Ladbrokes Bookmakers

Along with Coral and William Hill, Ladbrokes is one of the “big three” sportsbook makers based in the UK. As well as the internet sportsbook, it operates more than 2200 betting shops in the UK, Ireland and Belgium, as well as providing one of the largest telephone betting services around. Ladbrokes is part of the famous Hilton Group, which is best known for its international chain of hotels but has a very strong betting and gaming division.

The web site itself is well laid out and easy to navigate, though the red, green and “muddy puddle” olive colours take some getting used to. Tabs across the top of the home page take you to various categories of bet, such as racing, greyhounds, football and sports, whilst the bulk of the page contains links to specific current events. A menu on the left hand side of the screen provides access to various features, promotions and information pages.

Navigating the site is fairly straightforward and the pages load relatively quickly despite the fact that some of them are fairly complex. Ladbroke offer odds on all of the usual sporting events, including football, cricket, rugby, darts and American football. However, it’s the horse racing pages that deserve a particular mention because races can be viewed in either Racecard or Quickpick format. Quickpick just gives you the bare essentials that you need to place a bet – the ability to tick a box corresponding to your selection – but the Racecard version is something else entirely. You get the form as it would appear in a newspaper, complete with the colours of the jockey silks, and also a paragraph of text that provides an overview of the race. The ability to view more than one racecard on a single page (by selecting the specific races you are interested in) is also a great feature.

Perhaps the best thing about this web site, again for racing bettors, is the ability to watch certain races live via the “At The Races” satellite feed. You’ll need a broadband connection to get the most out of this facility, but if you don’t have that there is still a very good radio service providing audio commentaries.

Whilst racing enthusiasts will undoubtedly be delighted with this site, those who are more interested in sports betting may find its features a little thin on the ground, since it offers little besides the ability to place a bet on a variety of events. But that’s just a small niggle about what is, when all is said and done, an impressive site.