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The Best Rugby Betting Sites in the UK for 2024

Rugby union has established itself as a widely popular betting market among punters in the UK. On the following page, you will find the best rugby betting sites that offer top odds, bonuses, and markets. Our experts have hand-picked the top rugby bookies for March 2024 below.

Luke Andrews: Editor-in-Chief at BestBettingSites.com
Written by: Luke Andrews
Updated on: 09.02.2024

William Hill – Best Rugby Betting Site

Top Bookmaker for Rugby Betting
Free Bets of £30 Full T&Cs Apply! New online customers only, min £10/€10 stake, win only, min odds 1/2, free bets paid as 3 X £10/€10, 30 day expiry, free bet/payment method/player/country restrictions apply.

William Hill is a classic British bookie. With years of experience, they are experts in the field. This is no different to when it comes to rugby betting. With an abdunace of markets, top odds, and a great welcome offer – they are a great choice. With in-play features and live streaming capabilities, there is plenty for rugby fans to enjoy. Overall, we would say they are suitable for all kinds of punters. See our William Hill review for more in-depth analysis.

bet365 – Top Odds for Rugby

Top Odds for Rugby Betting
Bet £10 Get £50 In Free Bets Full T&Cs Apply! Open Account Offer. New Customers only. Bet £10* & Get £30* in Free Bets. Sign up, deposit between £5* and £10* to your account and bet365 will give you five times that value in Free Bets when you place qualifying bets to the same value and they are settled. Free Bets are paid as Bet Credits. Min odds/bet and payment method exclusions apply. Returns exclude Bet Credits stake. T&Cs, time limits & exclusions apply. Registration Required

One of the biggest names in the industry, bet365 offer a great variety of rugby betting markets. Furthermore, they have a great section dedicated to stats on the game, and their in-play options are second to none. All the main tournaments are covered, as well as some smaller leagues, so rugby fans are well-catered for. Overall, they are a top option and we would say they are suitable for those looking to use the cashout feature. Our bet365 review delves deeper into why they are one of the best.

Ladbrokes – Great Rugby Betting Markets

Wide Range of Rugby Markets
Bet £5 Get £20 In Free Bets Full T&Cs Apply! 18+ New UK+IRE customers. Paypal and certain deposit types and bet types excluded. Min €5 bet within 14 days of account reg at min odds 1/2 = 4 x €5 free bets. Free bets valid for 4 days on sports, stake not returned, restrictions apply. T&Cs apply.

Another staple of the British scene, is Ladbrokes. They are synonymous with the UK hihg-street, but are also more than capable in the online world. They have a great rugby betting section, with numerous tournaments covered. Their payouts are fair, and the welcome bonus represents great value. They do not offer as many streams as they once did, but overall rugby fans will not be disappointed by what they find here. For a more in-depth view of the bookie, see our Ladbrokes review.

When on the hunt for the best online betting sites for rugby, it’s worth bearing in mind that different operators each have their own plus points. Some offer match bets on a number of different leagues from around the world, while others only support outright betting. Check out the best rugby betting sites.

Best Rugby Betting Sites by Category:
🏆 Best Rugby Betting Site William Hill
🏉 Top Live Rugby Betting Site Rhino Bet
⏱️ Best Rugby Livestreams BetVictor
🔄 Top Rugby Specials bet365
⚡ Best Rugby Betting App Ladbrokes
🔎 Top Rugby Acca Boosts BetVictor
🎁 Best Rugby Bonuses RhinoBet
🧾 Best Rugby Betting Odds Ladbrokes
🔝 Top Rugby Bookmaker William Hill
🆕 New Rugby Betting Site bet365

As you can see from the listing, some offer special rugby bonuses and promotions that coincide with popular competitions, while others come with great in-play platforms and a whole host of in-play bets. For a complete breakdown of rugby betting in the UK, including where to find the best odds, bonuses, and live streams, keep scrolling down to the end of the page.

Which Site Offers The Best Rugby Betting Odds?

Just the same as with any other sports market, with rugby betting, it’s important to consider the different odds price offerings at the bookies before you go ahead and start placing wagers. The table below shows the average odds prices at our top 5 best rugby betting sites.

Which Site Has the Best Rugby Betting Odds?
Rugby Betting Site Average Odds Levels
91.89%
93.79%
91.28%
91.03%
90.03%

Each of the chosen bookmakers listed above can boast of having good pay-out prices, however, with odds levels of 93.79%, BetVictor’s rugby betting odds offer the most outstanding value for money. However, Ladbrokes, bet365, Grosvenor, and William Hill all offer competitive prices ranging from 91.89 – 90.03%.

The Best Rugby Competitions to Bet on

As mentioned earlier, the top rugby betting sites out there all allow you to bet on a number of major competitions from around the globe. The overall market selection is not as extensive as, perhaps, football, however, you will still find bets for the most popular competitions from the northern and Southern hemispheres, as well as some age group competitions and international women’s fixtures

One thing to consider when betting on rugby is that not all operators offer match bets for every competition. Many of the top betting sites allow you to place outright bets on which team you think will be the overall winner of a tournament or season-long competition rather than on the individual matches.

In most cases, you will find match betting for the more popular competitions, such as the Six Nations and the Rugby Championship, or one-off competitions such as the Lions Tour or the Rugby World Cup. However, for the French Top 14, the United Rugby Championship, and sometimes even the Gallagher Premiership, you will only find outright bets. Below, we have provided you with an overview of upcoming tournaments to keep an eye out for.

Upcoming Rugby Tournaments
Tournaments Date Location
Rugby World Cup 8 September, 2023 France
Gallagher Championship September, 2023 England
Six Nations February, 2024 Europe
Heineken Champions Cup Finals May, 2024 Europe

If match betting is your thing, be sure to have a good look around and check to make sure that you can place individual match bets at a given bookmaker before you hit that sign-up button.

The Most Popular Rugby Union Betting Markets

Due to the high-action, dynamic nature of the sport, bookmakers are able to offer a sizeable number of rugby bet types that can add an extra element of excitement to a game. From 80-minute match bets, outright bets, specials bets, and in-play bets, there’s a whole host of ways in which you can get creative and think of ways to get the better of the bookie.

Head to Head

Probably the most straight forward bet type. Head to head is when you bet on who you think will win the match – extra time is included here. Most betting sites apply dead heat rules if the match ends in a draw. Your bet is only successful if your selection goes on to win the fixture.

Double Result

This is when the outcome of a match is split into two halves. There are nine possible outcomes: Win/Win, Win/Draw, Win/Loss, Draw/Win, Draw/Draw, Draw/Loss, Loss/Win, Loss/Draw, Loss/Loss. For the bet to be successful both halves must be guessed correctly.

Winning Margin

One of the most difficult rugby get types to get right is the winning margin. To win you’ll need to correctly guess how many points will separate the two competing teams at the final whistle – margins normally start from 1-5 points and go up to 46-50, but can vary depending on the teams.

Handicap Betting

Handicap betting is often used by bookmakers to level the playing field when one side is expected to win by a sizeable margin. The bookmaker handicaps the stronger side by a certain number of points and you then wager on whether you think they will win by more than – or the weaker side will finish the game within – the specified margin. For example, if one side is considered to be better than the opposing team by 7.5 points, you can wager that they will win by 8. If they don’t exceed this margin, you will lose your bet.

First Try Scorer

This bet is often a good one if you are watching the game live. Basically, all you do is choose the player you think will score the first try in the match. Of course, some positions, such as wingers will have lower odds. Even so, it is not a given and often the first try scores is someone you would not expect!

In the section above, we’ve highlighted some of the most common 80-minute bet types so that you can get a taste of the kind of wagers that are offered at the bookies. Other attractive bets include: first point scorer, highest point scorer, total drop goals, and points margin markets, as well as specials, bet types where you can decide on whether you think certain players will receive a ban or where you feel future competitions will be held.

Rugby Live Betting

Rugby is the kind of sport where you can really take advantage of the in-play betting arena. The non-stop action at the best live betting sites and relentless pace of the professional game mean that there’s bound to be a scrum, a line out, or an infringement of some kind at regular intervals during the game.

To add to this, the rules around tackle height have changed, meaning that high tackles have been clamped down on – all tackles must be below the base of the sternum, which means that there are now several more opportunities to cash in on yellow and red cards markets.

Furthermore, each of the featured betting sites offers a wide range of exciting in-play bet types and sometimes even live streams. If you are new to the world of in-play betting and would like to gain a more in-depth insight into how it works, be sure to head over to our live sports betting sites page.

Special Rugby Bonuses

Unfortunately, you won’t find as many regular bonuses and or promotions for rugby as you would for, say, football or horse racing. However, at certain times of the year, most noticeably around the time of the annual Six Nations tournament in February and March or in June and July, where there are special summer tours, you can find a handful of worthwhile offers.

The Best Bonus for Rugby Top offers for new users
Welcome bonus £50
Full T&Cs Apply! Open Account Offer. New Customers only. Bet £10* & Get £30* in Free Bets. Sign up, deposit between £5* and £10* to your account and bet365 will give you five times that value in Free Bets when you place qualifying bets to the same value and they are settled. Free Bets are paid as Bet Credits. Min odds/bet and payment method exclusions apply. Returns exclude Bet Credits stake. T&Cs, time limits & exclusions apply. Registration Required

Overall, we think it’s pretty safe to say that bet365 offers the best selection of bonuses for rugby. As well as a good value-for-money welcome bonus worth £30, they are also the most reliable bookmaker when it comes to rugby-specific deals. Be sure to stay on the lookout during the peak season time as you can often find excellent bet refund deals and price boosts that coincide with the most major competitions.

Rugby Union Betting Strategies

Unlike horse racing or football, there aren’t really any recognised rugby betting strategies that are generally perceived as being able to increase profits over time. The most important strategic approach we can advise when betting on rugby is to make sure that you have a firm grasp of the rules and the structure of the game itself.

If you understand the game, it is, in essence, very simple. It is, however, unlike, say, football as there are far more complex rules and varying set-piece components that directly influence the outcome of the game. Before you think about wagering on a game, make certain that you are confident with all the rules and regulations and that you stay up-to-date with IRB (International Rugby Board) rulings

The IRB has been known to introduce new sanctions and rulings at varying points of the season; these rulings, such as the recent introduction of harsher sanctions for high tackles, can lead to higher penalty counts and affect the outcome of a game.

Another important factor to keep in mind is varying playing styles. Say, for instance, a team has an expert kicker, you may want to consider that there may be one or two more drop-goal attempts than usual. Or say a team has a particularly dominant forward pack with a strong scrum, the possibility of a penalty try, or even a yellow card may be higher.

Different playing styles will inevitably mean that a game is played out in a certain way, making some of the different rugby betting tips more or less likely. It goes without saying, but just like any sport, studying the current form of a team and knowing a little bit about their history is hugely important.

Get to know the teams, take the time to find out whether certain players are injured, suspended, or not available due to international duty, and think about how this may influence the outcome of a fixture.

Rugby Trivia

At present, rugby is one of the fastest-growing sports on the planet – particularly in the UK. There are plenty of interesting facts and figures to go along with this great sports, some of which you can see in the boxes below!

Highest Paid Players

Although not the most lucrative of sports for some, there are a few players who really do get a nice salary. Here are the current top Premiership rugby players and their wage.

  • Charles Piutau (Bristol Bears) – £1m
  • Owen Farrell (Saracens) – £820,000
  • Maro Itoje (Saracens) – £800,000

As you can see, it’s not comparative to football, but they still earn a decent amount. Even so, only one player broke the £1m salary mark last year. These amounts are just the base wage, so with sponsorhips they could make more.

Japan Make History

At the 2019 World Cup, Japan reached the quarter finals for the first time in their history, having competed in every Rugby World Cup but never making it past the pool stage in their previous eight attempts.

Our Best Recommended Rugby Betting Site

With each passing year bringing more interest and increased participation to the sport, there couldn’t be a better time to start thinking about betting on rugby with sports betting sites. We’re confident that this page has provided you with all the right insights you need to start making informed decisions and give you a good idea of where to find the best rugby betting sites.

The Best Bookie for Rugby Great range of rugby betting markets
Welcome bonus £30
Full T&Cs Apply! New online customers only, min £10/€10 stake, win only, min odds 1/2, free bets paid as 3 X £10/€10, 30 day expiry, free bet/payment method/player/country restrictions apply.

Overall, our #1 recommended betting site for rugby managed to perform the best in our testing areas. The great bonus range, market coverage, and bet type selection means that it’s a great choice for beginners and experts alike. Head over to the full list of best rugby betting sites for a more complete round-up.

FAQ

If you have any questions about rugby betting, or anything else contained on this site, please feel free to email at info@bestbettingsites.com.

What are the best rugby betting sites?

We've compared many sportsbooks to track down the best rugby betting sites. Each of the top-rated sites is 100% safe and trustworthy and has a ton of wagering markets, both pre-game and in-play. Sign up and leverage the welcome bonuses and other great promotions.

Can I win at rugby betting online?

Of course, you can win while betting on rugby online as long as you follow some general tips and strategies. Before placing your wager, ensure that you have considered all stats, current team form, and proper bankroll management.

Are there any good bonuses for rugby betting?

Like most other sports, punters who enjoy betting on rugby can benefit from fantastic bonuses and promotions. You can get your hands on great deals such as price boosts, money back, and a fantastic sign-up offer for new customers.

Where is the best place to search for a complete rundown of all the regulations?

A great place to start your research is our review, where you'll find very detailed information on the rugby bet types, some strategies, and other general rules. Alternatively, you can go to the official World Rugby site, and download the most up-to-date law book.