The Best Rugby Betting Sites for 2024
Since becoming a full-time, professional sport back in 1995, rugby union has undergone significant growth, both in spectatorship and participation, and established itself as a widely popular wagering market among bettors around the world. Find the best rugby betting sites that offer a wide range of bets on overseas competitions including on rugby league.
| Best Betting Sites in The United States | Bonus Offers | Highlights | Rating | Secure Link | T&Cs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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 Site | BetMGM |
| 👮 Most Secure Rugby Sportsbook | Caesars |
| ▶️ Best Rugby Livestreams | Bet Rivers |
| 📈 Top Rugby Market Selection | Betway |
| 💰 Best Rugby Union Betting Odds | bet365 |
As you can see from the listing, some offer special rugby betting 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, including where to find the best odds, bonuses, and live streams, keep scrolling down to the end of the page.
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 sportsbooks before you go ahead and start placing wagers. The table below shows the average odds prices at our top 5 best rugby betting sites.
| Rugby Betting Site | Six Nations | Bledisloe Cup | Premiership | Super League |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Betway | 97.38% | 96.32% | 97.85% | 95.13% |
| BetMGM | 96.32% | 95.22% | 94.42% | 95.01% |
| Caesars | 97.12% | 96.01% | 96.85% | 94.93% |
| bet365 | 94.99% | 94.33% | 98.48% | 96.69% |
| BetRivers | 95.92% | 93.13% | 93.96% | 94.32% |
Each of the chosen operators listed above can boast of having good pay-out prices, however, with odds levels of 93.79%, 888sport rugby betting odds offer the most outstanding value for money. However, all the rest offer competitive prices ranging from 93.13%-96.69%. Though not all online sportsbooks offer competitive odds for rugby competitions, so be sure to research each before choosing.
Competitions
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, the extensive football betting market, 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 moneyline bets for every competition. Many of the top betting sites allow you to place futures 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 Guinness Pro 12, and sometimes even the Aviva Premiership, you will only find moneyline bets.
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 sportsbook before you hit that sign-up button. All our picks normally offers a good range of match bets on the European Challenge Cup, the European Champions Cup, and on all rugby union betting.
Rugby Union Betting Types
Due to the high-action, dynamic nature of rugby sportsbooks are able to offer a sizeable number of rugby bet types that can add an extra element of excitement to a game. From 90-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 any rugby sportsbook.
Moneyline
Probably the most straight forward bet type. Moneyline is when you bet on who you think will win the match – extra time is included here. Most rugby league 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/Tie, Win/Loss, Tie/Win, Tie/Tie, Tie/Loss, Loss/Win, Loss/Tie, Loss/Loss. For the bet to be successful both halves must be guessed correctly.
Winning Margin
One of the most difficult rugby bet 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.
Line Betting
Line betting is often used by sportsbooks to level the playing field when one side is expected to win by a sizeable margin. The sportsbook 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.
In the section above, we’ve highlighted some of the most common bet types so that you can get a taste of the kind of wagers that are offered at the sportsbooks. 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.
These ‘specials’ are more often than not referred to as prop bets. Some Rugby prop bets are skill-based while others are pure luck and just for fun. Some bettor like to roll up prop bets into parlays. Same game parlays are particularly popular at the best rugby betting sites
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 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 new World Rugby initiative, which insists that referees must clamp down on dangerous tackles and tackles made in the air, means that there are now several more opportunities to cash in on yellow and red cards markets.
Furthermore, each of the featured rugby league 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 main sports betting page.
Special Rugby Bonuses
Unfortunately, you won’t find as many regular rugby betting bonuses and or promotions as you would for, say, baseball or basketball. 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.
Overall, we think it’s pretty safe to say that BetMGM offers the best selection of bonuses for rugby. As well as a good value-for-money welcome bonus, they are also the most reliable sportsbook 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 betting on ice hockey, there aren’t really any recognized 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, soccer 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.
- Research the team form and head-to-head stats
- Is it rugby league betting or rugby union betting?
- Analyse each team’s style and tactics
- Consider placing small wagers on underdogs
- Look out for the best odds
- Utilize the in-play betting option
- Wager on accumulators for greater profit
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 to success at the betting sites rugby union fans favor.
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. Doing all this will make you more likely to be successful on desktop or on any rugby betting apps.
Rugby Trivia
At present, rugby is one of the fastest-growing sports on the planet. The 2003 Rugby World Cup in Australia was a momentous occasion for English rugby. It was not only the first time that England or any northern hemisphere nation had won the tournament, but it also generated new interest in the sport boosted participation levels. Similarly, the 2015 Rugby World Cup in England saw the RFU (Rugby Football Union) reap huge financial profits and install plans to expand the domestic game further.
2015 Rugby World Cup Pay-out
Remember that epic group fixture between South Africa and Japan on the opening weekend of the 2015 Rugby World Cup at the Falmer Stadium in Brighton? Japan entered the game as overwhelming underdogs and were expected to come off clear second best against the Tri Nations side. One lucky bettor from Coventry wagered $100 on the unlikely result of a Japan win at the monelyline odds of 3300.
The Cherry Blossoms, as they are known, went on to Triumph in truly dramatic style with a late try in the 83rd minute of injury time, leaving the bettor with a healthy return of $3,300. The match has since gone down as a world cup classic and is widely regarded as one of the most unexpected upsets in the history of professional sport.
RFU – the Wealthiest Union
The RFU is the union with the biggest overall bankroll in world rugby. Despite England’s untimely exit from their own tournament, the 2015 Rugby World Cup saw the RFU reap over $600 million in revenue after the event, an increase of 37% from the previous financial year.
After an inital investment of around $150 million, the RFU has plans to reinvest the profits back into the sport to try and improve access to the game across the country and boost participation at the grass-roots level. They’ve also signed a new deal worth $300 million with Premiership Rugby, which has been put in place with the end goal of making England rugby the best in the world both on the international and domestic stage.
Racing Metro Doping Scandal
After reports surfaced of two All Blacks legends, Joe Rokocoko and Dan Carter, having tested positive for banned corticosteroids after the French Top 14 final it was feared that the accusations may have led to the two great’s careers being forever tarnished.
Later investigations proved that Racing 92 had completed all the necessary medical protocols by obtaining therapeutic use exemptions (TUEs) for the two players from World Rugby. It was therefore ruled that the club had administered the substance to the players in full accordance with anti-doping laws; racing and the former all-blacks were cleared of all charges. At the closing of the case, a representative of Racing Metro declared: “We’re on the side of law, ethics and love of a clean sport.”
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. 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.
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 betting on rugby matches 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, bettors who enjoy wagering 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.
ℹ️ What is the best source for rugby league and rugby union betting 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.