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How to choose a bookmaker

milaeryomina

Sports betting comes with a certain amount of risk. Especially if you use the services of an online bookmaker. The list of offices working via the Internet is great. There are both reputable companies that have been working for more than 20 years, and young projects. Which one to pay attention to? How important is reputation, what nuances do you need to know?
The article is aimed at beginners and contains the basics - recommendations that will seem obvious to some players. But, we hope, it will be useful for experienced bettors as well.

Do I have to bet with a legal bookmaker?
Not every country will be able to find a bookmaker office with a local license. But nobody knows who should not trust money. There are dozens of scammers working online who block accounts and steal personal information of clients. Therefore, we advise you to choose among companies operating legally, albeit under a license from another state.

A bookmaker with a UK license looks perfect. This is where the gambling industry is best regulated. The players are well protected, and the offices have enough freedom to offer betters a good line. 


But not everything is so simple. The UK has the most expensive license (up to £ 75,000), high annual fees (around £ 155,000). For young bookmakers, this is an unbearable amount, and for many companies with a proven track record. The second problem is line restrictions. For example, in the United Kingdom, betting on competitions involving minors is prohibited. Youth, many amateur leagues are banned.

An alternative is a license from one of the offshore zones. For example, MostBet operates under the jurisdiction of Curacao (Autonomy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands). The company withdraws winnings of even five to ten thousand dollars within an hour. She created her own page on the Rating of Bookmakers - an independent portal with reviews of bookmakers. Serves as a regulator between the players and the bookmaker. This is not IBAS (a British independent regulator, something like an SRO), but it helps in resolving disputes.

The speed of withdrawal of winnings is also not in favor of legal bookmakers. For example, PinUp, MostBet process applications within an hour. 1Xbet - during the day. With legal Bet365, withdrawal takes from 3 to 5 days.

Note! Most companies have almost the same limits. The minimum deposit is from 2 to 10 dollars, the request for withdrawal is from 4 to 10. The maximum is from 5,000 to 10,000 dollars in one payment. Limits can be cut for players in case of violation of the bookmaker's rules.

Odds
It seemed that in a competitive environment, the level of coefficients for different offices should be approximately the same. In practice, the spread reaches 10-15%. The question is especially relevant for arbers - players who bet on opposite outcomes of the same event from different bookmakers ..

For reference. A fork is an arbitrage situation when you can bet on opposite outcomes of one event and get a guaranteed profit. For example, for team 1 and team 2 to win, or total over 2.5 and under 2.5 for different offices. 

We do not encourage you to play with surebets. Many bookmakers consider this strategy to be fraudulent and block the accounts of surebets. But the size of the coefficients affects the earnings when using other strategies. For a unit rate of a couple of dollars, the difference will not be significant. But with a series of dozens of bets ...
For example, for the victory of one athlete at different bookmakers, the coefficient can be 1.7 and 1.85. Even betting only $ 10, you can lose (in case of winning): 10 * 1.85-10 * 1.7 = $ 1.5. After 20-30 bets, $ 30-45 is collected. Up to $ 400 a year - you can miss that much if you just choose the wrong office. And this is the amount that a beginner player will lose. For professional bettors, the loss will be in the thousands.

The level of the coefficients depends on the following factors:

margin (bookmaker's remuneration), for offshore companies starts from 1-2%, for offices with a British license - from 5-6%;
kind of sport, or rather interest in it. Lowest margin (= best odds) on soccer. But this is not an axiom. For example, bookmakers in the USA have better conditions for baseball, basketball, and Indian offices for cricket;
from the activity of betters - in order not to be at a loss, the offices make an adjustment for the volume of bets. For example, before a match in the AFC Cup, gamblers can bet large sums on the victory of their own team, even if it is an outsider. The result is a shift in the odds and the opportunity to earn more by betting on the favorite;
The market in which the bookmaker operates. Companies that initially target the CIS market have higher coefficients for local leagues than Western firms.

How the coefficients differ for different offices can be seen on the example of the confrontation between Nasaf and Navbahor in the Super League of Uzbekistan. The English bookmaker Bwin has odds: 1.75 x 3.50 x 4.00. The office's margin is 10.7%. The offshore company PinUp - 8.4% (1.92 x 3.55 x 3.55), MostBet - 8.0% (1.95 x 3.39 x 3.67). Due to the different odds, it is more profitable for the fans of Navbahor to bet with a UK-licensed office, despite the higher margin. If you want to support Nasaf, then the likely winning on the MostBet official website is 10% more. On one $ 10 bet, you will earn $ 2 more if you choose the right office ($ 19.5 vs. $ 17.5).

Offshore offices win in terms of odds and in the European TOP championships. For example, in the meeting between Manchester City and Arsenal, Bwin has a margin of 5.7% (1.34 x 5.25 x 8.25). MostBet has 2.1% (1.38 x 5.77 x 8.11). The most favorable conditions are at 1xbet with a commission of 1.9% (1.38 x 5.8 x 8.2).

Line
You don't have to choose an office with hundreds of sports. It is much more important to have the championship you need, especially if your favorite team does not play in the top championship.

For example, bookmakers focused on Europe or the USA (Betfair, 888 Sport, Marathon, Bet365) lack the championships of most CIS countries or only the top-rated games are included in the line. Here you will not meet the Superleague of Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan. If, for example, Bwin has them, then the list is disappointing - 50-60 markets. In contrast to 1Xbet, even at the meetings of the middle peasants of 450-500 markets. MostBet has about 400.

Bonuses
Bookmakers with offshore licenses from Curacao, Gibraltar and Malta win in terms of bonuses. For example, the offices licensed by the Gambling Commission of the United Kingdom offer free bets (from Bwin) or a bonus of 20-30 euros (from Bet365) as a gift to new betters. 1xbet has 100% up to 100 euros. But here it is important to look at the root - not at the number of dollars that are offered to you, but at whether they can actually be used.

For example, at 1xbet, bonuses can be used only after wagering, and for this you need to add to your account an amount of at least five times more than the gift. Reputable firms have fewer hidden conditions, but the shares look modest. Against this background, promotions from MostBet with an offshore license Antillephone (Curacao) look great.

MostBet gives a welcome bonus of 100 to 250% (during holidays and special events) up to $ 300. This is a real gift, not a fiction. You can play with the money from the bonus account as for real and withdraw all the won funds (credited to the main balance) without restrictions.

The bonus can be wagered with a wager x5 (bet on express bets of at least 3 events with a coefficient of at least 1.4 each) and withdrawn to the map. Active for 30 days from the date of accrual. To receive a gift, you need to make a deposit of any amount from 2 dollars or euros. The company distributes gifts to active players (freebets, birthday bonuses), holds prize draws (smartphones and cars).

How comfortable is it to play?
A well-designed interface speeds up the search for the desired event, which is especially important for betters who prefer to bet live.

Next, we will consider the criteria that affect the convenience of betting.

Interface (design) of the site
It is easy to navigate sports and championships at 1Win, Bwin, Bet365, Marathon. 1xbet, MostBet has a “Bet on friendly” function - the championships of the selected country will be displayed first in the line. The Uzbek language is available. A bit confusing usability at William Hill, Betfair.

Account currency
This is not critical, but it is more convenient when you can wager the account in your native currency and replenish the balance, withdraw the winnings without conversion (for some systems, the difference reaches 4-5% not in your favor). Most companies with licenses from the USA and the European Union have a choice of dollars, euros, francs, Norwegian, Swedish kronor, pounds. The largest selection of currencies (over 60) at 1Xbet, MostBet.

One click bet
Including the ability to collect express trains. The function is implemented by most bookmakers. It is difficult to single out someone.

Statistics
Allows you to assess the state of the teams, their chances of winning, performance and adjust the rate. Here British bookmakers stand out positively. For example, Bet365, in addition to the results of the last games, the average performance and the history of face-to-face confrontations (all offices offer this information), publishes news of the sports world (transfers, injuries, press conferences), reviews, analysts' forecasts. Offers a large number of broadcasts online.

Mobile app
Most bookmakers have programs for Android, iOS copying a mobile site. MostBet stands out against this background with a well-designed interface and additional functions: notifications, tooltips. There are bonuses and special promotions for players playing from a smartphone. 

PC application
There are few bookmakers. Most often, they are a browser with direct access to the bookmaker's website (you cannot visit other services) and a built-in proxy to bypass blocking. The best PC app from 1Xbet is 1XBET ACCESS. The program always gets access through the working mirror. The redesigned interface allows you to quickly find an event. The optimized engine ensures fast loading even on slower PCs.

MostBet took a slightly different path. Instead of a PC program, the company launched a website based on SPA technology (one-page interface). It works like a mobile application - all data with scripts is loaded once and then you can use the service as a program. It loads quickly even on a slow Internet, does not require the installation of separate programs.

Mirrors
This is the alternate domain name (website address). Through it, you can access the resource from the country if the main URL is blocked by the provider. Most European companies licensed from Britain, the USA, the Netherlands do not care about mirrors - they work with certain markets. At the same time, in many regions, their portals, despite their good reputation, remain blocked.

The mirrors at the offices with offshore licenses are regularly updated. For example, at MostBet, they are attached in every email message from the administration, in every post in the Telegram channel.

Yes, there is no one-size-fits-all bookmaker. Someone needs high odds, a good line or easy access to the service. For others, it is possible to bet on your favorite team. We hope these recommendations will help you make the right choice with the choice of the office.