Best Rugby Betting Sites UK

Author: Sheldon Taylor Updated: March 01 2023

What Are the Best Sites to Bet on Rugby UK?

Looking for the best betting sites for rugby? This is your one-stop-shop including where to find the top mobile apps and new sportsbooks hot on the market. If you enjoy watching rugby matches and want to test your skills in predicting the outcome of upcoming events, read on to find out where and how you can do so, as well as which markets you can bet on and what types of wagers are available.

Let's start with the most important part, none other than which are the best bookmakers in the UK. We recommend that you take a look at our offers if you decide to bet on rugby union or rugby league. The reason is that British sports fans are a little spoiled when it comes to the number of betting sites they can choose from and let’s face it, sometimes abundance can make things more difficult instead of easy.

Betway Rugby Betting

Betway is an award-winning online betting site that is considered to be one of the best sportsbooks in the UK. Hosting 31 categories, Betway Sports offers numerous markets for each of them. The bookmaker’s values are authenticity, responsibility, shared thrill, and that nothing is impossible.

LeoVegas Rugby Betting

LeoVegas Sports is a high-quality betting site with a wide range of promotions and betting options for 36 of the most popular sports in the world including Rugby League and Rugby Union. If you want to bet on rugby, this is the right place as LeoVegas gives you the opportunity to place wagers on the largest rugby competitions and tournaments and you also can take advantage of the members’ rugby betting advice.

Unibet Rugby Betting

Founded in 1997, Unibet has 36 different sports categories with plenty of market options for each of them. Today, it is one of the largest bookmakers in Europe. An impressive fact about Unibet is that it streams around 40,000 sports events each year. Moreover, you can place wagers not only on live sports but also on virtual sports.

Boylesports Rugby Betting

BoyleSports was launched in 1982 and nowadays it is one of the most popular bookmakers in the UK. Currently, it has over 30 sports categories with different markets available for each of them. BoyleSports accepts plenty of banking options through which you can deposit money or withdraw your winnings.

William Hill Rugby Betting

You might be impressed to know that William Hill was established in 1934 and due to this fact, it can pretend to be one of the oldest gambling companies still in existence. With its eSports betting options, live streaming, and 33 sports categories, William Hill is one of the most preferred betting sites in the UK. For rugby fans, the bookmaker offers great odds on both rugby union and rugby league.

Are There Any Rugby Free Bets and Promotions?

There is hardly any industry that is more competitive than the sports betting and the casino industry. This is why bookmakers strive to offer attractive bonus offers to potential new players, most often in the form of free bets. Usually, after making a deposit, the player is given a certain amount intended for free bets, which cannot be exchanged for real money. However, the winnings from the free bets will be transferred to your wallet and you can withdraw the amount. For example, you deposit £10 and receive another £10 as a match bonus. If you do not win anything from the free bets that have been placed, that money is gone. In addition, bookmakers use various promotions to retain existing users. In the table below you can see some of the best rugby-free bet options available in the UK.

	Get £10 in Free Bets	Visit betway
	100% Profit Boost of Up to £100	Visit LeoVegas
	Up to £40 Money Back	Visit Unibet
	Bet £10 Get £20 in Free Bets	Visit BoyleSports
	£30 in Free Bets	Visit William Hill

What Are the Most Common Rugby Betting Markets? How to Bet on Rugby

There are many different types of bets in sports. Rugby wagering can be divided into two groups: tournament betting and match betting. To mention a few, some of the most popular rugby punts are: match bets, match results, handicap bets, winning margins, first try scorers, first scoring play, tournaments/series bets, tournament/series winners, victory series margins, top try scorers, top point scorers, etc. Usually, there are fewer rugby markets available than for other sports like football, but still, there are plenty of options. Generally, the unwritten rule is that you bet large amounts on short odds and small amounts on long odds. Read the sections below to learn more about some of the rugby betting markets.

Match Winner/Match Result

Match Winner and Match Result Bets are straightforward. You back on either team to win or bet on a draw. If you are new to rugby betting, make a note that a draw is unlikely to happen in rugby, so the odds are normally long to bet on a draw, but this is good for people who prefer to bet small amounts. When it comes to international matches, it is often the case that the result bet is of limited value. This is because it is rare that there are surprising twists or in other words the team that was thought to lose wins such as Japan's win over South Africa and New Zealand's loss to Ireland in 2016.

Half Time/Full Time

This is a form of double bet where you have to choose what the score will be at the end of the first half and at the end of the game. For example, you can bet that the score after the first half will be tied, and name one of the teams as the ultimate winner after the second half. The ante is upped because you are required to bet on two outcomes instead of one, which in turn increases your chances of winning. There are nine possible options to choose from since you have a double result bet on two outcomes. Here is a list of them:

• Win/Win
• Win/Draw
• Win/Loss
• Loss/Loss
• Loss/Win
• Loss/Draw
• Draw/Draw
• Draw/Win
• Draw/Loss

Handicap Betting

Handicap betting also called the ‘spread’, is a specific type of betting that is not suitable for every market and requires a bit of in-depth knowledge of rugby and the different teams to have any chance of being successful. It is essentially a bet where you wager based on a set virtual deficit. In other words, the bookmakers give the weaker team a ‘lead’ that is added to the actual score of the game, and the stronger team a ‘deficit’. The goal is to ‘equalize’ the odds of both teams in terms of betting, which is why the bet is on either team to win with hypothetical added or subtracted points. For example, in a rugby match, if a handicap of -10.5 is applied to the team most likely to win, this means that team must win by 11 points or more for the bet to stand.

Winning Margin

Winning margin betting is similar to handicap betting because in your bet you determine how many points a team will win by. The main difference, however, is that here you bet on a winning margin within a certain fixed window. For example, a team might be 4/9 to win with a -5 handicap, but 9/2 for that win to be by 6-10 points. As you can see in both cases you are betting on the given team to win by more than 5 points, but with a winning margin bet, you put a limit on how much they will win by. To sum up, a winning margin is a bet related to the exact goal difference between the two teams and a wager is placed on a range of scores by which one of them will win.

How to Bet on and Watch Live Rugby

Most rugby betting sites offer live betting on rugby matches which means that you can place wagers while the match is in progress. Bets can be made throughout the game, and as the game progresses, the odds change and so do your chances of winning. Live betting gives you the opportunity to take advantage of this. Major games are usually broadcast on local national television stations and sometimes on big platforms such as Amazon Prime (for example, Autumn Nations Series 2022). To facilitate their users, most betting sites offer live streaming of rugby matches.

Now that you know most of the things you need to bet on rugby, it is time to have a look at our step-by-step guide on how to do it.

1. Open the chosen bookmaker
2. Log in to your account
3. Make a deposit
4. Choose one of the sections: Rugby League or Rugby Union
5. Pick a rugby game
6. Collate the odds
7. Fill in the bet slip with your prediction
8. Bet as much as you see fit
9. Place the wager

International Test Rugby and Major Tournaments

Like any other sport, rugby also has numerous international, regional, and national competitions. Let’s have a look at seven of the international tournaments which we believe are the key ones and are intended for competitions between countries' national teams.

Rugby World Cup 2023

Starting with the most important one, none other than the World Cup. As you may have guessed, this tournament is contested every four years. Rugby World Cup was instituted in 1987 when a tournament was held, and Australia and New Zealand played the roles of co-hosts. However, the Rugby World Cup has been held regularly since 1991. To date, the trophy has been won by four countries: New Zealand, South Africa, Australia, and England. The current champion is South Africa. Rugby World Cup 2023 will be hosted by France and will start on 8th September and last until 28th October.

Summer Internationals 2023

Summer Internationals is the Northern Hemisphere’s name for the Mid-Year Rugby Union Internationals. It is an international rugby union test match series that is held annually in the Southern Hemisphere. England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales participated in this year's competition for the first time in three years. The most significant turn of events at the 2022 Summer International was Ireland's historic 2-1 series win over New Zealand.

Autumn Nations Series 2023

The Autumn Nation Series or The End-of-Year Rugby Union Internationals is one of the most anticipated annual rugby competitions. All the Six Nations (England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, France, Italy), as well as Georgia, South Africa, New Zealand, Australia, Japan, Argentina, Samoa, and Fiji, participate in it.

Six Nations 2023

It was originally established as the Home Nations Championship in 1883, in which teams from England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland competed. France was added in 1910, and Italy in 2000, effectively beginning the history of the Six Nations. Only Italy and Scotland have not won the title so far. Counting victories from 1883 until now, England has 29 titles out of a total of 39. The winner of the Six Nations 2022 is France, and the next competition will start in February 2023.

The Rugby Championship 2023

Like the Six Nations, the Rugby Championship is an international competition involving the four best teams in the Southern Hemisphere. It was first held in 1996, but until Argentina joined in 2012, the championship was known as the "Tri Nations". We bet you know who the other three are, but let's mention them. These are Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. By 2022, New Zealand had won the title 19 times, Australia and South Africa four times each. As you may have guessed, the current title holder is New Zealand.

Bledisloe Cup 2023

The Bledisloe Cup was instituted in 1932. It was originally staged between the national teams of Australia’s Wallabies and New Zealand’s All Blacks as an annual rugby union competition. The number of games played in each competition varies, as does the frequency with which they are played, but usually, the annual series consists of three games. To date, New Zealand has won the trophy 50 times, including the Bledisloe Cup 2022, and Australia 12 times.

Pacific Nations Cup

It was founded in 2005 as the Pacific 5 Nations. Pacific Nations Cup is a round-robin international rugby union competition, which means that each team faces each of the other teams. Normally, it is held between the three Pacific countries: Tonga, Samoa, and Fiji. Other countries such as Japan, Canada, USA, New Zealand, and Australia are sometimes invited as participants in the competition. Fiji has won the title the most times - 5, but Samoa is the winner of the Pacific Nations Cup 2022.

Club Rugby Domestic and International Tournaments

Like any other team sport, rugby also has competitions that are intended for different clubs at a national or regional level. Keep reading to find out more about the most important domestic and international tournaments.

European Rugby Champions Cup (Heineken Cup)

The annual rugby union tournament is organised by The European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR), and it is also known as the Heineken Champions Cup. It was launched in 1995 at the initiative of the then Five Nations (England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, France), as they wanted to upgrade the level of professional international competitions. It is the biggest club rugby competition in Europe, with teams from the countries participating in the Six Nations competing in it. The current holders of the trophy are Stade Rochelais, who managed to win after beating Leinster in the final.

United Rugby Championship

This rugby union competition was established in 2001 and involves professional 16 teams from Ireland (4), Scotland (2), Wales (4), Italy (2), and South Africa (4). United Rugby Championship is considered to be one of the three major professional European leagues along with the Gallagher Premiership and the Top 14. Typically, each team plays one match at home and one away against each of the other clubs in its geographical pool. The team with the most titles won is Leinster (8), but the last competition was won by the Stormers.

Gallagher Premiership Rugby

The other name of the Gallagher Premiership Rugby is just Premiership Rugby and as the name suggests it is an English competition. It was founded in 1987 and since then a total of 28 clubs have participated in it and 4 of them (Gloucester, Bath, Wasps, and Leicester Tigers) have appeared in every season without exception. The last club to make their league debut in 2012-2013 was London Welsh. The last winner of the Gallagher Premiership Rugby is Leicester Tigers.

Top 14

Unlike other domestic or international club championships, the Top 14 was created back in 1892. In the first edition, only two clubs took part in it: Stade Français and Racing Club de France which became the first champion. The competition has been held annually since its inception, with the only exception being the periods of the First and Second World Wars. The winner of each edition of the Top 14 receives the special title that has been awarded since 1892 and is called the Bouclier de Brennus. The most successful Top 14 club is Toulouse, which has won the trophy 21 times. However, the most recent champion is Montpellier.

Super Rugby Pacific

It is known by Australians as Harvey Norman Super Rugby Pacific and by Kiwis as DHL Super Rugby Pacific and it is founded in 1996. This annual rugby union competition is between 12 clubs from Australia, New Zealand, Tonga, Samoa, and Fiji. Until 2020, South Africa was also part of the Super Rugby Pacific but decided to end its participation to focus on competitions held in the Northern Hemisphere. The tournament’s formats are robin-round and knockout. The Kiwi’s club Crusaders has won the title 11 times and they are crowned as Pacific rugby champions in the last Super Rugby Pacific edition.

Test Rugby Predictions 2023

Rugby Predictions and Tips for Major Games

Whatever you do, you should always have a strategy. Especially when it comes to sports betting. You would have a hard time winning if you do not have a plan and shoot in directions without a clear target. That's why we have prepared a list of several rules for you to build your strategy on.

1. Awareness of the team you are betting on - one team has nothing in common with another team. Coaches and players are different, as are their abilities, and therefore each team has its own specific style of play, which in some cases can help it and in others hinder it.
2. Do not underestimate weather as a factor - bad weather affects most sports matches badly, but in rugby, it can even sabotage it. The ball becomes extremely slippery and although players can control their behaviour, they have no influence over Mother Nature and the complications it creates.
3. Read the team news – do not miss to be informed about the changes in the team. The absence of one key player can affect the game of everyone else.
4. Be familiar with your market - be aware of things that typically happen such as a winger scoring a point on his/her first try of the match, and those that are more of an exception.
5. Players’ condition is important - in some tournaments like the Premiership players play week in and week out and this wears the players down and can affect their form and overall performance.
6. Stick to your initial strategy - there are basically two options for betting on rugby. Either you bet large amounts on short odds or small amounts on long odds. Once you choose a strategy, cling to it until the end. Otherwise, you are very likely to lose everything you bet.

Another thing that is a good idea to do before placing a bet is to read the prediction for the match. We do not underestimate your knowledge but bear in mind that our sports predictions are made by a dedicated team of rugby experts and the probability of a wrong prediction is much less. We have currently written predictions for the Six Nations 2023 and the Autumn Nations Series 2022.

Frequently Asked Questions about Rugby