STARS: 4.8 out of 5
WEBSITE: https://www.bet.co.za
ESTABLISHED: 2010
LOCATION: Cape Town, South Africa
PROPRIETOR: Betcoza Online (RF) (PTY) Ltd
LICENCES: Western Cape Gambling & Racing Board
MINIMUM DEPOSIT: R10
DEPOSIT OPTIONS: Deposits can be made via MasterCard, and Visa credit cards, debit cards or cheque cards or by EFT via IPay, SID, Nedbank, FNB, Standard Bank, Absa or Capitec.
SOFTWARE: Powered by BetTech
PROS:
- Clean, easy to use interface
- Attractive welcome bonus
- Excellent FAQ facility
- Offers live-in-play betting
- New ‘search’ facility on the mobile site
CONS:
- Live Chat is not 24/7
- No sports news, tips and stats
MAIN SUMMARY:
Bet.co.za is a spin-off entity which was unbundled from BetTech Gaming in order to showcase the BetTech software that powers this successful South African sportsbook.
It was founded a little under 10 years ago by UCT business science graduate Scott Canny who, after completing his honours degree and successfully launching Sportingbet.co.za in 2010, he moved on and established Bet.co.za not too long afterwards.
And if during the past decade, Bet.co.za, like Sportingbet, has grown into one of South Africa’s premier online sportsbooks, it is with good reason.
True, It’s website interface is not the kind that takes your breath away when you open it, but using a lot of Springbok green and gold mixed with black and various shades of grey, it does come across as being neat, clean, open for business and very quickly and clearly lets you know what it’s all about.
It must be one of the easiest online sportsbooks for a beginner to understand and navigate.
Without shouting about them, it quickly lets you know about its extensive world-class list of sports and sports markets and what major sporting events are currently on the go.
You are also quickly led into their exciting and active world of bonus and promotional activity and, of equal importance, you can find out within minutes of opening the site, how you can do almost everything that matters simply by going to the top of the page and clicking on a clearly labeled FAQ (frequently asked questions) button.
And, yes, you can do all this using a PC, laptop, smart phone or mobile tablet, the latter two since a recent upgrade to their mobile-site, now offering a ‘search’ facility.
Bet.co.za’s excellent FAQ facility, one of the best I’ve seen anywhere, will tell you how to get started and what you can and what you can’t do to register, make a deposit and claim a bonus.
You will also be told about its many forms of betting and betting markets and how to play them and if you happen to be brand, spanking new to the world of online horse racing and sports betting, you can also use the FAQ facility to learn about the rules and regulations that govern the sport in South Africa including the one that prohibits youth under the age of 18 from participating in sports betting.
Extensive sports menu:
Along with horse racing, invariably a staple ingredient and the founding sport of most sportsbooks, Bet.co.za can claim to have something like 30 different sports on its homepage menu.
They range from highly-popular football, rugby, motor racing, cricket, tennis, golf, cycling, boxing and darts through Aussie rules, NFL Football and other US favourites like baseball, basketball and ice hockey to such little-known sports as bandy, floorball and footsal.
There is even one sport listed as ‘lucky numbers’ which, when clicked on, gives you the option of taking a ticket or two in as many as 60 different lottos around the world.
Within each sport, there are also hundreds and hundreds of different markets and different forms of betting including live and live-in-play wagering.
Bonuses and promotions:
That Bet.co.za takes its bonus and promotional activity seriously is quickly evident when the very first banner headline you see reads: “We’ll double your first deposit up to R500” and, not too long after that, another that tells you:, “Pay with IPay and stand a chance of winning back your deposit.”
If you next click on the ‘promos’ button, a page opens up with a long list of boldly headlined promotions offering all kinds of prizes, bonuses and paybacks.
As many of them are tied to major sporting events, they change frequently but here are just a few examples of some of their 2018 offers:
- Golf: ‘Cut your losses’ – “Get your stake back if your British Open outright winner bet fails to make the cut.”
- Rugby: – Join the BETMybru mega pool and give yourself a chance of winning a trip to Twickenham to watch the Boks play England
- Tennis: ‘Straight sets bonus’ – Back a player on a match outright and if he/she wins in straight sets we’ll boost your payout by 25% up to R1 000.”
- Cricket: Strike bowler bonus – “Back a player to be a top bowler and if he takes five wickets or more we’ll double your payout.
- Horse Racing: Objection bonus –“We will payout if your horse loses due to an objection.”
Transactions:
Deposits in South African Rands can be made via MasterCard and Visa credit cards, debit cards or cheque cards or by EFT via IPay, SID, Nedbank, FNB, Standard Bank, Absa or Capitec.
Card payments will go through instantly. So too will SID and IPay deposits, but standard EFT payments made via your bank will only be credited to your account when a proof of payment has been received and will take a little longer.
Cash payments? They too are acceptable, but they can only be made at the counter of a branch of a recognised bank or through an ATM that accepts cash.
And security? Bet.co.za has a good reputation for being fair, trustworthy and secure, the later thanks to their use of Thawte encryption technology.
Customer support:
Bet.co.za home page interface gives you two options if you looking for customer support . There is a very visible box in the top right-hand corner which reads: “Automated Whatsapp support Channel. Add 076-019-7128 to your contacts for hassle free support.”
There is also a little yellow box in the right-hand bottom corner labeled ‘Live Support’, but before you can start chatting you have to fill in a form giving them your name, phone number and your ‘question’ and then wait for them to get back to you.
They can also be contacted by phone (between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.) or via e-mail. You will find out how by clicking on a ‘Contact Us’ button at the bottom of their home page.
Summing up:
As I have already mentioned, Bet.co.za’s interface is hardly a work of digital art. It is, however, a clean, crisp and extremely workmanlike platform for an excellent sportsbook.
And this regardless of whether your access to its website is via a PC or notebook from your home or office or from a smart phone or tablet when you are out and about.
Its sports menu is extensive and its betting markets are many, varied and competitive,
It’s a match for most when it comes to bonuses and enterprising promotions and its unmatched FAQ facility ensures that even the first-time punter can quickly get up and running with a lot of understanding and very little assistance.
It is lacking in two respects. It carries no sports hard news, blogs or sports stats like some of its premier rivals and its support service didn’t seem to be 24/7 when I tried to contact its support team at 7pm one evening via that little yellow box marked ‘Live Chat’.
Overall though, it gets a big thumbs-up and comes highly recommended, especially for the first-timer.