Ladbrokes is one of the oldest bookmakers in the world, with roots going all the way back to Ladbroke Hall in Worcestershire in 1886. They have come a long, long way since then and now employ around 16,000 people worldwide with a turnover of £1bn. They operate over 2700 betting shops across the UK and Europe and as well as this and an extensive telephone betting service they have 13 tailored sites in nine languages and 17 currencies.
As one would expect from a giant British gambling institution they offer the full range of betting opportunities, with a huge number of sports covered and dedicated poker, bingo, casino, games and financial suites.
They are licensed and regulated, like so many of the big betting companies, in Gibraltar but headquarters and the customer service centre remain in the UK, in Harrow to be precise.
Odds & Markets
Ladbrokes are widely regarded as one of the best bookmakers in the business, but this is a big of a misconception about a bookmaker that we feel are relying on their brand to continue to move forward. In the few markets that we tested, very rarely did we find that Ladbrokes were best priced and more often than not, they were right in the middle of the pack. You could still describe them as being competitive and this would be fair, but for a bookmaker and brand the size of Ladbrokes, the pricing structure really does need to be addressed.
In a complete flip to the odds structure, the market and sports structure at Ladbrokes is simply superb. Again, football plays a huge part in the make up, but they include over two dozen different sports to bet in total and they also have a number of ‘misc’ betting markets such as TV specials, virtuals and even politics, which are a bit gimmicky, but welcomed nevertheless.
Features
Ladbrokes are a very good all-rounder who offer the complete package and whilst they are not the absolute best in many areas they are near the top for most.
They have a good odds calculator, plenty of commentaries of a number of sports, an excellent TV guide (that shows which events are televised, both via live streaming and on major channels) and decent in-play and mobile offerings. Details of all promotions can be easily found in a dedicated area of their site and the customer service options are top notch. All in all, a very strong bookmaker.
IN-PLAY BETTING
In play betting at Ladbrokes is, as you would expect from one of the worlds leading bookmakers, top notch. What’s so impressive about the section is that whilst football is always going to be the bread and butter of any sports in-play section, they do offer a really good range of other sports, most notably tennis.
The match centre that they have on offer with each game is absolutely stunning as well. It really is a massive asset to the bookmaker and not only can you see up to second events from each game, you can see the odds and the betting markets respond to those events as well.
LIVE STREAMING
The live streaming section is very much tied into the in play betting section and you can watch matches within the sportsbook with all the latest live odds surrounding the player. The range of games you are getting looks to be fairly comprehensive, although we were unable to find a guide as to upcoming games, so it’s tough to tell really.
CASH OUT
The cash out feature is easily accessible for most bets at Ladbrokes, but what we really liked is that they have followed Coral’s suit in being able to cash out bets that have been placed via any of their online stores. All you need to do is enter the cash out code on the betting slip you were given from the shop and it will give you your live cash out price.
BETTING EXCHANGE
One of the latest additions to Ladbrokes has been the inclusion of their betting exchange. They actually acquired an exchange earlier in 2016 and have since transferred it on to their domain. The range of markets on offer is of a fair standard, but it’s safe to say that it doesn’t have the depth that the sportsbook does.
The bigger sports such as football, tennis, cricket, golf, darts and so on are all well covered, but issues arise with lesser sports as the liquidity for those games are vastly reduced. For the majority, the exchange will be more than adequate, but if you are a serious exchange bettor, then it might be best to look elsewhere for the more niche sports and markets.
The name needs little introduction. Ladbrokes is one of the oldest and most established companies in the gambling industry. They’ve been about since 1886, but their online casino platform didn’t arise until 2000. However, that still makes them one of the oldest online casinos in the industry and sometimes, you just cant put a price on experience.
The company have seen many changes over the last decade or so, no more so than their integration with the Gala Coral Group. The official titles of the company is now Ladbrokes Coral, but they are keeping the name as just ‘Ladbrokes’ which certainly makes sense given how big the brand is these days.
Software And Platform
The software at Ladbrokes has seen a fairly large overhaul in the last few years to tie in with that of the sportsbook. The site looks great and can be accessed via your browser on both Mac and PC via their instant play section. It gives you an option to search through the mass of games on offer and also highlights which games can be played via your mobile. Incidentally, the mobile app can be downloaded via the App Store or simply accessed via the browser in your smartphone.
The casino includes a number of software providers, such as Ash Gaming, Barcrest, IGT / Wagerworks, NetEnt, OpenBet and Playtech. The games on offer from them allow Ladbrokes to offer up a unique range, of which you will be able to see below.
Casino Games
You will be able to take advantage of over 250 titles at the Ladbrokes casino, which is a fair number, but nothing ground breaking. However, their affiliation with one software provider in particular, PlayTech, means that the overall standard is excellent. PlayTech have the rights to a boatload of branded games as well, so if it’s these that you are looking out for, then Ladbrokes will be a great shout.
The site also includes a number of new games, which seem to be added weekly. The number of games never seems to rise considerably, which states that they often remove the dead wood, something that more online casinos should do in our opinion at least.
SLOTS
Slots is where the site comes to life and with only a 150 titles on offer, you may feel that you’re getting a limited amount compared to some, and to be fair, we couldn’t argue with that. But, as mentioned earlier, the site offers a lot more quality games over sheer volume, which we much rather prefer. Also, 150 slots are going to be more than enough for the majority of online casinos. The standout titles came from the likes of Kong, Little Britain, Rocky and The Incredible Hulk.
ROULETTE
The range of roulette games on offer is actually really good, with around 15 to choose from. What makes it even better is that they are pretty diverse in the nature of the game with variations including Premium, European, Marvel, French, American, multi-wheel and Platinum, to name but a few.
BLACKJACK
You get a similar number of blackjack games to play as well to be fair, with 14 in total. These range from live, perfect, surrender, UK, 21 duel, peek and multihand, again, just naming a few.
VIDEO POKER
There are 14 variations of video poker on the main website, but it’s worth noting that only one of these can be accessed via the mobile casino app. However, you get a good range online with American, jacks or better, Royal, deuces wild, aces and face and joker poker, all lining up to make a solid collection of video poker games.
JACKPOTS
The jackpot section is where it’s at for us at the Ladbrokes casino, with 40 titles on offer to peruse through. The games are all run via the networks that Ladbrokes have set up using their software providers, which means that more players play the games and in turn, more money is on offer.
One of the biggest wins ever to have taken place at Ladbrokes from the jackpot games took place in 2012 when an anonymous businessman scooped the £2.6million prize on the Mega Moolah game from just a 25p spin.
About Ladbrokes Casino
The company are widely regarded as being one of the biggest casinos in the industry and that’s mainly down to their brand name. The casino section of the company has played second fiddle to their sportsbook, there is no doubting that, but that’s more a reflection on the size of the sports betting sector at Ladbrokes than the casino sector.
Whilst the casino side of the business didn’t come into fruition until 2000, it’s now a veteran in the industry and has been one of the many reasons why the company reported revenue figures of £1.1billion in 2015, making them one of the biggest gambling companies in the world. What’s been great to see from Ladbrokes is that they are still based in London, where many of their competitors have fled to tax havens around the world.