Best Football Betting Sites in Ireland
Football betting is one of the most popular pursuits for people in Ireland. Along with horse racing, more bets are taken in by online and land-based bookies on football than any other sport. This guide compares the best Irish football betting sites with those international betting sites that are catering to Irish bettors. We will look at all of the best football free bet offers, sites with the best range of markets, as well as those that support local payment methods.
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- €20 risk free
- cash out
- Enhanced Odds
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- VIP rewards programme
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Bet €10 Get €50 Free Bet
Bet €10 Get €50 Free Bet
- Great for live betting
- Leading Irish bookmaker
- Lots of football promotions
Bet €20 And Get It Back If It Loses
Bet €20 And Get It Back If It Loses
- Ireland’s leading bookmaker
- Huge number of specials
- Ongoing promotions for existing customers
Bet €5, Get €20 in Free Bets
Bet €5, Get €20 in Free Bets
- Generous welcome offer
- Daily price boosts
- Thousands of daily in-play markets
Bet €10, Get €30 in Free Bets
Bet €10, Get €30 in Free Bets
- Excellent outright GAA odds
- Live GAA betting markets available
- Variety of ongoing promotions
100% First Deposit Bonus up to €100
100% First Deposit Bonus up to €100
100% First Deposit Bonus up to €100
100% First Deposit Bonus up to €100
Bet €10, Get €50 plus 10 free spins
Bet €10, Get €50 plus 10 free spins
- Live betting free bets available
- Regular GAA live markets
- Appealing in-play odds
50% First Deposit Bonus up to €50
50% First Deposit Bonus up to €50
- App features modern design
- Top live betting platform
- Available on iOS & Android
5% Deposit Bonus
5% Deposit Bonus
Up To €100 In Extra Winnings
Up To €100 In Extra Winnings
- Unique welcome offer
- Easy to use sportsbook
- Fully licensed and regulated
How we rank the best football betting sites
In order to filter through the countless football betting sites that are available to Irish bettors, we needed to develop a system for objectively reviewing each option. This means that we cover all important aspects of an offering, highlighting the strengths and weaknesses. Here is a look at some of the most important criteria that we look at:
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Range of Football Markets
We want to be sure that a given offering has a great range of football betting markets. As football betting is so popular, you will normally find that most bookies will have a diverse range of games. However, the difference often lies in the depth of the betting markets for these games. We want to be sure that we have access to all desirable betting markets. The Paddy Power football betting section has one of the best ranges of markets.
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Live Football Betting
Betting on football games after they have started is massively popular. This is why we make sure that a given football betting site has a good range of live betting options, including an ideal selection of different markets that quickly update. We also look to see what live betting features are available, such as up-to-date stats and live streaming capabilities. The Ladbrokes football betting live offerings is one of the best around.
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Competitive Odds
In order to maximize the return that you get from your winning football bets, you need to be getting the best odds. Certain bookies will generally have betting football betting odds than others. Therefore, we make sure that we are going to be getting value for our money when placing football wagers with a given platform. BoyleSports usually has competitive odds for football betting.
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Promotions and Free Bet Offers
Nearly every notable football betting site will have a welcome offer available to new signups. This will often be in the form of free football bets. We will assess the strength of this offer, as well as look to see how an operator regularly rewards its current player base. This includes making sure that there are regular promotions available on a week-to-week basis. Rabona often has frequent football-related offers.
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Payment Options
As a bettor, you want to be sure that you are going to easily add funds to an online betting account, as well as withdraw your winning as needed. With each betting site, we look to see what payment options are supported, as well as seeing if we can use Euros as our account currency. Another important consideration is seeing what the withdrawal times are like with a given operator. 10Bet has a good selection of payment options.
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Customer Support
While it is not often that we envisage running into problems with a sports betting account, issues do arise from time to time. Therefore, it is good knowing that you will be able to easily contact a help team if something happens. This means assessing the range of contact options that are on offer, as well as the customer support opening hours. LeoVegas always offers a great level of customer support.
Key Features of the Best Online Football Betting Sites
| Sportsbook | Live Betting | Live Streaming | Handicap Betting | Cashout | Bet Builder | Acca Insurance |
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| Ladbrokes | |
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| Rabona | |
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| LeoVegas | |
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Most popular football betting markets
There are perhaps more betting markets for football games than any other sport. This means that you are spoilt for choice when deciding what bets to place. Here is a look at some of the most popular football betting markets that you will come across:
1×2
This is the standard type of bet that you will place on a football match. This sees you betting on which team you think will win a fixture or if you think it will be a draw. If Barcelona is playing Real Madrid at the Nou Camp, Barcelona will be represented by ‘1’ (i.e. the home team), ‘x’ represents the draw, and ‘2’ represents Real Madrid (i.e. the away team). You will be betting on which one of these potential outcomes you think is going to happen.
Both Teams to Score (BTTS)
Another popular type of betting market is betting on both teams in a given fixture scoring. You are either choose the ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ option. This can be a good bet when two teams tend to score a lot of goals or if they have leaky defenses. Many bettors enjoy placing multiple bets, adding many BTTS wagers together. X is one of the leading bookies for BTTS bets.
Over/Under Goals
You have a lot of different options for over/under bets when it comes to football betting. One of the most popular types of over/under bets is for total goals scored in a game. You might be betting that there will be over/under 2.5 goals in a game between Ireland and Scotland.
Goalscorer Markets
There are many different types of goalscorer markets that you will see when placing football bets. You might want to bet on which player you think will score first in the game or just back a certain player scoring anytime during a given game. People who enjoy fantasy football betting will know all about goalscorer markets.
Correct Score
Trying to correctly predict the final score of a football match is a tall order, but it can pay off handsomely if you manage to get it right. This is why a lot of people try to successfully predict what the score by the end of the 90 minutes will be for a given fixture.
Half Time/Full-Time
Betting on the result of the game at both half time and full time is a popular type of wager. You will be able to bet on either of the two teams being ahead at a certain point, as well as the fixture being a draw.
Asian Handicap
Asian handicap markets are very common in football, applying a handicap to the favorite in a given fixture. This allows you to make the odds a bit better for a potentially mismatched game. For example, you might bet on Ireland at -1.5 goals to beat Andorra in a friendly game. This means that Ireland will need to win by at least two goals in order for your Asian handicap bet to be a winner.
Popular football betting promotions in Ireland
One of the most enjoyable aspects of having an account with a leading football betting site is getting your hands on free bets and other types of promotions. It is always nice to be able to get to play with the bookie’s money or to limit the downside of placing a given bet. Here are some popular types of football betting promotions you will come across:
Price Boosts
You will often get price boosts for particular events. This might be getting enhanced odds on Shane Long scoring a goal in a game against Wales. Other times you will get a price boost to your accumulator bets when you have a minimum number of selections in them.
Free Bets
From time to time, bookies will offer free bets to their bettors. This means that you will be getting a free bite of the cherry, using the house’s money to place a bet. You will usually get to keep the winnings of the free bet, but not the stake.
Risk-Free Bet
A risk-free bet sees you placing a wager on a given market with your own real money. However, if this bet turns out to be a loser, you will get your stake refunded to you in the form of a free bet.
Acca Insurance
Accumulator bets are extremely popular among football bettors. They put you in with a chance of winning huge sums with smaller stakes. Nothing is more frustrating than just one of your accumulator selections losing. Therefore, many bookies will offer you your money back if just one selection lets you down.
Moneyback Offers
Many of the best football betting sites in Ireland will have moneyback coffers from time to time. For example, they might give you your money back if Harry Kane is the first goalscorer when England plays Ireland in an international friendly. Sometimes this moneyback will be in the form of cash, while other times it will be as a free bet.
How to get the best football betting odds
Getting the most bang for your buck when engaging in football betting means always placing your bets at the best odds. This is something that is well within your control. The best way to do this is to have accounts with each of the leading football betting sites.
This means that for each bet that you place, you can make it with whichever platform currently offers the best possible odds. Here are a few of the football betting sites that tend to have the best football betting odds again and again:
- BoyleSports – Bet €10, Get €40 in Free Bets
- Ladbrokes – Bet €5, Get €20 in Free Bets
- Paddy Power – €10 Risk-Free First Bet
How to claim and wager football betting welcome bonus
The types of football betting welcome bonus offers that you come across will vary depending on the specific operator that you are going with. Each one will have its own distinct process, as well as different terms and conditions to take into consideration.
Sometimes you will need to enter a promo code when you are creating your new account or when making your first deposit in order to trigger the deal. Other sites ask you to opt-in through a link or some will just automatically apply the bonus. Here is a quick look at some of the best football betting welcome offers:
| Bookie | Football Welcome Bonus |
| Rabona | 100% First Deposit Bonus up to €100 |
| Betinia | 100% First Deposit Bonus up to €100 |
| QuinnBet | Bet €10, Get €50 +10 free spins |
There will also usually be certain other qualifying conditions that need to be met. These include making a deposit of a certain size, placing qualifying bets at certain odds, and using certain deposit methods. Paddy Power only requires a minimum deposit of €10, while Ladbrokes has nice and low qualifying bet odds. A lot of welcome offers for football betting sites allow you to keep the winnings, while some will require you to meet some wagering requirements before being able to cash out.
Here is a quick example of how to claim the welcome offer at Ladbrokes:
- Sign up for a new Ladbrokes account
- Place cumulative qualifying stakes to a total of €5 win or €5 each-way at odds totalling 1/2 or greater
- You will then immediately get 4 x €5 free bets
- There is a seven day time period to use the free bets
- You get to keep the winnings, not the free bet stakes
Football betting strategies
There are many different ways in which you can approach football betting. Some people prefer to take a more casual approach and just want to make games a bit more interesting by having some extra skin in the game. Other people want to maximize their chances of being profitable, so they incorporate certain strategies in an effort to achieve this end goal. Here is a quick look at some of the more popular types of betting strategy for football:
Over/Under Wagering
A lot of successful bettors focus most of their attention on over/under markets. This goes for betting on the number of goals in a given game or the number of corners, yellow cards, and so on. People will conduct extensive research on the historical performances of both the home and away teams to see what goalscoring trends pop up over time.
This includes taking into account previous head-to-head matchups between the two teams into account. These bettors will look at the frequency of games that fit a certain number of goals, rather than taking goal averages as this can skew the figures. Bettors will also take recent circumstances into account, such as recent goal-scoring, injuries to key players, and disputes within the camps.
Value Betting
Some bettors prefer to take a strategy of looking for value bets. This means that they are looking for certain types of wagers that they feel that the bookmakers have mispriced them. After doing their calculations, value bettors will place a bet when they see that the probability of a certain outcome happening is greater than what has been priced in by the bookie’s odds.
Arbitrage Betting
There are some bettors who are looking to look at mispricing between different bookies and take advantage of the discrepancies. This means that they can lock in profits without having to do too much. They might also use exchanges in order to achieve these outcomes. Advanced programs are often used by arbitrage bettors in order to find opportunities and to calculate what bets they need to place a what odd sin order to achieve a profit.
5 Ultimate Football Betting Tips
There are many different ways that you can approach football betting. Whatever the case may be, most people would prefer to win their bets. Here are a few general free football betting tips that you can keep in mind when you are next considering what types of wagers to place on certain fixtures:
Tip 1: Plenty of Homework
One of the most important aspects of placing football bets is making sure that you have done adequate research. By going the extra mile in this regard, you can greatly boost the chances of being successful. This means looking at all sorts of historical form between the two teams as well as seeing what the current form looks like. You want to keep an eye out for breaking news about injuries, suspensions, or internal disputes in the team environment that could unsettle a team. The goal is to do enough research that you are confident in your selections.
Tip 2: Get the Best Odds
One of the easiest tips to implement is making sure that you are always getting the best possible odds for a certain market. After you have done your research and decide on the wager you want to place, you can use the likes of an odds comparison site in order to see which operator has the best odds. This is why most serious bettors will have accounts with each of the best football betting sites in Ireland. They will always be able to get their bets placed at the best possible odds.
Tip 3: Take Advantage of Promotions
One of the best things about using online betting sites is that you will be able to usually get all sorts of deals and offers. They are not just reserved for new players, current account holders will also be treated to all sorts of rewards and offers. You should keep an eye out for any offers that allow you to downsize your risk for a given bet. This includes being able to place wagers using free bets or getting insurance on your bigger bets.
Tip 4: Don’t Focus on Accumulators
Accumulators are highly popular among football bettors. This is not surprising given how someone can win huge sums of money just off relatively low stakes. However, these are actually some of the most profitable types of bets for bookies and you will often not be getting the best value for your money. If you are placing multiples, it is usually advisable that you focus on no more than three or four selections at one time.
Tip 5: Watch Plenty of Football
In order to get the best grasp about what type of bets will be the ideal fit for certain games, it is good to watch as much football as possible. This will particularly help you if you are looking at placing live bets. You might spot certain trends that come up again and again. By noticing these patterns over time, you will be more likely to take advantage of them and make successful bets.
Football live betting + live streaming
Football live betting is very popular. No matter what time of the week it might be, you will nearly always have some sort of football match taking place somewhere in the world that you can place a bet on after it has started. The range of available markets will vary, but you often have ample opportunities to pace interesting wagers. You might spot trends during a game or have simply not managed to place a wager before the game started.
A lot of betting sites put a lot of time and energy into making their live betting offerings as good as possible. This means having fast-updating odds, real-time stats, as well as live streams of games. Oftentimes, you just need to have an account with a positive account balance in order to live stream a football game through a football betting site. Here are a few of the leading bookies with live football streaming in Ireland today:
| Bookie | Live Stream Qualifying Criteria |
| PaddyPower | Positive account balance |
| BoyleSports | Bet at least €1 on the game |
| Ladbrokes | Positive account balance |
Bet on football’s best leagues and competitions
There are so many great leagues and competitions that take place every year in football. From club leagues and cup competitions to international events, there is no shortage of great opportunities for you each and every week. Here are some of the most popular football competitions for betting purposes:
English Premier League
The English Premier League is the biggest league in world football. The best of the best get attracted to England in order to showcase their talents. Irish bettors will focus most of their attention on these games that take place during large portions of the year.
UEFA Champions League
As Europe’s premier cup competition, the best teams in the continent battle it out each season for the ultimate prize. With the world’s best players featuring, it is a great spectacle for football fans. This also means that there is a lot of betting taking place on these games each year.
International Games
Betting on international games is very popular in Ireland. Whether it is a World Cup or Euros qualifying game, a major tournament itself, or even just a friendly, there will be a lot of support for placing bets on internationals.
Football betting predictions
These days, you will come across a lot of people who are providing tips on football games. These are most prevalent on social media channels like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. You need to be careful about following too many of these pages.
While some of them have hot runs of form, oftentimes it can be luck-based. It can be useful seeing what former players and expert commentators have to say about a particular fixture, but it is best that you use this as part of your decision-making, rather than letting someone completely decide on your bets for you.
Bottom line
Football betting is hugely popular in Ireland today and it is well supported by the best football betting sites. You have access to tons of great markets, bonuses, and platforms. No matter what your needs, there is a great football betting site out there for you to sign up to today.
Bet €10 Get €50 Free Bet
Bet €10 Get €50 Free Bet
- 3/1 combined odds for Acca Insurance
- Generous new customer welcome offer
- Daily specials available on many sports
FAQs
What does ‘Cash Out’ mean?
Cash out is an option that most football betting sites offers these days. It gives you the ability to cash out of your bet early. This allows you to cut your losses or cash in on your winnings before the game is over.
Are all free bets the same?
Each free bet is going to have its own characteristics and terms that need to be considered. Some will only be usable on certain types of markets or at certain odds, while others have little to no restrictions.
What is the best football market to bet on?
There are hundreds of different betting markets available for the leading football matches these days. Therefore, you have tons of choice. The best bet depends on the specific situation and what makes the most sense in context of a particular game.
Can I use more than one football betting site?
There is nothing stopping you from using as many different football betting sites as you want. The only thing you can’t do is have multiple accounts with the same bookie.
Do I need a promo code for every free bet offer?
Only certain offers will require you to enter a bonus code. Some will require you to instead opt-in to the deal or it will be simply activated automatically.
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