New Champions League study reveals most reliable in-play UK bookmakers

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A new report, designed by data aggregator Bettormetrics and news outlet iGB, has unveiled the UK’s most reliable bookmakers. Spanning a handful of key metrics, this analysis compared a plethora of top-rated operators during the 2025 UEFA Champions League group stage.

Factors such as uptime, lost wagering, arbitrage exposure, market suspensions and pricing are accounted for in this detailed bookie-focused dossier. In total, the report tracked eight popular sports betting platforms: SkyBet, William Hill, Paddy Power, Unibet, bet365, 888Sport, bwin and Ladbrokes.

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According to Bettormetrics’ results, SkyBet prevails when it comes to ‘uptime’. This means that the Flutter-owned operator maintains consistent pricing and actively accepts bets more often than all competitors, boasting a real-time wagering acceptance uptime of 93.8%. Next in line are 888Sport (93.3%) and Paddy Power (93.2%). 

However, despite delivering leading ‘uptime’ performance, Paddy Power’s evolving pricing structure saw the bookmaker’s ‘acceptance uptime’ (how often bookmakers accept new bets) stooped to 73.4%. 

Constant odds fluctuations often interrupt users’ ability to process wagers – weakening the site’s percentage score considerably. 

William Hill bettors suffer most when it comes to downtime; the bookmaker sits bottom of the pile for ‘uptime’ and suspends markets more often than its respective competitors. 

The operator itself is hurt by recurrent market freezes, with 12.86% of potential wagers lost as a consequence. Only Unibet (14.78%) performs worse in this regard.

Unibet also takes a hit in ‘uptime’, where it sits third from bottom, ‘acceptance uptime’ and ‘exchange arbitrage’. Exchange arbitrage is defined as the amount of time a bookmaker “has at least one selection priced above the Lay side of the exchange” – providing an “arbitrage opportunity” for bettors. 

As detailed by Bettormetrics and iGB, this spells a potential risk management issue.

Fascinating data points are tied to bet365. Although struggling to maintain pace with ‘uptime’ leaders, the firm fends off all rivals in the ‘lost wagering’ category. Essentially, this indicates that while bet365 often suspends markets, the bookmaker remains open during critical moments. 

Of particular note, is that this operator is the only platform to continue taking wagers during penalties. Such a manoeuvre undoubtedly fortifies the popularity of Denise Coates’ betting site throughout pivotal events. 

Perhaps most important for bettors are the ‘overround’ numbers. This measurement compiles the implied probabilities attached to each sports betting platform; the greater the percentage figure, the less competitive the bookmaker’s odds. 

SkyBet — best-in-class for ‘uptime’ — performs poorly here (8%), demonstrating that impressive service uptime does not guarantee the best possible odds for players. Similar applies to 888Sport (8.3%), while Unibet (5.9%), Paddy Power (6%) and bet365 (6.4%) serve up the most rewarding prices for in-play events. 

Conclusions from this study illustrate that William Hill must tackle an array of significant challenges to compete at the top echelon of sports betting. 

On the other side of the coin, operators like SkyBet and 888Sport deliver solid and reliable services through most vital betting functions – but both could remedy their respective ‘overround’ figures and focus on competitive pricing over aggressive profitability. 

Intriguing statistics linked to bet365 express the company’s focus on hitting gaps in the market, as the bookmaker trounces other operators during decisive in-play moments. Unibet must explore methods to alleviate its notable ‘lost wagering’ deficit.

Calibrating harmony across all segments involved in the scrutiny undertaken by iGB and Bettormetrics will prove crucial as bookmakers spar for customers in an increasingly saturated online sports betting arena.