What is live streaming?
What a time to be alive! Thanks to the wonders of modern technology, you can now watch your favourite sporting events, track the odds and place your bets in real time all at once, all from the comfort of your own home. All you need is a computer or smartphone, and a fairly decent internet connection.
But what is live streaming? Well, where as before you’d need to find TV or radio covering of the match, then find a bookmaker to allow you to make bets in-play, now the bookies with live streaming provide you with the ability to watch the sporting event live (and for free! Bonus!), while allowing you to bet on the action, as it happens, all on the same webpage.
However, not all betting sites provide live streaming, and not all online bookmakers with live streaming are equal. It’s important to know, before creating a new account, whether the bookmaker provides live streaming in the first place. It’s also useful to know which are the best live streaming betting sites. But don’t panic! We’re here to help with all your live stream wagering needs. Let’s get started with how to choose the best betting site.
Best 5 live streaming betting sites
Here we describe 3 best bookmakers whose live streaming service we have ranked based on different factors: quality, access, amount of sports.
William Hill Live Streaming
William Hill are Best Odds Guaranteed on all UK Horse racing and offer regular price boosts and a free bonus ball drop where you can win a different Casino bonus every day. Typically Free bets are paid after qualifying bets settle, and Free bets will expire 30 days after that. They have a large range of sports to stream live and you can watch them all with just a positive balance in your account.
- Minimal requirements to watch: for most sports, simply make sure you have a positive balance.
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Watch sports events from around the world as long as you have a funded account.
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Wide range of sports available for live streaming.
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Hundreds of events on the live stream each week.
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You must place a minimum bet of £1 in order to watch horse racing live (Greyhound races too).
Bet365 Live Streaming
Bet365 offer new users a generous Welcome bonus as well as running other promotions such as Horse Racing Best Odds Guaranteed, which means that if you placed a bet and the Starting Price is higher, you are paid at the higher price. There is also the Football Early Payout offer, go '2 Up' and get paid out as a winner. Remember that it is standard at Bet365 that Free bet stakes are valid for 30 days after being credited. They live stream all UK and Irish horse races as well as many other sports every single day.
- Reliable, good quality feeds.
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Log in to watch the live streaming service for free.
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Each month, Bet365 live streams over 1000 sports events.
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Huge range of sports available to live stream.
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Best of the betting sites live football streaming.
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Integrated streaming screen with odds clearly displayed on same webpage.
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Intuitive in-play betting console.
Betway Live Streaming
Betway has a constantly changing promotions page offering everything from cash prizes, Casino bonus spins, Free bets, and everything in between. There is no need to bet on the event or even to have money in your account, Betway provides the majority of live pictures to everybody for free.
- Betway streams over 1140 events per month.
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Choose from a wide range of sports and sporting events.
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Free bets are available as a Welcome bonus and to existing users.
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Wide choice of in-play markets (Not horse racing).
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Some events require you to place a bet before the live stream will open.
Unibet Live Streaming
Unibet have put a lot of time and effort into their live streaming product, even going so far as to offer Unibet TV! Read more about that here! The platform provides a wide range of events, including football, tennis, and basketball, which allows you to stay updated with your favorite sports. The video quality is impressive, and provides a larger screen at higher definition than any of their rivals.
- Live streaming of various sports events
- Wide range of betting markets
- Competitive odds and promotions
- User-friendly platform
- Reliable customer support
Sky Bet Live Streaming
SkyBet's live streaming is an excellent option for those looking to enjoy their favorite sports events while also betting on the action. The in-play betting feature is fused to the live streamed images and the two combine well for a truly immersive experience. The games and matches that are available for viewing can be seen by looking for the small TV icon on the main betting page.
- Live streaming (including football, horse racing, and tennis)
- Huge number of existing user bonuses
- Good odds on a large number of markets
- Excellent customer support
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Best bookie for quality of live stream - Unibet
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Best bookie for live-stream access - William Hill
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Best bookie for offers that can be used on live-streamed sports - Sky Bet
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Best bookie for horse racing live streams - Bet365
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Best bookie for free bets on live streaming - Betway
How to choose the best live streaming betting site?
When picking the best bookies with live streaming for your needs, it’s worth considering a number of factors. We’ve outlined some of them here for you so that you can keep them under consideration when searching for the best betting experience.
Event Options
Not all bookmakers with live streaming offer all events, nor do they all offer the same events. So your first task will be to find the betting sites with live streaming that are providing the match, race or game that you’re looking to take a punt on. There’s plenty to choose from, so you’ll soon find what you’re looking for.
Device Storage
If you’re downloading a bookmaker’s app to make use of their live streaming capabilities, it’s worth knowing that some of these are pretty hefty in terms of the amount of storage space they take up on your device. It’s worth making sure you’ve got enough space before getting started, especially if you’re intending to download multiple apps to make the most of the range of events offered by online bookmakers with live streaming and to compare odds to get the best bang for your buck.
Banking Options
You can’t expect something for nothing! Most betting sites with live streaming will require you to make a deposit or at least have a positive balance. Some may expect you to place a bet in order to access the live stream. As you’ll be wanting to withdraw your funds at some point, you must select an online bookmaker with live streaming that supports your preferred banking option.
Functionality
Isn’t it frustrating when you can’t find the event you want to get involved with, or the bet you want to place? For this reason it’s important to choose a betting site with great functionality and ease of use. You’d think this would be a priority for all betting sites, but alas it doesn’t always seem to be the case when it comes to a live stream. There is quality out there, though, you just have to find it. Check out our top picks for online bookmakers with live streaming, to help with this.
Viewing Options
Are you a fan of full screen viewing, or do you prefer to see everything you need, all the time, all at once? If it’s the latter, you’ll be looking for an online bookmaker that offers integrated viewing. The picture will be a bit smaller, which might not be ideal, but it does allow for the best live-betting experience when using live streaming betting sites.
How are we rank the betting sites with live streaming?
When compiling a list of the best live streaming betting sites, we take into account a number of factors, so you don’t have to. We want you to have the best possible sports betting experience, so we’ve done the legwork for you and taken into account all of the following, when deciding which betting sites with live streaming to recommend.
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The range of events offered for live streaming - the more choice, the better, right?
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The number of wagers available in each category.
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The user requirements needed to commence streaming (e.g. minimum deposit amount, minimum wager, minimum account balance).
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The quality of the live streams - what’s the point if you can’t see what’s going on?
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The range of in-play markets available to the punter.
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Generally accessibility and useability. If it’s clunky or confusing, we don’t want to know.
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Availability and frequency of Free bets and crucially if they are valid for in play betting.
Types of Sports Live Streamed by Bookmakers
There is a wide range of sports available from the live streaming betting sites. Unfortunately, Premier League Football is not available to live stream due to the exclusive rights held by UK broadcasters. However, there are plenty of other sports available for you to take a punt on while following the action, live, at your favourite bookies with live streaming.
Horse Racing 🏇
Horse racing is by far the most common sport to bet on in the UK and Horse racing live streams are available from virtually all of the live streaming sites. It is common for the live streaming service to be activated only after you have placed a bet of a min amount for you to be able to watch, but the best Horse Racing Live streaming service is from Geoff Banks who do not require any bets in order to watch their horse racing live stream.
Horse racing is one of the harder sports to bet on in play, and more often than not you can get a huge range of Free bet offers to use on it but they involve a qualifying bet before the off, and it is only after the race has finished that the free bets credited to your account. It is hard to bet in running because even with a streaming service there is always going to be a delay to the live stream, some people are going to be at track, and their information is going to be ahead of the punters who are online betting. Due to the speed of horse racing, the average race taking just three or four minutes, although it is one of the more common live streamed events most gambling takes place before the race begins.
Football ⚽
While the Premier League isn’t available, betting sites that have a live stream for football often include top European football leagues such as Series A, Bundesliga and La Liga, as well as other matches from around the world. This is certain to make your online betting more enjoyable. It is unclear at this time if there will be a live stream for the World Cup in Qatar later in the year but there has been previously, live streaming services from around the World were able to distribute their feeds to various channels.
Tennis 🎾
If you love a bit of tennis, then you’re almost guaranteed to find the perfect punt at live streaming betting sites, with a wide range of markets available to have a flutter on if you are in play betting. The live streaming tennis match you are watching is certain to be delayed though and your pictures will be behind anyone watching at the game, so be careful that you are not a victim of 'courtsiding' where some people either place bets or accept bets after they know the result.
Golf 🏌️
Fancy a hole in one? You’re bound to find some good golf to place in play bets at bookies with live streaming, as there are multiple professional golf tournaments happening weekly. What’s more, you can follow multiple different tournaments in different time zones, as all of the major tours are covered. What more could you want?! The live stream, despite its name, is unlikely to actually be live for the majority of the shots, and factoring not only a players current score but also where they are on the course, and the expected difficulty of the upcoming holes, makes golf in play betting one of the more skillful and exciting variations. Betting sites offer various promotions when you are in play betting on Golf and so long as you place a valid qualifying bet you are almost certain to receive some free bets whether you win or lose the qualifying bet itself.
Greyhound Racing 🐕
Most betting sites with live streaming also often stream greyhound racing, if that’s your thing. Much like horse racing, the stream will usually be available after you have placed a bet (usually of around £1) but some bookmakers will provide live streamed events without needing this qualifying bet. Free bet stakes can be available specifically for Greyhound racing if you look around and if those bookmakers have a live stream too, this is the place most suitable for you.
Rugby 🏉
If you like your action to be more hands on, most of the main online bookmakers with live streaming offer Rugby as one of the markets. There is a decent selection of leagues and markets available, while some bookies with live streaming offer an animation alternative for events that can’t be streamed, meaning you don’t miss out on your live action wager. Rugby Internationals such as the 6 Nations have been available from at least one live streaming betting site before, Free bets are also available providing you have placed a qualifying bet whilst in play betting on the matches.
Basketball 🏀
American, European and World Leagues are all represented on betting sites that have live streaming with , so whatever your time, you take take a punt while following the action, as it happens. Live streaming basketball is not available everywhere but it should not be hard to find from the best in play betting sites. It is less common to get Free bets credited for betting in play on basketball for some reason, but occasionally some live streaming sites will offer them.
Boxing, UFC and MMA 🥊
Most fights make their money through pay-per-view TV revenue, so you might find it tricky to find your fight available at betting sites who have live streaming. The best betting sites will though, but be prepared for having to wager on the event in order to earn the right to stream the action live. Free bet stakes specifically for these type of sports are available after you have placed a bet, and the free bets valid for in play betting only more often than not. Payment method restrictions will apply to this and the vast majority of offers that involve Free bets so make sure you meet this and all other min bet, min odds, time restrictions and every other T&C's. Take good care of your bet credits, stake them only when you are certain that you will qualify for each offer.
Esports 🎮
Esports are rapidly growing in popularity and we all know that you can’t enjoy a punt on eSports without seeing the action unfold with your own eyes. As a consequence, many betting sites with live streaming a starting to offer Esports as part of their live streaming offering. Because of its novelty and the desire to get hold of the new, younger, generation of gamblers you will find Free bets available for your in play betting whilst watching the live stream quite common.
Comparison of the Best Betting Live Streaming Sites
| Bookmaker | Bet Required | UK Football Streaming | UK Horse Racing Streaming | # of sports streamed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bet365 | 50p bet | No | Yes | 10+ |
| Betfred | No | No | Yes | 10+ |
| William Hill | No | No | Yes | 5+ |
| Unibet | No | No | Yes | 10+ |
| Betway | No | No | Yes | 5+ |
Tips & Strategies for Betting on Live Streaming Sites
Okay, so now you know what’s available to punt on and where provides the best experiences when it comes to betting sites with a streaming service. Now it’s time to think about how to make the most bang for your buck when it comes to laying down your hard-earned cash. So let’s get to it!
- Firstly, you’ll need to make sure that you have a super reliable internet connection, and decent broadband speeds, or the live stream is bound to struggle. You’ll also need to make sure you’ve got the latest version of Flash Player installed because most live streams will need that. There’s not a lot in life that’s more annoying than a juddery video when you’re trying to take a punt on live action, or the spinning wheel of doom when you’re at a crucial point in your in-match wager. So make sure your device setup is primed and ready to go!
- Now you’ve eliminated the potential for a lagging stream, you need to keep in mind that a 'live streaming service' does NOT mean live to the actual second. Live-streamed events usually have a delay of around 5 to 10 seconds. You must keep this in mind, especially when wagering on live markets, because you don’t know exactly what’s happening at that exact moment. That throw-in or corner has probably already happened, so be careful!
- With the above in mind, it’s time to think about where you’re going to place your bet. There are plenty of betting sites with live streaming, so make sure you find the one that’s right for your particular bet. Don’t limit yourself to just one; it’s generally free to sign up to betting sites, so get yourself a few accounts and shop around and compare odds to make sure you’re getting the best potential outcome for your chosen punt.
- In addition to this, keep in mind that for most events, live streaming is free, and for sports like horse racing or greyhound racing, you only need to wager as little as £1 in order to watch the live stream. So don’t waste your time with any online bookmakers with live streaming who are asking for any more than that. Take your business elsewhere!
- Bear in mind that the betting sites want you money and therefore offer a number of Promotions and Free bets for your custom. Sometimes in play betting can lead to a Casino bonus but it is more common to get Free bets which either must be placed on a specific sport such as Horse racing, or Football but sometimes can be used on anything the live streaming services cover. Free bets nearly always have a max qualifying bet stake and the minimum bet will be at least £1 but may be more. It is likely that your Free bet will be credited after you have had your first qualifying bet settled. Sometimes Free bets are for not so much money and are hardly worth it but sometimes upon qualifying bet settlement you can be looking at 30 in free bets to use on any sporting events that you want.
- The last point might seem like common sense, but stick to your favourite sport and then watch as much of it as you can! You may like to watch Horse racing on a streaming service, or it may be that you like to watch live streaming basketball, it is up to you but finding a betting site with a live streaming service of the sports that you enjoy is what matters to you. It would be great if there was a betting account that could stream sports including the football games we all want to watch, the English Premier League, but unfortunately for UK customers those games are not one of the live streamed events available. When you are gambling, always do your own research and 'know the players, know the game', and make sure that you are sports betting that you gamble responsibly.
Best Football Live Streaming Sites
Unfortunately, there are no UK bookmakers that will stream UK football matches due to licensing arrangements and distribution rights that are in place. Some have access to streams of foreign games, usually the lower leagues, and we have compiled the best of those below:
| Betting Site | UK Football | European Football | RoW Football |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bet365 | No | Yes | Yes |
| Betfair | No | Yes | Yes |
| Betfred | No | Yes | Yes |
| Unibet | No | No | Yes |
| 10bet | No | No | Yes |
Best Horse Racing Live Streaming Sites
Horse racing is the most popular sport when it comes to gambling in the UK, so it is no surprise that the bookmakers make a lot of effort to stream the races live for their customers to watch. We think that we are correct in saying that every bookmaker who offers live streaming off it on every UK & Irish horse race, however when it comes to races held abroad there is some variations. The best horse racing live streaming sites that we have found are:
| Betting Site | Criteria to watch the stream for UK | American Racing | South African Racing | French Racing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unibet |
Account Balance |
Yes | Yes |
Yes |
| Betfair |
Account Balance |
Yes | Yes | No |
| Betfred |
Account balance |
Yes | No | Yes |
Best Greyhound Live Streaming Sites
Greyhound racing is another mainstay of the UK gambling industry. Watching the races is essential to establish whether a dog's form is due to their speed, their strength, or just luck. The best betting sites to live stream greyhound races are:
| Betting Site | Criteria to watch the races | All UK races | International Races |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bet365 | 50p bet | Yes | Yes |
| William Hill | Account balance | Yes | Yes |
| Ladbrokes | £1 bet | Yes | Yes |
Best Tennis Live Streaming Sites
As well as live streaming the best tennis betting sites offer a wide range of betting options, competitive odds, and user-friendly platforms.
| Betting Site | Criteria to watch | Tennis Price Boosts |
|---|---|---|
| Bet365 | 50p bet | Yes |
| Unibet | Account balance | Yes |
| William Hill |
Account balance |
Yes |
Best Basketball Live Streaming Sites
Basketball betting sites with live streaming offer fans the opportunity to place wagers on their favorite teams while enjoying real-time game action.
| Betting Site | Criteria to watch | NBA | WNBA | FIBA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paddy Power | Account balance | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Matchbook | £1 bet | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Unibet | Account balance | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Best Rugby Live Streaming Sites
The best rugby betting sites with live streaming will offer you an immersive experience, allowing you to place bets whilst watching the action.
| Betting Site | Criteria to watch | Rugby Betting Boosts |
|---|---|---|
| Betfred |
Account balance |
Yes |
| William Hill |
Account balance |
Yes |
| Sky Bet |
Account balance |
Yes |
How to Watch Live Sports Streams on Betting Sites
Every betting site is different and they will all have a slightly different way to watch the live streaming service on their site. As a general rule though the following steps are required:
- The first step is to choose a reputable betting site that offers live streaming of sports events. Make sure the site is licensed and regulated by the UKGC as all betting sites on Legalbet are.
- Register an account which will involve providing basic personal information, such as your name, email address, and date of birth. You will also need to choose a username and password. For some betting sites this is all that will be required.
- More commonly you will be required to deposit funds into your account using one of the available payment methods, such as credit/debit card, E-wallet, or bank transfer. There are not usually payment method restrictions and once you have money in your account the live streams will open when being clicked.
- Some betting sites will also require you to place a bet on the event in question. This may vary from sport to sport but if it is required it is never more than a £1 bet that is required.
Conclusion
In conclusion, live sports streams on betting sites have revolutionized the way fans engage with their favorite sports events. For gamblers the integration of features like in-play betting has become part and parcel of the gambling experience and live streaming compliments that. As time goes on more and more sports are becoming available and the accessibility requirements are coming down, making live streaming a common and even expected betting site feature.
Top betting sites
By Features: Cash Out | £5 Minimum Deposit | Minimum Bet Sizing | Live Streaming | Betting Exchanges | Safest | Fast Withdrawal | Daily Free Games | New Betting Sites | Horse Betting Apps | Football Betting Apps | Virtual Sports Betting Sites
Frequently Asked Qusetions
With the rise in popularity of live streaming in the online gambling world, there is now a huge range of bookmakers who offer live streaming. Amongst the best are the William Hill streaming service and the Paddy Power live streaming service but there are so many to choose from it is a matter of personal preference really.
The quality of the live streamed events will depend on a few different things. First of all you need to make sure that your internet connection and device are up to scratch. Once you’ve got all of your connection requirements sorted at your end, it really then just depends on which live stream you choose.
You absolutely can stream for free on the betting sites that offer live streaming. Most betting sites with live streaming will require you to have an account with them, and a positive balance before you can start streaming though and some may even insist on a qualifying bet. The minimum bet size is unlikely to be much though.
If you can’t find the match you’re looking for, it might be that the online bookmaker you’re using doesn’t offer those live streamed events as part of their live streaming service. There are plenty of sports betting sites with live streaming to choose from now, as the genre is increasing in popularity, so you can always try a different bookmaker.
Yes, there is a time delay on live streams on betting sites. The delay is usually between 5 and 10 seconds, but can be up to 30 seconds. The time can vary from bookmaker to bookmaker and is also dependent on your Broadband provider and how quickly your internet speed can download the live stream.
Live streaming is absolutely safe and legal. Online bookmakers with live streaming have absolutely nothing to gain and everything to lose by not being above board. Betting sites with live streaming protect punters from illegal shenanigans by providing advanced security on their apps and websites. All decent bookies with live streaming ensure that they can secure all the broadcasting rights by following the letter of the law. It’s simply not worth their time not to. So fear not, you’ll be in safe hands!
