Best 2022 Irish Betting Sites
Ireland loves a good bet, almost like no one else. In fact, per capita, Ireland ranks third in the world for money spent on betting. Some of the best gambling markets in the world are found in Ireland, and naturally some of the best betting sites, too.
Let’s look at how betting sites in Ireland are regulated, what the most popular sports are, and what this means for you and your betting in Ireland.
How online betting is regulated in Ireland
Betting legislation can be vastly different across the world today. In Ireland, things were shaken up relatively recently with the Gambling Control Bill of 2013. What this bill simply states, among other things, is that any and all operators offering online betting services in Ireland must be regulated and licensed by the relevant commission.
This bill replaced the Betting Act of 1931, an outdated piece of statute which simply could not keep up with the world of online betting.
There are many other regulations affecting how Irish betting sites can operate. Advertising is the biggest, for example. Advertising and marketing must never be made to appeal to children, and is quite limited in what it can say or imply.
For your purposes, though, all you need to know about a betting site is whether or not it is officially licensed by the commission. If it isn’t, it is not operating legally.
Once you know it’s legal, then you’ve got to think about the markets available. The other thing to bear in mind is that not all of these companies will have their HQ in Ireland. As long as the operator holds a license from the relevant authority, they can offer their services in Ireland, too. So, don’t be put off if a company does not actually seem to be Irish.
What sports are most popular?
All major betting sites in Ireland should offer odds and markets on the biggest sporting events. This includes football, horseracing, and greyhound racing, among other things. Televised football matches regularly bring in viewership from 500,000-1 million people, so these are big events for the betting sites.
1.3 million people visit the horse races every year, too.
These are just a couple of examples of the biggest and most robust betting markets in Ireland. Betting sites more or less need to offer odds on these games, or they just won’t be competitive. So, the most popular sports play a huge role in the way betting sites work in Ireland.
That’s not to say you must bet on these sports, however. Just that it’s a good sign of a quality, competitive site if they offer markets for it.
What can be daunting when browsing betting sites is the sheer number available in Ireland. There are more cropping up every day, and it can be hard to know the good from the bad at a glance. For your point of view, as long as the site is regulated, offers a good range of markets on the most popular sports, and functions well, you’re on to a winner.