Best bookmaker for American sports betting

Leading tipster site bettingexpert.com considers the American sports betting options offered by 25 of the UK’s most popular bookmakers

American sports have become increasingly popular on this side of the pond in recent years. As such, UK bookmakers have increased their offerings in this area, with a range of odds and markets on basketball, baseball, American Football and ice hockey.

For our best bookmaker for American sports betting review, we concentrated on three of the biggest sports leagues in the States: NFL, NBA and NHL.

We looked at which bookies offered the best odds and the biggest range of markets for each of these leagues, using this information to determine the best bookmaker for each of these leagues individually, as well the best overall bookmaker for American sports betting.

We conducted our research between 13 November and 18 November. Our results are purely based on this time frame, during which we analysed the following games:

• NFL: New England Patriots vs. Philadelphia Eagles
• NFL: Chicago Bears vs. Los Angeles Rams
• NBA: Chicago Bulls vs. Milwaukee Bucks
• NBA: New York Knicks vs. Dallas Mavericks
• NBA: Los Angeles Clippers vs. New Orleans Pelicans
• NHL: Arizona Coyotes vs. Minnesota Wild
• NHL: Winnipeg Jets vs. Florida Panthers
• NHL: New York Rangers vs. Tampa Bay Lightning

We looked at the odds for moneyline, totals and spread to determine who had the lowest commission rates.

The operators tested for our research were:

Overall best bookmakers for American sports
After collating and analysing all of the data we gathered, we found that William Hill offered the best all-round betting experience.

Our top five were:

1. William Hill
2. Betfair
3. Unibet
4. Mr Green
5. Matchbook

We were particularly impressed with William Hill’s offering for NHL betting. It was consistently among the top bookmakers for competitive odds on each game we tested.

The same can also be said for its offering on NFL and NBA betting. We found a good range of markets available at William Hill for each game we researched.

In second place was Betfair. Betfair offered the highest number of markets across all sports tested. After analysing the results on each individual sport, we found that Betfair came top for NFL, second for NBA betting and third for NHL.

The third-placed bookmaker overall was Unibet. This may come as a surprise to some, but those who read our bookmaker comparisons regularly will know that Unibet performs well in almost every aspect of sports betting we research. Unibet impressed us with the range of markets offered and the average number of markets available on each game. Unibet came out on top for NBA betting.

In fourth place was Mr Green. Relatively new to the online sports betting scene, Mr Green offered a good range of odds and markets across all games tested, in particular NBA and NHL betting.

Matchbook rounded out our top five. We found that Matchbook offered the best odds on almost every game we tested, so is likely to be the exchange of choice for punters solely focused on getting the best odds possible.

For players looking for the widest range of markets, these were our top five operators:

1. Betfair – 120 markets
2. Paddy Power – 110 markets
3. bet365 – 83 markets
4. William Hill – 61 markets
5. Unibet – 61 markets

Let’s now look at the individual sports we researched, starting with the best bookmaker for NFL betting.

Best bookmaker for NFL
Our top performing bookmakers for NFL betting, in general, were as follows.

1. Betfair
2. Betsafe
3. William Hill

The results of our analysis of the NFL games between the New England Patriots and the Philadelphia Eagles, along with the Chicago Bears versus the LA Rams, also indicated the following:

Best NFL markets

1. Paddy Power
2. Betfair
3. bet365

Best NFL odds: moneyline

1. Matchbook – 0.65%
2. William Hill – 3.03%
3. Unibet – 3.27%

Best NFL odds: total

1. Matchbook – 1.62%
2. Marathonbet – 2.56%
3. Betsafe – 3.50%

Best NFL odds: spread

1. Matchbook – 0.25%
2. Marathonbet – 2.58%
3. Netbet – 3.63%

Best bookmaker for NBA betting
Now onto the best bookmaker for NBA betting. As we touched upon earlier, Unibet came out on top of this list, offering an excellent, all-round betting experience. Our top three were as follows:

1. Unibet
2. Betfair
3. Mr Green

We have further separated our research to find the best bookmakers for each of the following categories. The results for odds include the rate of commission.

Best NBA markets

1. Betfair
2. Paddy Power
3. bet365

Best NBA odds: moneyline

1. Matchbook – 1.55%
2. Marathonbet – 2.56%
3. Ladbrokes – 3.61%

Best NBA odds: totals

1. Matchbook – 1.80%
2. Premier Punt – 4.17%
3. Energy Bet – 4.41%

Best NBA odds: spread

1. Matchbook – 0.92%
2. Premier Punt – 3.92%
3. Sportingbet – 4.12%

Best bookmaker for NHL
Lastly, let’s look at who performed well in our best bookmaker for NHL betting research. The following bookmakers impressed us with their overall NHL betting offerings, with William Hill leading the way.

1. William Hill
2. Mr Green
3. Betfair

Let’s look at the individual stats for our best bookmaker for NHL betting review.

Best NHL markets

1. Mr Green
2. 888sport
3. Unibet

Best NHL odds: moneyline

1. Matchbook – 0.67%
2. William Hill – 3.47%
3. bet365 – 4.11%

Best NHL odds: total

1. Matchbook – 1.16%
2. Premier Punt – 4.16%
3. William Hill – 4.36%

Odds: spread

1. Matchbook – 1.37%
2. William Hill – 3.50%
3. Marathonbet – 3.90%

Conclusion
While William Hill came out on top overall, for punters focusing on odds, operators such as Matchbook may prove more appealing. Those looking for the widest range of markets may opt for Betfair or Paddy Power, with both offering close to double the number of markets available at William Hill.

It’s also worth pointing out that a handful of the operators tested offer live streaming on selected American sports events, which may be another key attraction to players. Bet365 was the most prolific in this regard, though others, including Mr Green, also offered live streaming on major events such as the playoffs.

We expect UK bookmakers to improve their American sport offerings even further as these sports continue to gain popularity in the UK.

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