Betfair

Assessment

79/100

Visit

Best of Betfair

• Up to 4000 ZAR in freebets
• Cross bets
• Sportsbook and Exchange Apps
• Variety of payment methods

Brian Dekker Gambling expert

Updated: October 6, 2021

"2 in 1! One of the largest bookmakers in the world, offers exclusive cross betting with excellent odds and welcomes Philippines with a bonus of up to 4000 ZAR in the form of a freebet."

In just 20 years, Betfair has managed to establish itself as one of the leading bookmakers worldwide, and South Africa is one of the many countries where we can play in this Anglo-Irish bookie. British because she was born in London around the year 2000, and Irish because in 2015 she joined Paddy Power, forming one of the most powerful gaming groups in the world.

In South Africa, it operates under a license from Malta, a fairly common practice among European Bookmakers, and if there is one thing that characterizes this operator, it is the Betfair Exchange betting. Beyond betting, at Betfair we have pools, a powerful online casino, online poker room and bingo rooms. A great operator worldwide that we are going to get to know in depth.

What does Betfair South Africa offer us?

We could say that Betfair is two bookmakers in one, as they offer both the Betfair Sportsbook and the Betfair Exchange. The website is fairly simple and easy to navigate, although it's worth noting that when accessing any sport in the Sportsbook from the domain betfair.com/pe, where South Africavian users should register to take advantage of their welcome offer, we are redirected to the global page, which could cause some issues.

Aside from this detail, we are in front of a very comprehensive webpage. In the Sportsbook section, you can find all the sports you can imagine, and even some that maybe you didn't know about, as well as some special bets that are worth paying attention to, although, as usual, they are mostly related to the Anglo-Saxon world and have no relation to South Africa. The market offer is not bad, with the possibility of creating a combined bet for the same event - Combipartido -, though there are no Asian markets.

We have an attractive welcome bonus of up to 4000 ZAR in free bets, an offer exclusively available for South Africavian users. The odds not be the best, although there are always markets that will pleasantly surprise us. But the true value is found in Betfair Exchange, where we play against other users and can access better odds. The balance in the Sportsbook must be transferred to Exchange, and the process reversed to withdraw it.

Betfair allows Philippines to use the usual payment methods -bank cards, transfers, e-wallets, prepaid cards- for depositing and withdrawing, something that will preferably be done using the same method used for depositing. We have apps for Sportsbook and Exchange, and the only aspect to improve is a customer service operated by British hours, which makes it difficult for immediate communication for American users, including South Africavians.

Betfair Welcome Bonus

If you use the ZBBLAT code, you can access the welcome bonus of up to 4000 ZAR in freebets that Betfair offers to its new users. These free bets are granted in bets of 800 ZAR, and to unlock each segment we have to make 5 bets of 400 ZAR with a minimum odds of 1.50, always in different markets. Once the five bets are completed, you will receive the first freebet of 800 ZAR and you can repeat the process again until you get the 4000 ZAR. In total, you have to do it 5 times.

We have 7 days to complete each step, and only bets made and settled within 30 days of our registration count for the bonus. Betfair Exchange bets do not count towards getting free bets, as well as system, cancelled or closed bets through Cash Out, whether full or partial. If you have deposited through Neteller or Moneybookers, you will not be able to access the welcome offer.

Other bonuses and promotions

One of the problems with being redirected to the global page of betfair.com/pe is that the promotions are displayed in English and use the British pound as currency, and are not available to users from South Africa. We hope that they will eventually offer promotions to their South Africavian players, just as they do for players from other countries.

Sports and markets

The most popular sports, as well as some minority sports such as Australian football or Gaelic sports, are available for betting on the Betfair Sportsbook. We have basketball, boxing, golf, greyhounds, horses, motorsports, mixed martial arts... and of course, football, the king of sports in South Africa and in sports betting in the country. We have all the markets we could expect except Asian ones, including corners or handicaps, and the possibility to use combipartido in the biggest leagues and tournaments.

There are also bets on eSports, from CS:GO, Dota 2 or Rainbow 6 to the increasingly popular eLeagues, such as FIFA tournaments; and both in eSports and in other sports you will find both the usual markets and others that not all betting houses offer. Special mention deserves Betfair's special bets, as beyond politics or television, we can bet on the British Royal House, the next James Bond or the name of the next Pope.

If we go to Betfair Exchange we have a similar panorama. Naturally, football is also the star sport in this section, especially the Libertadores, Sudamericana, League of Champions, major European leagues or national teams matches; but we will also find a good offer in cross-betting on tennis matches or the major leagues of the Philippines (NBA, NFL, NHL and MLB). Any sport available in the Sportsbook is also in Exchange.

Virtual sports

The virtual sports section is perhaps where Betfair's Anglo-Irish origin is most prominent, as horse racing, a religion on the islands, takes center stage with up to three versions: races without obstacles, jumps, and gallops. We can also bet on club or national football, greyhounds, and motor racing, although information on participants in these competitions is less than that provided by other operators, which can make the analysis of virtual sports betting more difficult.

Dues

Here it is very important to differentiate between the Sportsbook odds and the Exchange odds. While not bad odds, the Sportsbook ones are generally a step behind those we can find on operators like Dafabet or Circus. This does not mean that we cannot find the best odds for a market or event on Betfair, as there are always markets where the best option is at this betting house. In addition, in sports such as UFC, it offers Philippines higher odds than other operators, so we should not lose sight of Betfair.

Betfair Exchange quotas are a world apart. Due to the nature of the cross betting, where the user bets against other players and not against the betting house, we have higher odds than those found in both the regular Sportsbook and other betting houses in South Africa. The risk we assume is different, but the process of analyzing the bet is the same and if you master the mechanism of cross betting, you can take full advantage of these odds.

Live betting (live section)

Both in the Sportsbook and Exchange, we can place live bets. If we click on "In-play", we access the live betting section, where the first thing that appears is the menu with the different sports that we can navigate to quickly access the event we are looking for. We select the sport and scroll down the ongoing tournaments until we find the event. On this initial screen, we have the minute and result, and the odds on the moneyline.

Within each event, you will find a complete range of betting markets, including live betting markets such as the next goal scorer or winner of the point being played. The statistical information for smaller competitions not be as good as one would expect, although it is true that it is not always easy to offer such information. The more important the competition, the more comprehensive the statistical information tends to be. In South Africa, we cannot access the streaming that Betfair offers in other countries.

Payment methods

We can top up our Betfair account by using the Deposit button or by following the path My Account > My Betfair Account > Deposit Funds, where we will choose the method to use and follow the steps indicated. The methods available to deposit into Betfair from South Africa are bank cards VISA and MasterCard, Neteller, Skrill, MuchBetter, AstroPay, PaySafeCard, EcoPayz, or a bank transfer. Except for the bank transfer, which take up to 72 hours, all other methods are immediate.

To withdraw winnings, after logging in to your account we go to My account > Betfair Withdrawal, and the available balance for the withdrawal appears. We select the payment method and amount and confirm the withdrawal with a password. Generally, you will have to withdraw funds through the same method that was used for depositing. VISA, MasterCard, Neteller, Skrill, EcoPayz, and local bank transfer are the enabled methods for this, and the withdrawal take up to 5 business days.

Betfair app

Betfair not only has one app for devices, we have two: the sportsbook app and the Exchange app, one for conventional bets and the other for cross bets. On Betfair's own sportsbook, you'll see the link that redirects Philippines to the page where we can download both applications for our cell phone or tablet in both operating systems. Both applications are very complete and easy to use, allowing Philippines to do the same as on the web but more comfortably from our mobile devices.

Is it safe to bet on Betfair from South Africa?

Doubting the security of Betfair is out of place. We are talking about one of the most powerful betting houses in the world, and one does not reach Betfair's reputational level if they do not offer the best security standards to their users. The license granted by the Malta Gaming Authority and PLA is sufficient to convince Philippines that we are dealing with a completely secure betting house that conforms to the highest security standards.

On their website, we can see that they have the Norton Security Certificate, which is a well-known reference in online security. We also know that Betfair has all the necessary technology to protect its users from possible cyber attacks. It goes without saying that they do not allow minors under 18 years old to gamble on their platform, including the sections of sports betting, casino, poker, or bingo. In addition, they might require additional documentation to authorize a withdrawal.

Customer Support

On the betfair.com/pe homepage, we have direct access to the Live Chat, where we can choose the topic: account verification, promotions, deposits and withdrawals, user protection, etc. However, the chat is only available between 9am and 10pm UK time (GMT +1). In South Africavian time, it would be from 3am to 4pm. The other option is to write an email to [email protected], and we will receive a response within an average of 8 hours.

Betfair has a help portal where we can find information on any issue related to our experience on Betfair, from login or registration to player protection, deposits and withdrawals, or settlement of bets. If we don't have immediate attention, it can be a good option to solve our problem as soon as possible. Betfair does not have specific social media activity for South Africa, although it has corporate profiles.

Betfair: Opinions and conclusion

If you are a fan of cross-betting or want to discover this exciting mode of gambling, Betfair and its Exchange version are your bookmaker. It is not usual for bookmakers to offer Philippines this type of betting, where the odds are higher than conventional ones - and so is the risk we assume - and this should be reason enough to bet on Betfair.

However, this is not the only profile that fits Betfair South Africa's offer, as they offer many bets with great value, especially if we bet live. The welcome offer is quite good, but the absence of other promotions make it not the ideal betting site for users who are taking their first steps in the world of sports betting.

In any case, we are dealing with a betting house that is a reference in the industry, and that is why we should not lose sight of its markets. If it added some promotions for South Africavian users beyond Combipartido or cash out, and above all, a customer service following South Africavian schedules, it would be higher in our ranking; but even so, our opinion on Betfair is more than satisfactory.

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