shown for the players to win the next point.
Game Odds are shown for the players to win the next game.
Match Odds The same as the match winner bet.
Total Games How many games will be played in total, similar bet to the total goals in football. You are given a list of number of games and you decide if the total games played will be higher or lower than that total.
Game Handicap A player is given either a head start or a handicap.
Correct Score With this bet you predict the exact result of the match.
Total Points Another over/under bet on the total points in the match.
Set Winner The sets are listed, pick who you think will win that set.

Like football In-play betting, the range of bets and indeed the quality of coverage depends on the event. If it’s a Wimbledon match, then expect every single permutation of bets to be included and great In-play graphics showing you the action.

If the event is not as high profile, such as the Bangkok Open, then you will still have a wide range of bets available but possibly not the live graphics showing the action.

Cricket In-play at UK Bookies

Cricket has always been a firm favourite with statisticians and if you like your cricket then you will love betting with In-play, there are plenty of things to bet on!

Bet Type Description
Match Winner Which team will win the match?
Total Runs Over With this bet you decide if the total runs in an over are higher or lower than the number shown.
Draw no Bet If the match is drawn, your stake will be returned.
Boundary Will the batting team hit a boundary this over?
Wicket Will the fielding team claim a wicket this over?
Method of Dismissal (2way) A caught/not caught bet.
Method of Dismissal (6way) What will be the method that the next player is out? Caught, Leg before wicket, bowled, run out, stumped or “any other method” are your choices here.
Next Man Out The two batters are listed here and you select who you think will be out next.

For the big test matches, one day internationals or any match involving England really, you will see an increase in the markets available. You will be able to bet on the man of the match, fall of wickets betting, which team has the highest partnership, odds to score fifty runs and many more.

Why Should I Try In-play at Online Sports Betting Sites?

The quick and easy answer is that it is fun, the experience can differ depending what sport you are betting on. Tennis can be a frantic, all action affair. Whereas cricket can be more of a slower paced, strategic challenge.

My personal favourite is football and what I love is that you can use the constant changing of odds to your advantage. For example, let’s imagine that Chelsea are playing a lower league team in the FA cup.

The odds on Chelsea winning will be incredibly short, perhaps 1/10. I am watching the game and the underdog takes a surprise lead, (I say surprise but it happens very often) I still believe Chelsea will win and due to how in-play works, Chelsea’s odds will now be greatly increased. This is the moment I would place my bet, it doesn’t always work of course but has been a successful overall strategy for me in the past.

Greatest Comebacks – Our Picks;

Tottenham 3 Man Utd 5 Premier League 2001

  • Spurs were 3-0 up at half time and absolutely coasting it, 15 minutes with the very placid Alex Fergusson and a rejuvenated United score 5 in a 2nd half blitz. I would have loved to have a £10 bet on that result at half time.

Tranmere Rovers 4 Southampton 3 FA Cup 5th round replay 2001

  • Tranmere went on an incredible run in 2001, in the space of 18 months they had knocked out 9 Premier League clubs from cup competitions. However, it looked like that amazing run was over when they went in at the break 3-0 to Southampton. Four 2nd half goals put the Saints to the sword and the Merseyside club marched into the 6th round.

Newcastle 4 Arsenal 4 Premier League 2011

  • Another one from 2001, what a great season that was for action packed games! Arsenal in the first half were irresistible, looking like champions elect. 4-0 at half-time and you are flicking through the history books to find the biggest ever Premier League win, 45 minutes later and as Cheik Tiote later said about his 87th minute equaliser, “It is the greatest goal I’ve ever scored and the greatest moment of my career. Unbelievable. Incredible. Wow”.

Charlton 7 Huddersfield 6 Division 2 1957

  • I don’t pretend to remember this game as it was way before my time but what an incredible match it was! Left winger, Johnny Summers had scored a goal in the first half but Charlton were losing 5-1 on 60 minutes. To add insult to injury they were also a man down. Summers then scored four more goals and was involved in two others to clinch an historic 7-6 win for Charlton.

Reading 5 Arsenal 7 Carling Cup 4th round 2012

  • Nothing makes me smile quite as much as when supporters leave a game early and end up missing the most dramatic events that happen in the game! This is exactly what happened at a fourth round tie of the carling cup. At 4-1 down at halftime, many gooner fans had given up hope but a very late Theo Walcott equaliser took the game to extra time. The game looked destined for penalties but two quick goals gave the Gunners victory.

A word of warning, not even the greatest teams will always pull back a deficit and for the five examples above, I could list fifty that didn’t result in a turnaround but it does happen and boy does it taste sweet when it comes good.

Conclusion – Best Online Sports Site for Live Betting

888sport narrowly took our crown for the best UK bookie offering live betting, we love the design and it works just as well on a mobile or tablet as it does on a laptop. A great welcome offer for new customers of treble the odds is the best in the business in our view, it means you can turn your skill into cold hard cash. Ladbrokes pushed 888sport all the way to the line and you could do a lot worse than signing up for them as well. With no wagering requirements, it adds a cherry on top of an already tasty treat.