The United Kingdom is the spiritual home of legalized gambling, boasting some of the world’s biggest and most experienced sportsbooks. The online gambling market in the UK is more competitive today than it has ever been in the past, with dozens of major sportsbooks vying for your attention. To secure success, they must stand out from the crowd and aim to achieve that by offering an impressive list of promotions and free bets.
Known as welcome bonuses, these deals come in many shapes and sizes, including deposit-matched bet credits, enhanced odds, profit boosts, cashback, and more. But which are the best bookie bonuses available to UK bettors today? You’ll find out in the latest addition to Whop’s popular online gambling series.
Our resident sports betting expert, Frank Monkhouse, brings you up to speed on the standout deals.
Keep reading as we explain why major legal sportsbooks give bonuses, how to quickly and securely claim a promotion using your laptop or mobile device, and the most popular types of offers. There’s also a list of the six best free bets you can claim now, ongoing promotions, and how reading the terms and conditions can help you bag a profit.
Why Bookmakers Offer Bonus Bets
Before getting into the thick of this article, it’s worth explaining why sportsbooks offer promotions. To put it simply, the gambling market in the United Kingdom is fiercely competitive, and sportsbooks must encourage you to choose them over the competition.
These sportsbooks attempt to gain more customers by being better than the other top deals through generous odds, a long list of sports to gamble on, the latest payment methods, excellent customer care, and competition-crushing bonuses.
When faced with so many choices, with many bookmakers looking almost identical, a great welcome bonus can make all the difference. That’s why marketing teams continually look for new and exciting ways to impress you. It’s a challenging time to be a competitive sportsbook, but a golden era for the bettor, and I advise you to take full advantage.
How to Claim a Betting Welcome Bonus
I’ll list the best bonuses available to UK bookies soon, but to claim your share, you must first register an account. You are free to browse betting apps and compare the various deals but to qualify for the welcome bonus, you must register for an account using your mobile or desktop computer.
Thankfully, this takes just a few minutes to complete, and I have laid out the steps below. Follow the steps to register quickly and securely with any bookmaker mentioned in this review.
- Visit the homepage of your chosen bookmaker and click the join button at the top of the homepage.
- Add your details to the registration form, including your name, date of birth, address, and email address.
- Create a memorable but secure username and password. You’ll need this information each time you want to access your account.
- If required, add the bookie’s promo code, and then deposit $10 or more using your debit card, e-wallet, or crypto account.
- Place a qualifying bet of $10 or more on a sportsbook market that meets the minimum odds stated in the welcome bonus terms and conditions.
- When your qualifying bet has a result, the free bet tokens will appear in your player account betting balance.
- Click the odds attached to your next selection to add to your bet slip, and then check the box that takes the stake from your free bet balance rather than your real money balance.
6 UK Welcome Bonuses
Welcome bonuses are the most generous of all deals offered by major bookmakers, and there are a few types available that are common in the market today.
The most popular deal is the deposit-matched free bet, which is when a betting app will match your first stake with bet credits. If you deposit and wager $100 on a qualifying sportsbook market, for example, you’ll receive a $100 free bet. The deal works well for both the bookie and bettor as the sportsbook rewards a player they know is serious about gambling and not just signing up for the freebie. The bettor is also in charge of how much they risk and the size of the free bet.
Another welcome bonus you’ll find widely available is the risk-free bet. With this deal, you deposit funds and make your first wager of $10 or more. If the bet wins, you bank the profits as usual, but if the selection loses, the bookie will refund your stake as a free bet. It’s a true no-lose situation, which is incredibly rare in the gambling industry.
Here are 6 different welcome bonuses that you can claim in the UK.
1. BetMGM - Bet £10 and get £40 in free bets
BetMGM is an exciting new addition to the UK gambling market, promoting itself as a golden era for sports betting. It covers all popular UK and European sports and offers customers in-depth coverage of US sports competitions, including the NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB, and MLS.
When you create an account, deposit, and wager just £10 on a sportsbook market with odds of even money or greater, you’ll receive £40 in free bets. That means for a £10 risk, you’ll enjoy £50 of sports gambling, and that’s enough to familiarise yourself with the many great sports, markets, and bets available at BetMGM.
2. Bet365 - Bet £10 and get £30 in free bets
When talking about online bookmakers in the United Kingdom, they don’t come any bigger or better than bet365. The English-based betting app boasts millions of active players across the UK and a growing number of international users.
Bet365 customers sign up for the welcome bonus but stay for the sports, promotions, competitive odds, unique markets, and customer care. Join today and deposit between £5 and £10 to secure three times that value in bet credits. Qualifying odds are 1/5 or better.
3. Betway - Get up to £30 back if your first acca loses
Betway likes to do things a little differently from the competition, and this is obvious from the very start with its welcome bonus. Instead of offering a deposit-matched bonus like most other bookies, Betway runs an interesting acca insurance deal.
Create an account at Betway, make your first deposit, and wager up to £30 on a football or horse racing accumulator with three or more selections and odds of 2/1 or greater. You will get your cashback if the bet is a loser. New players also receive 100 free spins on a Betway casino slot game, giving you another chance to profit.
4. Unibet - Get up to £40 insurance on your first bet
Unibet loves to give customers choices at every turn, and that extends to the welcome bonus. New players can choose between a £40 insurance bet and a £10 casino bonus on sports or two £10 free bets on horse racing. Study both options to ensure you get the deal that’s right for you.
Deposit £10 or more as a new player on any market with odds of 2/5 or higher, and if the bet wins, you keep the profits. But if your first bet loses, Unibet will refund your stakes up to the value of £40. You’ll also bank a £10 free bet to use on the casino section of the app.
5. Betiton - Bet £15 and get a £10 free bet
Betiton welcomes new customers to their site with a generous £10 sports free bet when you register an account, deposit £15, and gamble on any sports market available on the website or mobile site. Regardless of the result of your qualifying wager, you’ll receive the £10 in bet credits directly to your Betiton player account.
The terms and conditions state that your qualifying bet must have odds of evens or higher to release the welcome bonus. The deal is strictly for new customers setting up their first online gambling account at Betiton.
6. Betfred - Bet £10 and get £50 in free bets
The final bookmaker on our list of the six best UK bookie bonuses available to UK bettors is one of my favorites, and that’s Betfred. The English-based firm is a major player in the global gambling market and boasts a rich history that dates back to the very start of legalized sportsbook gambling. If you choose to create an online betting account with Betfred today, you’ll qualify for a jaw-dropping £50 in free bets.
Register with Betfred, deposit £10 or more, and gamble on a sportsbook market with odds of evens or greater to qualify. You’ll then receive 3x £10 free bets and 2x £10 acca free bets within 10 hours of settlement.
Ongoing sports Bonuses
The best promotions and bonuses are often reserved for new players. But the sportsbooks mentioned in this article won’t simply forget about you after you create an account and secure the welcome bonus.
After joining, each of the betting apps featured on this page offers an impressive list of recurring deals designed to help drive repeat business. The ongoing offers include enhanced odds, cashback, profit boosts, extra places each way, and other delights. It’s worth checking the promotions tab on your chosen bookmaker each time you log in and before gambling. You may find a better way to bet on sports, higher odds on your pick, or a promo that helps protect your stake.
The marketing teams of major gambling apps regularly update their promotions tab to ensure the deals offered are relevant to the sports schedule, appealing to customers, and competitive in the market.
An example of the kind of recurring promotions you may find includes enhanced odds on the favorite ahead of the Champions League final, cashback on your sports accumulators if your bet loses by just one selection, extra places each way of the Open golf, and best price guaranteed on UK and Irish horse racing. There's something to suit all types of bettors and sports fixtures.
Beware of Betting Terms and Conditions
No matter which type of online sports betting bonus you choose, I always advise reading the terms and conditions in full. Many gamblers make the mistake of not reading the small print, which often leads to confusion or delays when using the bonus or attempting to withdraw any winnings made using the deal.
Reading the T&Cs may take a few moments of your time, but it will give you a strong understanding of how the offer works, what’s expected of you as a customer, and how to withdraw your winnings. Every bonus covered on this page has its own set of rules and regulations, which you’ll find connected to the offer on the sportsbook’s website and app. I have listed some of the most typical points you can expect to see attached to the most popular welcome bonuses.
- Welcome bonuses are for new customers only.
- Deals are strictly one per customer, per household.
- Minimum age and location restrictions apply.
- Qualifying bets must be placed on sportsbook markets at minimum odds.
- Winnings from free bets may be paid in cash or as further bet credits.
- Qualifying bets can’t be fully cashed out or partially cashed out.
- Certain deposit methods won’t qualify you for the welcome bonus.
- Minimum and maximum stakes apply.
- Customers must be successfully verified before free bets are awarded.
- Void bets don’t count towards the bonus.
Whop is the Home of Betting Knowledge
There you have it, our list of the best bonuses and free bets available to sportsbook gamblers in the UK. I hope you enjoyed the article and found at least one deal worth grabbing. Remember, you can join a betting app as a new customer only once, but there’s no limit on how many bookies you can register with and secure the welcome bonuses.
Looking for more reliable betting information on the best gambling apps and sportsbook markets? Whop has everything you need to boost your knowledge and understanding of the industry. Betting can often be confusing and overwhelming, with so much to learn, from strategies to bankroll management, working out your unit and deciding which sports to bet on. Whop is here to help.
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