Skybet Review

Introduction

As part of the big Sky Sports network, you pretty much know what to expect when it comes to Skybet. That same feel of brand name flows through to their website, which is good for a lot of customers. It is something which many will recognise and feel comfortable with. It is hard to ignore the presence of Skybet in online betting circles, as you can find their name pretty much everywhere. That is what they are able to do, and they are able to back their services up with some great prices.





Betting Odds: 9/10

Definitely one of the leaders in price comparison when it comes to looking for value on your betting. Skybet really have the pulling power to pack a good punch with their prices and they do. That is without question, and the odds are presented in fractional format as standard. The odd thing about Skybet though is their betting slip, which is really intrusive on the whole viewing pleasure. Now the betting slip itself works well, it shows the potential returns, and the option to look at multiples is just a click away. However, the presentation of the slip is one of the most difficult to get a grip with, out of all the reviews of online bookmakers. Skybet, to their credit in a way, have gone for something different, in that the slip is at the bottom of the screen. Once you add a few selections to it and show the betting slip fully, it starts to really encroach on the main page. You need to expand it to put in your stakes, and if you like adding stakes as you go along while browsing other markets, this slip may frustrate a bit. It would have been a lot more practical going down the side of the screen, completely out of the way, or even in a separate pop up box. Anyway, that is just the betting slip, and when you really start looking around at prices, it is almost forgivable, because with Skybet, being the big name that they are, you do get a very good service.



Betting Markets: 8/10

Extensive would be a good word to sum up the power of the Skybet Sportsbook. Starting at the home page, the menu is listed in a A-Z of sports, and covers everything from American football down to winter sports and everything in between. Above that, Football and Horse Racing have their own special places of pride at the top of the menu, and convenient quick links follow them. This is convenient if you want to quickly just to the next horse racing from wherever in the world it may be coming from, or you want to just go straight to last minute bets without having to search through the Sportsbook. Starting with the Premier League markets, when you click on the link in the window, the menu changes to one specific for that market (which could be a little confusing for navigation). The menu now lists things like Bet Type, and Outright Bets, so that you can filter all of the markets in the main screen you see. You can change the competition market you are in with a link that brings up all the different football leagues and competitions etc, or there is a separate link to change sport completely. If all that is a bit confusing, then that is how the feel of the menus are to be truthful. They take a little getting used to. However, once you are in a market, say looking at the list of Premier League matches coming up next, everything is presented very well. The prices are there to click and add to your slip, plus by the side of each market, there is a link to go an explore the submarkets. There are also icons by the side of each individual match, showing where you can watch the match, listen to the match, follow the live scores, or go and visit the stats for that match. It’s all very useful. Plenty of very good markets throughout all of the sports on the Skybet website, and all backed up with those great Skybet prices..



In-Play Betting: 8/10

Took a bit of browsing before noticing where the live in play betting section was on the home page, only to find it was near the top. This is something indicative of the site, which will be explained in more detail below. There is a wealth of live in play betting opportunities on the website, and clicking a link on any of them will bring up new sections in the main area of the screen through which to do your live betting. As expected the live markets are deep, and is covered very well by Skybet. There is a menu on the left hand side allowing you to quickly jump to a particular type of bet, but everything is clearly marked, right below the main graphic of the live in play anyway. There was a good visual display on the Live In Play betting at Skybet, with their betstream providing details of the football in progress. The great amount of betting markets were listed below this. There was a link to click through to watch the action live, which was great, but for live betting.



Website: 7/10

The Skybet website is packed full of stuff. It’s like a gift that you received with the wrapping paper tearing because it quite can’t contain the overflowing parcel inside. The Sportsbook is great, as it is very extensive. The extras on the Skybet side are really commendable, from blogs to Microsites on big sporting tournament, to radio, to Skybet Extra (full of latest betting news). The betting calculator is there, and the horse racing form and football stats are highly commendable (including Opta Stats for the football). There is the famed SkySports Score Centre which you can open to keep a track on things, plus plenty of games, poker, casino and everything else you would expect to find at your online bookmaker. However, and this is the crux of things with Skybet, sometimes it feels like there is too much, or that is has just not been organised well enough. The site is presented in white and blue, which looks good, but from the betting slip, to the organisation of the menus, and the constant barrage of links to other things wherever you go, it makes the site feel claustrophobic in a way. It is a bit of a disappointment that things just aren’t a little bit clearer, because Skybet have the feel of something special, but it’s not quite been presented in the best manner for ease of use. Some punters may well like all of the business going on there, but there is a lot to be distracted and frustrated by. When you stand it up against straight forward, no-fuss online betting sites, it looks very cluttered and confusing. It is a bit niggling, but if you can get past it, and take some time to feel your way around the website itself, there is plenty on offer there.



Customer Service: 9/10

No problems with the customer service at Skybet, as everything you need is right at the bottom of the screen. There is a good help and support section, which will answer your FAQ’s along with some video tutorials to help get you started. You can chat live on live with a Skybet representative, telephone or email. Everything is open 24/7 which is a necessity these days.



Promotions and Free Bets: 7/10

Skybet run some good promotions, including a Super 6 soccer prediction game, and there is always loads of promotions for the casino, poker and bingo sections happening. New promotions crop up now and again, and they are currently running a first bet insurance offer for new customers. When you open an account with Skybet, they will match your first bet with a free bet up to the value of £30. So, Skybet will give you that amount as a free bet. All new customers are automatically eligible for this. You need to check out their promotions page, but once you start browsing around, you do find nice little treats like enhanced odds on football doubles for example.



Summary/Overall Recommendation: 8/10

A really good service, which in general is let down by the website. The website works, it has everything you need, but Skybet have packed so much into there, it is as if they want you to see everything at once. Just dialling it down a little bit would go a long way. Still, their overall bookmaking services cannot be faulted, as they provide great coverage and great prices. The navigation of the site may be a small thing to overcome in order to get those benefits.







If you are interested on sports betting, register now at these betting sites!