Most popular sports among Ugandan bettors
Even though we value diverse betting offers on sportsbooks in Uganda, we’re also aware that most punters only enjoy one or two sports. If this is true for you, then this section is for you.
According to our data, the most popular sports among Ugandan punters are football, tennis, and cricket.
The best football betting site in Uganda
1xBet Africa. Despite their varied offer, football is the main attraction of this bookie. It is the main part of their international brand, which can be seen by the number of events and leagues they cover and the impossibly narrow bookmaker margin on top football events. 1xBet conquered the world through their amazing football offers, and now Ugandan bettors can take advantage of this too.
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The best sportsbook for tennis in Uganda
Betway Africa. We already pointed out that betway is a highly focused bookmaker – and tennis is one of the sports they specialize in. While margins on tennis bets for most bookies are as high as 6% on average, betway brings this down to an excellent 4%, setting them apart as by far the best option for tennis fans.
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The best cricket betting site in Uganda
Bet365 Africa. Realistically speaking, cricket is mostly popular among Commonwealth countries. As such, does it surprise you that an English bookie is the best option? Great odds, broad coverage and everything else that comes with using Bet365 all combine to make an offer no other bookie can match.
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History of Sports Betting in Uganda
While betting in one form or another is a traditional form of entertainment in many parts of the world, the same can’t be said about Uganda. Gambling in Uganda was not very prevalent throughout its history, and the first documented spread lines up with the first formalized gambling laws in 2004. This is when the National Lottery was established. It did not seem attractive to a lot of people initially, and it took years for it to truly take off.
For years, bookmakers in Uganda did not have a legal basis to operate. This all changed in 2004 because the lottery needed regulative bills to legally operate. The Casino and Gaming Bill of 2004 was passed, and it remains the main piece of legislature that covers gambling operators in Uganda to this day.
A few years later, sports betting also started spreading throughout the country, most notably with Sports Betting Africa. After 2007, we finally have clear evidence of sports betting attracting audiences and being established as a viable business in Uganda.
Still, sports betting and most other forms of gambling have a notably bad reputation among Ugandans. This is not entirely unfounded – casinos and other gambling service providers do tend to resort to shady business practices. However, this was especially noticeable in Uganda because of poorly enforced regulations. Problem gambling quickly spread, with cases of underage gambling and unchecked gambling addictions. On a surface level, the authorities seemed to attempt to crack down on illicit wagering, but this was not felt in practice. Betting shops and casinos across the country continued to accept underage customers, even after the legal gambling age was pushed up to 25.
The problems worsened with the spread of the internet and online gambling, which was even harder to effectively regulate. Conservative legislators even promised to ban all sports betting by refusing to issue or renew gambling licences. This did not happen; however, it’s obvious some laws need to be treated more seriously. Hopefully, respected Ugandan bookies will act responsibly in the future, even when the government does not.
Complete list of Bookmakers in Uganda
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USh 200,000 bonus in Free Bets
Welcome Offer 100% up to 500,000 UGX
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Great betting site in Uganda
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1xbet Uganda: 1xBet started small but quickly distinguished itself with the number one thing professional punters like – great odds and low margins. They became the biggest operator in their home country of Russia in a matter of years, and are now expanding all over the world.
Bet365 Uganda: An English company with an excellent reputation, Bet365 is considered one of the top brands in the gambling industry. Bet365 is a huge betting platform which covers everything from the world of sports – news, statistics, live streaming of events… This bookie allows you to take your betting to the next level.
888sports Uganda: This Ugandan sportsbook is in a lot of ways the opposite of 22Bet. They don’t have as many events or categories as some other top-rated Ugandan bookies – but what they do offer is amazing. If you’re looking to bet on tennis, football or horse racing, 888Sport’s offers are hard to beat.
22bet Uganda: While some sportsbooks out there attempt to target specific fans and audiences, 22Bet prides itself on being a bookie for everyone. As such, they are one of the most complete, trusted bookmakers in Uganda. They boast high payout rates and very high customer satisfaction.
Betwinner Uganda: Among punters, Betwinner is considered one of the best new bookies in Uganda and the world. They are still building up their customer base, so now is a great time to sign up. So far, their odds can compare to even the best in the business, and they have some innovative features which allow for wholly new ways of betting.
Bwin Uganda: You might recognize Bwin’s name from some large-scale endorsement deals and sponsorships they have. This is truly a world-class betting site, with a customer-oriented business model and some of the most consistently high-quality features currently available.
Online Sports Betting in Uganda: Tax and Legal Terms
With all that in mind, you might be asking: is online betting legal in Uganda?
The short answer is yes. The current legislation applied to Ugandan online bookies is the Lotteries and Gaming Bill of 2013. It was further expanded in 2016, and then amended in 2017, but the bulk of thee laws apply strictly to operators and not users. Here are the parts of this legislation that apply to customers:
- All users must be older than 25.
- Bookmakers must be licenced by the National Lotteries and Gambling Regulatory Board.
- There is no tax on winnings as of yet.
Despite this, offshore gambling companies (that is, ones that are licenced by authorities of countries they are based in, and not the Ugandan board) continue to accept customers from Uganda. While not strictly legal, nothing is stopping you from registering with such companies, as there are no legal repercussions as of the writing of this article.
Deposit and Withdrawal options at Ugandan sportsbooks
According to our research, pretty much all regular payment options for Ugandan betting sites are perfectly usable by all customers. For instance, some countries have issues getting bookies to accept card payments. Thankfully, this is not the case in Uganda, and Visa and Mastercard remain some of the most popular options.
Additionally, popular e-wallets are also an option. Namely, Skrill and Neteller are accepted by almost all major Ugandan bookmakers. Both of these are fully available for Ugandans and are a fast, easy, and secure way of making online transactions. PayPal is another method favoured by punters across the globe and is usually much easier to use regularly compared to debit cards. However, none of these accepts UGX as a currency. With that in mind, Skrill and Neteller offer much better conversion rates, so they are probably a better option for most users.
If you don’t enjoy online payments systems and giving out your financial information online, you’re sadly out of luck. The Paysafecard is generally seen as the best option if you want to bet with cash, but it is very hard to find outlets which stock these vouchers in Uganda. However, if you only bet with trustworthy, safe Ugandan betting sites – such as the ones listed on this page – you don’t have to worry about this.
Best Betting Site in Uganda
If we were to choose just one bookmaker that operates in Uganda that would be, hands down, Betway Uganda.
potentially be a very big one. As such, online bookmakers in Uganda have a lot to gain by expanding here – and a lot of them are aware of this.
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