Gamebookers Sports Review

Gamebookers Summary

Gamebookers Features

• Well designed and intuitive website
• Huge number of different sports
• Reputable and secure company

Website

Gamebookers Sports have developed a slick, well designed and intuitive website which is adequately spaced out and easy to navigate around. A three tone grey and orange theme is used and a balance has been struck between minimalist and professional – there are no overly flashy graphics, everything is fairly simplistic.

The website follows the typical structure and layout that most bookmakers adhere to nowadays. On the left hand side of the page in the top corner are the list of the top football markets, making it easy for customers to access the most popular leagues and competitions. Beneath is a useful ‘My Favourites’ which enables customers to pin the sports and markets they access most frequently, creating a bespoke list of events. The full list of sports can be found beneath the ‘My Favourites’ list, with a small logo next to each discipline. In the centre of the page there are interchangeable graphics which give information regarding the upcoming promotions and concession. The main part of the page is also populated by top bets, highlights and international highlights. Some live betting can be found on the left hand side of the page, with the bet slip, access to mini games and the ‘bestseller’ bet – where customers can follow in other users most popular bets.

There is a statistics section powered by Betradar, which enables customers to analyse detailed data on a wide range of different sports.

Mobile

Gamebookers do have mobile solutions for those users wishing to use the bookmaker whilst on the move. Visiting the website from a handheld device will automatically redirect customers to a web app, where they are given the option of saving a shortcut to the site on their phone. There is also a sports app for the iPhone and iPad, although this is only currently available in Azerbaijan, Germany, Netherlands, Romania and Russia. An Android app has also been developed and does not have any restrictions.

Languages

The website can be viewed in English, German, Romanian or Russian.

Markets

Gamebookers have an extensive number of sports listed on their website, which is really impressive. At the time of review, there were over 27,000 bets available, covering 34 different disciplines/events. This rivals the industry elite, with flag bearer Bet365 only covering four more at 38.

In addition to the ‘staple’ sports of football, American football, tennis, ice hockey and basketball, there are also plenty of more marginal events such as bandy, chess futsal, rally, NASCAR, bowls and table tennis.

There is also horse racing which many sites do not offer, albeit there does not appear to be any real UK action – the betting is confined to virtual racing such as Steepledowns.

The market depth can also be viewed as a big positive. For instance, there are 46 different countries covered under the football betting. This again beats most online bookmakers and competes with the top companies. Within the English pyramid, games down to the 7^th tier – Ryman Premier Division are priced up, and there are even odds for the Professional Development League.

The theme of extensive coverage is continued when looking at the basketball betting. Here, there are 18 different countries/regions from around the world. This is the same number as Bet365, and more than most other firms.

Another area where Gamebookers excel, is the number of additional markets. For the Elche v Barcelona, Copa Del Rey match, two hours before kick-off there were 170 extra bet types. This was significantly more than Bet365’s 112 and around twice as many as BetVictor’s 86. Impressive stuff. The English Premier League matches typically have around 100 additional bet types 48 hours before match day, and these numbers grow as more information regarding team news etc. is released.

Gamebooker’s number of sports, depth of the sports and volume of additional markets is one of the best in the industry.

Odds

Unfortunately Gamebookers sports don’t have the odds to match their impressive number of markets. This is disappointing given that they have such an extensive number of markets and professional setup. Generosity of odds can be determined by the total book percentage for any given market. A market where the bookmaker had no inbuilt profit, would equate to 100% when the odds were converted to percentages. For the Copa Del Rey match between Elche V Barcelona, the bookmakers’ odds equalled the following books:

• BetVictor – 103.4%
• Bet365- 104.9%
• Coral – 106.7%
• Gamebookers – 107.1%

Gamebookers sports were the least competitive of the four firms reviewed. Their odds were not wildly out of line with industry standards, but were far from being enticing to clued-up bettors.

A similar story was found with the tennis markets. The odds on matches which effectively only have two outcomes, equate to 109.7%. Most firms operate in the 105-107% range.

The NBA basketball fares a bit better, with a typical book percentage of 104.5-105%. BetVictor and others seem to operate in the 106.5-107% range. The ice hockey books tend to hover around 108% which is reasonable. The odds are not terrible but could be better.

Promotions

There is no sports sign up bonus visible on the website. There are poker, casino and financials bonuses, and there was formerly a bookie bonus, however this appears to have been scrapped. This is a shade disappointing for an established company. Gamebookers sports do offer a daily Combi+ bet, where they add 30% returns onto a wide range of different football accumulators.

Customer Services

Customer services can be found by clicking on the contact link at the top right hand of the page. There are a series of potential questions that customers may ask that are answered in text here. If the user is unsatisfied or unable to find out what they want to know, they are able to use a contact form to send a message. There are also a number of different telephone numbers for customers from various countries. Customer services are reasonable, but it would be helpful to have a ‘live chat’ feature, so that people can communicate with staff quickly online.

Payment Methods

Gamebookers sports offer one of the most comprehensive payment centres, with a plethora of options for customers to choose from:

• Bank transfer
• Click2Pay
• ClickandBuy
• Dankort
• Diners Club Card
• DK by Skrill
• EntroPay
• Eps
• Ewire
• Giropay
• iDeal
• INSTADEBIT
• Kalixa Pay
• La Caixa
• Maestro
• Mastercard
• Mister Cash
• Moneta
• myCitadel Wallet
• MyMonedero
• NETELLER
• Nordea By Skrill
• Paybox
• PayPal (unavailable for German players)
• Paysafecard
• POLi
• Przelewy24
• Skrill
• Skrill 1-Tap
• SOFORT Banking
• Teleingreso
• Ticket Premium
• Ukash
• Visa
• WebMoney

There are not many firms who are able to match this number of payment methods.

Final Thoughts

Gamebookers sports have a really good product. A wide number of different sports with large market depth and a slick, well designed website. Customers with an interest in almost any sport can find something to bet on at Gamebookers, and as an established company, users can be safe in the knowledge that their money is with a reputable and secure company.

There are definitely a few areas where Gamebookers could improve, namely the competitiveness of their odds. Whilst the compilers are not completely ripping off customers, they are also not making the prices as competitive as they could be for a fairly large firm. The horse racing coverage could also extend beyond virtual racing and that would definitely increase their customer base. A sign up bonus and a live chat facility would also be nice, but all in all there would be absolutely no harm in having a Gamebookers account – they do most things very well.