The Best Sports Betting Sites in Austria for 2024

Why Austrians Prefer International Betting Sites

For many years, Austria allowed their domestically licensed companies to operate online alongside international sites. This has created a confusing set of circumstances where Austrian companies must abide by their country’s regulations and pay taxes, while international sites do not have to share the same responsibilities. As a result, the Austrian government has since looked for a way to encourage gamblers to use domestic sites.

In October 2012, Austria awarded an exclusive 15-year online license to Austrian Lotteries, part of Casinos Austria International. While this was primarily for casino games and did not affect sports betting licenses for domestic companies or the ability to bet on any Austrian betting sites, it restricted advertising for foreign companies, many of whom operate casino and poker sites alongside their bookie.

In May 2014, the Court of Justice for the European Union (CJEU) stepped in and ruled that Austria was not being consistent with its laws, creating an unfair market, and as such, they were non-compliant with EU laws. While this continues to apply more directly to the casino market, it should help the visibility of Austrian betting sites for sports punters in the future.

However, there are many advantages for players to bet on international sites, and we cover them all in our expert guide to betting sites in Austria.

Advantages of Betting With International Bookmakers in Austria

Given that different Austrian states have different gambling laws, it’s much simpler for you to bet on a foreign site and categorically know you’re doing so legally. This also gives you access to more betting sites, which means bigger bonuses and better odds because they’re all competing with one another. This can also help when looking for niche sports – though it’s worth noting Austrian betting sites have a solid range of winter sports markets.

Here are some key advantages to betting on international betting sites:

• No legal consequences for betting with international operators
• Friendly and knowledgeable support agents fluent in German
• Diverse range of pre-event and in-play betting markets
• Consistently better odds for greater returns on your winnings
• Bigger bonuses for new customers and generous VIP programs

Is Sports Betting Legal in Austria?

Austria has an open approach to sports betting, despite being very restrictive to other forms of gambling. After having its democracy restored at the end of World War II, the Austrian State Treaty saw an end to Allied occupation in 1955, awarding the central European country its sovereignty once more. Since then, Austria has flourished, becoming one of the wealthiest nations in the world, based on GDP.

Austria has taken a liberal approach to the growth of sports-betting within its borders, even though casinos and other forms of gambling are tightly regulated under government control. Instead of being part of this national gaming monopoly, betting shops are individually licensed by whichever Austrian state they wish to operate in.

Each of these states interpret and enforce the Austrian Gambling Act (also known as Glücksspielgesetz) differently. For example, five states offer slot game licences to non-physical casinos. You’re also allowed to gamble online with operators who are based outside of Austria.

Bookmaker cafes are extremely popular in Austria, mixing a coffee shop atmosphere with the ability to bet on many sporting events. The largest operator of land-based betting, Admiral, operates over 200 of these cafes and employees over 1,200 people. Like other operators, Admiral has also worked to develop betting technology with terminals besides online services.

While this open market is good for the customer, it has the distinct disadvantage of not having a governing body that can enforce rulings if you feel an operator has not provided the service expected or has even acted against you. Despite this concern, most operators only wish to run legitimate and successful Austrian betting sites.