Skybet is operated by Bonne Terre Limited, a subsidiary of the BSkyB empire, along with Sky Poker, Sky Vegas and Sky Bingo. All are regulated and licensed by the Alderney Gambling Control Commission in Guernsey, which is where Bonne Terre is based. Skybet themselves have headquarters in Leeds and London and have their origins in a small betting company called Surrey Sports, which Sky acquired in 2000. This was rebranded two years later and so Skybet was created.

Sky, of course, is a huge company, listed on the London FTSE group of companies and in addition to the fact that customer money is ring fenced this brings a superb level of security and financial muscle.

With events listed under 28 different sports and categories Skybet offer a good range of markets with, like many UK bookmakers, a focus on football and horse racing. They cover all the unusual football leagues that you would expect, from Brazil to Bolivia and Honduras to India. They don't offer quite as many markets on each match, with about 50 the standard in the big leagues.

On other sports they offer plenty of options, especially catering for events being televised on Sky - which means most sports. Another area where Skybet excel is in offering novelty and specials bets, such as who the next manager of a club will be, or the next manager to be sacked!

The odds are good, especially on the top football leagues in England, Spain and Italy. They often run a book at around 105% on these markets and overall their odds are well above average.

Skybet change their free bet offer frequently but at the moment it is highly unusual in being a no deposit free bet. Simply sign up and they will give you 10 GBP to play with. The free bet is valid for 30 days and the stake is not returned but with absolutely no risk and no obligation this is a sensational offer for betting newbies. With sign up promotions in the other gaming suites they offer there is plenty of free money here!

They also run an excellent "Loyalty Reward" scheme where you can get 20 GBP deducted from your Sky TV bill or up to 20 GBP in free bets. Every month! To obtain the maximum free bets only requires 200 GBP of wagering so this really is another fantastic offer. They also offer enhanced odds accumulators and sometimes "hard luck" bonuses on horse races if your selection falls or breaks down.

As you might expect from someone who broadcasts a huge amount of live sport, in-play betting is a big deal with Skybet. Live betting has a prominent place on the home page which includes events currently live, those coming soon and a calendar where you can access details of future events.

There is also a link to the help section to explain more about in-play gambling. In addition you can easily see if your event will be streamed for live viewing, if commentary will be available, stats for the teams and information on the current state of play. A good range of sports is covered with plenty of markets on each event. All in all - very good.

Their mobile betting is relatively new and is available for the sports book and the casino (Sky Vegas). Go to www.skybet.com on your mobile to download the app, use the QR code onsite or text PUB to 80235 and they'll even credit you with a free bet of 10 GBP!

Telephone: 08000 725 181 / +44 1423 533 104
Email: help@skybet.com
Address: 2 Wellington Place, Leeds, LS1 4AP
Other contact methods: Live chat, online form

Skybet offer 24/7 livechat that is always quickly answered (in our tests at least) and their representatives were very efficient. Emails and phone calls were also very well dealt with and with a good range of contact methods and a handy "Help" section with a glossary, loads of FAQs and a useful search facility Skybet score highly. The team are based in England and the only minor gripes are that you cannot email the transcript to yourself and that the chat seems to time out very quickly if you don't respond straight away.

Skybet are not generally held in great esteem but we think they may be getting an unfair rap. They have certainly improved in the last few years, as you would expect from a company with such financial power behind it. They tend to be better than average in all areas, with decent odds, a good in-play console and solid customer service options.

Our main criticism is that the site is only available in English, which coupled with the heavy UK focus of the sports they cover means they may fail to attract or cater for customers from other countries, and certainly those who don't speak English.

However, for those who do, the current no deposit free bet and ongoing loyalty scheme, alongside the strengths mentioned above and Skybet's financial security mean they just about get the thumbs up from us.