A veritable veteran of the industry, 188Bet has been up and running for more than a decade now. They’ve spearheaded🗝 the expansion of Asian bookmakers into Europe and have become nothing less than a household name on a global basis.🗝 188bet offer a seriously impressive range of betting markets, their casino is almost as impressive as their sportsbook and when🗝 it comes to football leagues and big limits, it’s hard to pinpoint many other online sportsbooks that come close to🗝 the Asian bookmaker. They have sponsorship deals and/or are the official betting partners of many top-name football and rugby teams,🗝 including Aston Villa, Liverpool, Chelsea and more.
Getting Started with 188bet
Accounts at the Asian bookmaker are free to set up and🗝 can be opened in minutes, simply by submitting a few details and depositing cash in your account. Once up and🗝 running, there are plenty of games that can be played free of charge, though sports betting of course requires real🗝 money wagering. That being said, new customers may be asked to provide additional proof of identity before being able to🗝 make withdrawals, or carry out any financial transactions in general. This may mean providing a copy of a driving license,🗝 passport, utility bill or other document that serves as proof of address.
188Bet Safety and Security
Safety and security are of no🗝 concern whatsoever when betting with 188Bet. There are both fully regulated by the British government and the Isle of Man🗝 Gambling Supervision Commission. Along with the use of Thawte security software for all cashier services, the Asian bookmaker carries out🗝 and publishes the results of regular audits, in order to guarantee fair and safe operations. From personal data to financial🗝 information and all else besides, 188Bet is a supremely safe online sportsbook.
188Bet Markets and Odds
It has to be noted that🗝 due to its Asian heritage 188Bet specialty is football and in-play betting and this is where they excel.
With more than🗝 400 football leagues available, it’s impossible to dispute 188Bet’s claim to fame as the web’s number-one for football betting. Major🗝 leagues and tournaments take precedence, but there are also plenty of offers for national leagues from all over the world,🗝 youth leagues, women tournaments and all these come with decent betting limits and high odds. On 50-50 markets you will🗝 often find 1.97 - 1.97 odds highlighting the very low bookmaking margin of 188bet that makes them extremely attractive for🗝 advanced players looking to maximize their gains.
Coverage on other sports though is rather lackluster and there is plenty of room🗝 for improvement. Of course the major events in Basketball, Baseball, Ice Hockey, American Football, Rugby and Handball are all covered,🗝 but you will hardly find offers in these sports for anything but the top leagues.
For Horse racing the Asian bookmaker🗝 covers pretty much every event that takes place in the UK and Ireland with superb odds across the board. And🗝 for those who prefer to bet on dogs instead of horses, there’s also excellent greyhound racing coverage available. However these🗝 two features are only available to UK players.
E-sports and Financial bets are also available with adequate coverage at 188Bet.
188bet Asian🗝 View
Players at 188Bet get to choose their interface - Asian or International. This is a great option for Europeans that🗝 might find it intriguing to explore the exciting world of Asian bookmakers. Switching to Asian view will show you a🗝 much more professional and practical approach at betting and is definitely the template preferred by advanced and professional bettors. The🗝 International version offers a traditional European style look and you can always switch back to it, if you find the🗝 Asian interface confusing.
188Bet Live Streaming and Stats
While the vast majority of bookmakers these days offer some kind of live streaming🗝 for at least some of the events in their in-game betting offer, the Asian bookmaker by contrast actually provides none.🗝 Instead, they have livecast that gives live updates, stats and info as the games play out, as opposed to showing🗝 TV stream of the games as they happen. This is one area where 188bet seriously falls behind the competition and🗝 should improve urgently.
188Bet Limits
Unless you’re planning on putting huge sums on the line, you won’t have to worry about what🗝 188bet limits are. As an Asian bookmaker, they offer well above the average limits on most football leagues and could🗝 only be rivaled by industry leaders like Pinnacle. However many reports have surfaced in recent years that 188Bet has started🗝 limiting wining players, which is in stark contrast with their Asian heritage and is seriously jeopardizing their image as the🗝 bookmaker of choice for the advanced bettors.
Payments and Withdrawals
While the range of currencies accepted by 188Bet isn’t quite as large🗝 as elsewhere, the Asian bookmaker still covers most bases for players on a global basis. Right now, the list of🗝 accepted currencies includes:
BRL: Reais - Brasil, GBP: UK Pound Sterling, EUR: Euro, USD: US Dollar, HKD: Hong Kong Dollar, MYR:🗝 Malaysian Ringgit, RMB: Chinese Renminbi, THB: Thai Baht, IDR: Indonesia Rupiah, VND: Viet Nam Dong, KRW: Korean Won
Payment types accepted🗝 for deposits include Bank Transfers, Visa, MasterCard, Skril and Neteller, while withdrawals are limited to personal cheques, credit cards, bank🗝 transfers and Skrill. Processing time for withdrawals come in at about 24 hours, which is about the average.
Note that withdrawals🗝 can be made once daily and only in the method used for deposit. Therefore, we recommend using Skrill.
188Bet Casino
The casino🗝 at 188Bet is polished and professional, though doesn’t feature the largest range of games. Nonetheless, Baccarat, Roulette and Blackjack are🗝 covered pretty well. Then again, the vast majority of people don’t come to 188Bet to play casino games – they🗝 come for sports betting, which is generally quite fantastic here. And if it’s poker you’re after, 188Bet Poker usually has🗝 in the region of 7,000 players online at any one time, which given the fact that it isn’t what these🗝 specialise in is pretty impressive.
188Bet Mobile (Android only)
While some argue that that 188Bet mobile app doesn’t have quite a many🗝 bells and whistles as some of its rivals, it’s by far one of the most user-friendly and enjoyable apps to🗝 use of its kind. It’s compatible with most Android devices, isn’t too data-hungry and providers access to the whole desktop🗝 experience. It’s also one of very few mobile apps that also feature live dealer table gaming, which is nice. Of🗝 course many punters will find it as temporary disadvantage that the iOS version is still to come, but we have🗝 assurance from the Asian bookmaker that it will not be a long wait.
Customer Support
Customer support is an area in which🗝 188Bet scores pretty big, but could still do with one or two improvements. On the plus side, not only is🗝 the team a real joy to work with, but they’re also available 24 hours a day and seven days a🗝 week. In addition, the Asian bookmaker offers multiple methods of getting in touch, which include telephone, live chat, email, Skype,🗝 fax and more – much better than most. Replies at all times of day and night are rapid and they🗝 really couldn’t be more helpful. At the time of writing, customer support is offered in Chinese, English, Thai and Korean.
Contact
The🗝 customer service team of the Asian bookmaker can be contacted by telephone on 44 20 3608 4015 (European region), or🗝 emailed directly at support-en@188service. Live chat is available via the site itself – check out 188bet for more information.