Introduction
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The following is an in-depth review of the betting agency TAB Sportsbet. This review covers the history, features, interface, sports & racing markets, upsides and downsides of the service. This review is part of our comprehensive Bookmaker Reviews section. The Betting Agencies page provides information and reviews for other sports betting agencies that are suitable for Australians. The following details are updated periodically to keep them up to date. |
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History, Location and Licence
TAB Sportsbet is owned and operated by Tabcorp Holdings. Along with TAB Sportsbet, Tabcorp owns the online betting agency Luxbet, as well as TAB retail outlets, Sky Racing, Sky Sports Radio, Keno and a few gaming brands. Tabcorp employs about 2,100 people across Australia.1
Because TAB Sportsbet is licensed in both New South Wales and Victoria, visitors must first choose whether to be directed to the New South Wales or Victoria website. If you don’t reside in either state, just pick one at random. The odds appear to be identical between the two sites.
Services and Features
| New member offers | None. |
|---|---|
| Deposit options | Credit card, TAB Retail Outlets, Cheque or Money Order, BPay, Electronic Funds Transfer, Australia Post Bank@Post outlets |
| Minimum deposit | $20 for credit card, BPay and Australia Post. No minimum deposit for other deposit methods. |
| Withdrawal options | Electronic Funds Transfer, TAB Retail Outlets, Cheque or Money Order |
| Transaction fees | None. |
| Currencies | AUD, EUR, GBP, HKD, JPY, USD |
| Languages | English, Spanish, Japanese, Chinese Simplified, Chinese Traditional |
| Odds formats | Decimal |
| Minimum bet | $1.00 |
| Maximum payout | Vague. “TAB may set any minimum or maximum stake or payout for sports bets at its sole and absolute discretion.” TAB Sportsbet has a reputation for accepting larger bets than other bookmakers. |
| Deposit turnover requirements | None that we’re aware of |
| Bonus credit turnover requirements | N/A |
| Bookmaker margin | TAB Sportsbet’s margins are one of its biggest weaknesses. With an average margin of 106.5%, it consistently used the highest margins in our bookmaker margin survey. In comparison, most bookmakers were around 105.2%. Learn more about bookmaker margins. |
| Credit facilities | None that we’re aware of |
| Forbidden Jurisdictions | United States |
| Mobile version of the website? | Yes |
| Identity checks | TAB Sportsbet will automatically attempt to authenticate your identity during the registration process. Should the automated check fail, you must verify your identity within 90 days of opening an account. This can be achieved either by completing a form and taking it to an Australia Post outlet, or by submitting an alternative form along with copies of your ID and the signature of an approved referee (legal practitioner, judge, policeman, etc). |
| Dormant account fees | A monthly account management fee of $5.50 for Australian customers and $5.00 for international customers is charged to those who have not placed a bet for 6 months or more. |
Betting Interface and Website Layout
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The TAB Sportsbet interface is disappointing. It makes heavy use of pop-up windows/tabs to display the betting slip, multi betting, and other website features. The website is long overdue for a revamp. The sports navigation panel actually works perfectly well. It is located in the left column, and is similar to what you see on most bookmaker websites. When you click on a sport the sub categories are automatically displayed without reloading the page, which is a time saver. The odds display is frustrating, because you can’t view the bookmaker odds for an entire weekend of a sporting league’s fixtures at once. When you select a league you are displayed a list of events, but you have to click on each event one by one to view the odds for that fixture. Once you have selected a fixture the odds for every betting market (head to head, line, margin, etc) are displayed at once, with short cuts to the exotic bets provided at the top of the page. Unlike most websites, the bet slip is not displayed on the betting interface, but is provided in a pop-up window when you submit your bets. Each time you make a selection (by checking a box corresponding to that selection), you must either select ‘Add to slip’ or ‘Add to Multi Bet’. You would have to select a wager twice to add it to both your single bets betting slip and your multibet betting slip. The betting slip itself is perfectly functional, with the exception that it doesn’t support multibets. These need to be added to the multibet slip instead. For multi betting you have the choice of using the standard ‘multibet bet builder’, which is displayed on the page above the betting odds, or the more functional ‘multi plus’ interface, which is displayed in a new window/tab. All in all, we found the interface to be frustrating and outdated. It is in desperate need of an overhaul. |
Sports navigation
Fixtures display
Odds display
Betting slip
Standard multi betting
Multi Plus interface
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Sports Markets
TAB Sportsbet offers a strong betting selection that is very much in line with other leading Australian bookmakers. A plethora of sporting leagues are supported and the popular Australian sports are well catered for. In addition to the standard sporting markets, poker, entertainment and basic finance betting is available.
The betting selection is perfectly adequate for most punters needs. TAB Sportsbet would suffice as your only bookmaker membership.
Horse Racing
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The racing section is a strength of TAB Sportsbet. Horse racing, greyhounds and harness events are covered across Australia as well as at selected tracks in Singapore, New Zealand, and the UK. For most events Win, Place, Trifecta, Quinella, Exacta, Duet, First 4, Quaddie, Daily Double and Running Double bets are offered. TAB Tote is offered for all events and TAB fixed odds are offered for most events. You make your selections in the odds panel and then select your bet types and bet amount in the right panel. The size of the pool is available at the bottom of the odds display. Overall, the racing interface is far better than the sports betting interface. |
Racing event selection
Racing odds display
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Live Sports Betting
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TAB Sportsbet offers a live betting service that displays live scores and the current odds, however due to Australia’s Interactive Gambling Act 2, live online betting is not available. Customers must phone in to bet live. If live online sports betting is what you’re after, we recommend bet365. |
Live odds display
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Other Features
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A mobile version of the website is offered. A free, feature packed iPhone App is available for download. |
iPhone App
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Upsides
- Available odds are often in contrast to other bookmakers, which means that TAB Sportsbet often offers the best value for a particular selection.
- Has a reputation for accepting larger wagers than most competitors
- Backed by Tabcorp Holdings, a large ASX listed company
- Accepts multi bets with up to 20 selections, which is far greater that most competitors
- A highly functional iPhone App is available
Downsides
- Higher margins than competitors
- Members are assigned an account number rather than a username when signing up. This is inconvenient if you’re trying to log in in but can’t recall your account number.
- POLi is not available as a deposit method 3
- Identity verification options not as good as some competitors
- Must login again when using the live betting interface
- Poor interface design and over-use of additional browser windows/tabs
- Tabcorp charges dormant account fees
- No new member offers
Bottom Line
Due the strong market share it enjoys courtesy of its retail outlets, TAB Sportsbet doesn’t have to be as competitive as its rivals, and this shows in its sports betting service. The interface is frustrating and out of date, the margins are higher, and there are no new member offers. Having said that, TAB Sportsbet has a reputation for accepting larger wagers and it offers a good selection of sporting markets. Furthermore, the odds are often in contrast to other bookmakers, which makes the service useful for punters who hold other memberships. We recommend TAB Sportsbet as part of a portfolio of memberships, but novice punters are better off using the sister service, Luxbet.
Notes and Sources
- 1 http://www.tabcorp.com.au/about-us.aspx
- 2 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interactive_Gambling_Act
- 3 POLi facilitates online bank transfers that are acknowledged by the bookmaker instantly. This enables you to log into your banking provider, transfer money to the bookmaker, and place bets immediately.
