Best English Betting and UK Gambling Sites

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Best UK betting sites

All UK betting sites

If you are not from the UK please choose a MGA site for sports betting and online gambling.

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1 English Betting Sites

2 Gambling Sites UK

3 Betting Sites UK

4 Best UK Gambling Sites

5 Best Betting Sites UK

6 UK Betting Sites List

7 All UK Betting Sites

8 FAQ

Take a walk down a major UK high street, and you will find at least one, if not several, UK bookies, affectionately known as English betting sites. A bookmaker is a name of a person, or company, that keeps a book of bets, usually with a system of odds to encourage betting on more than just the favorite. Before the rise of the betting shop, nearly all UK Gambling activities were illegal except for horse racing and greyhound racing, courtesy of the Racecourse Betting Act 1928 and the Betting and Lotteries Act 1934.

English Betting Sites

Until the 1960s, English betting sites filled the grounds of thousands of stadiums and racecourses as the only legitimate source of land-based gambling. Off-course betting was illegal unless by telephone or postal service and evolved into big business for criminal gangs. Organized events would feature the gang’s bookie, known as a toller, who would take a cut of every gamble. One such game was pitch-and-toss, where punters bet on the result of a single coin toss. At one time, you could find pitch-and-toss rings across the UK.

Eventually, organized crime moved off the streets and into racketeering of racecourse bookies, who often needed minders for protection. Underworld gangs would take a portion of profits, muscle-out competition and even deny unsuspecting punters from cashing out a big win. Pre-1960s, both on and off-course, UK gamblers had no guarantee of collecting their winnings and no method of recourse when dealing with a bookmaker.

Gambling Sites UK

Harold Macmillan introduced The Betting and Gaming Act in 1960 to counter the criminal influence over gambling in the UK and create a safe environment for people to gamble without fear. The UK betting shop had arrived, and in May the following year, hundreds of bookmakers opened their doors to the public for the first time. Thousands followed in every central town and city across the UK as a place for people to meet safely and enjoy an age-old pastime.

English betting site Ladbrokes began in 1882 as horse commission agents at Ladbrokes Hall in Warwickshire. The company became known as Ladbrokes in 1902 after a move to London and used profits to open a chain of betting shops following the 1960 reform. William Hill followed and seized the opportunity to move from a postal and telephone betting service established in 1934 into a common name for high street bookmakers in 1966, and now top the lists of best UK gambling sites.

In the same year, Fred Done took winnings from a bet on England in the World Cup and financed a single shop, Done Bookmakers, in Salford, Manchester. Steady growth saw over 200 shops by the turn of the millennium and rebranding to Betfred in 2004, and the name now features proudly among the best betting sites UK. The now Gibraltar-based, BetVictor, another household name in UK gambling sites, was founded in 1946 by the owner of Walthamstow Dog Racing Stadium, a greyhound racing track in London.

Betting Sites UK

The Betting, Gaming & Lotteries Act of 1963 gave much-needed guidance and reform to the booming industry as bookies met increasing demand. In 1973, the number of UK betting shops peaked at 14,750. The likes of Ladbrokes amassed 1,135 betting shops by this time, and several years later, in 1986, big names in bingo, Coral and Mecca entered the fray following changes in legislation. Not until online gambling has the number of betting shops significantly dwindled, and UK bookmakers moved online with the times.

Best UK Gambling Sites

Since its height, the number of high street bookies has shrunk by around 50%, with land-based premises taking a hit from online gambling and many English betting sites. Today, you can reach the best UK gambling sites from your mobile or handheld device, and more of us choose to gamble from the comfort of our homes rather than walk to the local bookies to take a punt. UK bookmakers are visited more by the masses at their online betting shops.

The 2005 Gambling Act prompted the formation of a regulatory body, the United Kingdom Gambling Commission (UKGC), in 2007. And following the birth of online gambling, the 2014 Gambling (Licensing and Advertising) Act means that all UK betting sites require a UKGC license to operate lawfully.

Best Betting Sites UK

Below we list the best betting sites in the UK.

Mr Green

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