Best Football Betting Sites in UK 2024

We’ve shown you our list of the top football betting sites, but why have we included them and why should you believe what we say?

MansionBet has built a reputation as one of the most trustworthy betting brands in the UK – we know what punters want and are committed to helping you beat the bookies. 

To make it onto our list, football betting sites must excel in the following categories.

• Football Bonuses & Promotions: From sign-up offers to ongoing promotions, the best betting sites should have a wide range of deals available for new and existing customers.
• Football Markets, Bet Types & Odds: Online bookies must offer comprehensive market coverage, loads of different bet types and competitive odds to make it onto our list of top football betting sites.
• Betting Features: We love to see features such as Bet Builders, Cash Out, In-Play Betting and Live Streaming included on the sites we recommend.
• Mobile Apps: The best football betting sites provide punters with the opportunity to wager via standalone sports betting apps.
• Licensing & Regulation: Any football betting site that is not fully licensed and regulated to offer its services in the UK is immediately barred from inclusion on our list.

How do we Check?

Our impartial experts put themselves in a punter’s shoes by opening a betting account, making a deposit and placing some bets.

We test out elements such as withdrawal times and customer support to ensure that they match up to our expectations.

MansionBet UK does not get paid to put betting sites on our list – each one should meet and maintain the standards we require to ensure you get the maximum enjoyment out of football betting.

We’ve already highlighted our top football betting sites – here’s a closer look at what each one has to offer.

Now we’ve shown you where to find the best football betting sites, it’s time to open an account with at least one bookmaker.

Make sure the sites you choose are fully licensed and regulated to offer their services in the UK, and check out what customer service options are available.

All of the sites we recommend make it easy to sign-up – just click on the link at the top of the home page, enter a few personal details and make a deposit.

Make sure that you enter any applicable bonus codes if requested to ensure that you receive your welcome offer after signing up.

Once you’ve completed the sign-up process, click on the ‘football’ link in the sports betting menu and search for the games you want to wager on.

When you’ve found the market you want click your selection(s), enter your stake in the betting slip and confirm the bet.

Is it Legal to Bet on Football?

Yes. The football betting sites we recommend are fully licensed and regulated to operate in the UK. This information can generally be found in the footer on each site.

Contacting Customer Support

There may be occasions when you need to have queries answered, so always test a betting site’s customer support options before signing up.

They should ideally have 24/7 live chat, a telephone helpline and email support to ensure that any issues are resolved in a timely manner.

Generally speaking, the most popular football betting UK markets are as follows:

• Ante-post: If you think you can predict the outcome of leagues and competitions in advance, the ante-post markets can be the key to securing massive returns.
• Match betting: One of the most common football bets – simply wager on the outcome of a single match. Home, away or draw? You decide!
• First goalscorer: Another marker that has the potential to deliver decent returns. Just select which player will score the first goal in a match.
• Both teams to score: Not sure who will win the game? Betting on both teams to score gives you an interest in the match for the whole 90 minutes. 

Bet Types

Here’s a look at the most common bet types in football:

• Single: Bet on one selection in an event.
• Double: Pick two selections for the chance of bigger returns.
• Treble: Unsurprisingly, a bet involving three selections.
• Accumulator: Feeling brave? Piece together four selections or more and give yourself the opportunity to bash the bookies.

 One of the key considerations when choosing a football betting site is determining whether the odds are competitive.

It is highly unlikely that you will find one bookmaker who offers the best odds on every single game, so do not be afraid to shop around.

Opening accounts with more than one site is a great way to ensure you grab the best value and maximise your chances of making a profit.

For example, let’s say you were thinking about backing Germany to win the World Cup.

They are available at 9/1 in the ante-post market with several leading bookies and 11/1 elsewhere.

A £10 bet at 9/1 would return £100, while the same stake at the higher odds would pay £120. That £20 difference in returns is well worth grabbing!

It is worth noting that we take odds into account when recommending UK football betting sites to save you plenty of time and effort.

The best football betting sites have a wide range of special features which are designed to boost your enjoyment of wagering on the platform.

We love to see loads of football betting offers and free football bets on sportsbooks in the UK, both for new and existing customers.

One of our favourite features is football live betting, which allows punters to make wagering decisions as the action unfolds.

If a site also offers live streaming of football games, they are guaranteed to garner positive comments from our reviewers.

Features such as Cash Out, Bet Builders and Acca Boosts also help to take the football betting experience to another level.

Mobile betting apps, 24/7 live chat support and rewards programmes are amongst the other features we like to see on sites.

Safety & Security

We take safety and security seriously at MansionBet UK, so you can be sure that the sites we recommend use the latest encryption technology to keep your data safe.

You can check the security status of any online bookmaker by clicking the padlock icon located next to the site’s URL address.

 All of the top football betting sites offer bonuses and promotions to entice punters into wagering with them. Here’s a look at some of the top welcome bonuses:

• 10bet: Get a 50% matched bonus up to £50.
• Boylesports: Up to £25 in free bets when you sign-up.
• 888sport: Place your first £10 bet and earn £30 in free bets plus a £10 casino bonus.
• Betzone: Get up to £60 in free sports bets plus casino free spins.

The best betting sites also offer punters a vast array of ongoing promotions. Our favourite football related deals are as follows:

• Boosted Odds: Taking advantage of enhanced odds on individual games or accumulators is a great way to boost your winning returns.
• Money Back: One of the most common money back offers is ‘Bore Draw’, which returns your stake on single bets if a game ends without a goal.
• Free Bets: These are generally awarded as part of sign-up deals or to reward punters who regularly wager on a football betting site.

Before taking advantage of any bonuses or promotions, always check out the small print to make sure any wagering requirements attached to them are achievable.

 The football betting sites we recommend offer a range of different ways you can deposit money and make withdrawals.

It is important to check whether these suit your needs before signing up for an account, particularly with regards to fees and timescales.

We favour sites that do not apply any additional fees to payment transactions. We also expect to see deposits processed instantly and withdrawals take no more than a couple of days to be paid out.

The more popular payment methods are as follows:

• Debit Cards: Visa and Mastercard remain the go-to payment method for many UK punters.
• e-Wallets: Options such as PayPal, Skrill and Neteller add an additional layer of security when making payments online.
• Mobile Payments: Apple Pay and Samsung Pay are amongst the mobile payment options that have become increasingly prevalent on football betting sites.

Payouts

As we mentioned a little earlier, it should take no more than a couple of working days for a withdrawal to hit your original payment method.

Some sites have started to introduce same day payouts, which is great for punters who don’t want to waste time waiting for their winnings.

 The boom in popularity of football betting can partly be attributed to improvements in Wi-Fi connectivity and smartphone technology.

The earliest betting sites were only accessible on desktop or laptop, but the landscape has changed massively in recent years.

It is now possible to place football bets 24/7/365 via smartphones and tablets, with all of the leading bookmakers optimising their sites to work on smaller devices.

Many have gone the extra mile by investing significant resources into developing standalone sports betting apps.

These can be downloaded via links on their website or by searching for the bookmaker in your favourite app store.

Football betting apps are easy to download and generally contain all the same features you would find on desktop or laptop.

This includes in-play betting and live streaming, meaning punters can place football bets and follow the action whenever and wherever they want.

There are several strategies you can use for UK football betting and one of our favourites has its roots in a famous casino system.

Adapting the Martingale System to exploit the draw odds in the match betting market guarantees a profit if you rigidly follow the strategy.

Generally speaking, the draw odds in any football match are never less than 2/1. They can sometimes be higher, which can general even bigger returns.

In this example we will use Chelsea’s 2021/22 Premier League fixtures to demonstrate how this system can generate a healthy profit.

You start by placing a £10 draw bet on the first game against Crystal Palace. Chelsea won 3-0, so your initial bet is a loser.

The next bet would be doubled to £20 on Chelsea to draw at Arsenal. The Blues triumphed 2-0, which means you are now £30 out of pocket.

Your next bet would be £40 on Chelsea to draw at Liverpool. The game finished 1-1, giving you a return of £120 if we assume odds of 2/1.

This represents a profit of £50 on your overall outlay. At this point, you would start the system again with a £10 bet or simply keep what you have won.

Either way, following the strategy to the letter guarantees that you will eventually be in profit when a draw bet is successful.

Football Betting Tips

Recent form, team news, injuries and head-to-head record are amongst the elements you must consider before betting on football. 

How each team has performed over the past few games is a great place to start, but should not be the only factor that influences your wagers. 

It is important to bear in mind that favourites do not always win and there are several ways you can identify when it is most likely to happen. 

For example, checking out the team news and injuries is a great place to start. If a big team has rotated their squad or has key players injured, this may be a good opportunity to back the outsider. 

Previous meetings between the two teams are also worth studying. Some teams find selected opponents tough to play against, so keep an eye out for these instances. 

As with any type of wagering, make sure you always keep your discipline and never bet more than you can afford to lose when betting on football. 

⛔ What to Avoid

One of the biggest mistakes we see punters make when betting on football is being too ambitious with multiple bets.

While it may be tempting to try and land a 12-team accumulator, the odds tell you just how difficult it is to achieve the feat.

To increase your chances of landing a successful multiple, limit yourself to the three or four selections you are confident about.

The top football betting sites offer comprehensive coverage of several major leagues and competitions. Our favourites are as follows:

World Cup: Held every four years, the World Cup determines the best international team on the planet.

Champions League is the top ranked tournament for clubs in Europe.

Premier League: The English top flight is one of the most competitive leagues in the world.

La Liga: Dominated by Real Madrid and Barcelona, La Liga is the top level of professional football in Spain.

Bundesliga: The highest professional league in Germany.

Serie A: AC Milan, Inter Milan and Juventus are amongst the best teams in Italy’s top league.

You’ve now got all the information you need about betting on football including where to find the best sites and how to make a profit.

By using the sites we have recommended, you can significantly boost your enjoyment of wagering on the world’s greatest sport.

Don’t be afraid to open more than one betting account, as this will help you grab the best odds and give you access to more bonuses and promotions.

Make sure you keep an eye on MansionBet UK, as we regularly update our site with the latest information about football betting sites.