In this article, we break down the differences between Union and League rugby, as well as the things that unite them. Additionally, we list the many great bookmakers which service rugby betting fans all across the world in our table below.
What are the Most Popular Rugby Betting Markets?
While there are many differences between League and Union, as we have discussed, one thing they do have in common is that the most popular betting markets remain the same for the most part, whichever version of rugby you’re a fan of. This shouldn’t be too much of a surprise considering that although there are many differences, the way in which points are awarded, for instance, are the same.
We've broken down below some of the most popular rugby betting markets you can choose from.
To Win
The simplest way to bet is by backing whichever team you think will win. The option of a tie is also generally available; however, considering that these tend to be high scoring games, the odds for this are usually fairly low in both League and Union.
Handicap Betting
There are a lot of mismatches in rugby, especially at the local level, and this means that in order to not have to bet on very low or very high odds, you’ll want to utilise a rugby betting handicap to bridge that gap. A handicap is where a favourite has to win by a certain number of points, or an underdog only has to avoid losing by a certain number of points for your bet to be successful. This is, of course, ideal if you want to back your favourites in spite of a mismatch.
Winning Margin
Similar to a rugby betting handicap betting is the winning margin bet, which has the same benefits when it comes to mismatched teams. You can choose a points spread, which a team has to win by for your bet to be successful. Naturally, betting for a team to win by 10-15 points, for instance, will mean that your odds are significant longer than a normal To Win bet. Rugby betting often has significant wins even with close teams, so this can be a really interesting one to back.
Half Time/Full Time
The physical nature of rugby means that, more than many other sports, you can see huge shifts in momentum in the first and second half. This allows you to bet on either in a vacuum.
Team/Player to Score the First Try
This is a very simple bet: you can pretty much understand it from the title alone. Pick who you think will score the first try. Pick teams for shorter odds and player for longer ones, at least in the vast majority of instances.
First Scoring Play
This expands the previous market by also including any kind of goal or penalty.
Time of First Try
A great example of the extent of the market variety, this allows you to pick when you think the first try will happen. These are usually within 10-minute segments, so it’s quite similar in methodology to winning margin. It is also the first market of many which are about how the game is played, as opposed to which teams come out on top.
Total Points
Another perfect option if you don’t want to back either team, Total Points allows you to simply bet on how many points you think will take place over the course of the match.
Half with Most Points
As we said, the differences between the first and second half can be vast, and this allows you to pit one against another. This really tests your ability to understand the strategy of individual teams on a deeper basis.
Outright Betting
There are all kinds of different tournaments bets, but of course, picking an overall winner is the most obvious and most popular choice. This can give you a reason to be excited about every game in a tournament, and, if you want to utilise multiple tournament bets, can provide threads of interest throughout.
Accumulators
A natural addition to our previous point is the inclusion of accumulators. Some people avoid accumulators because of their complexity, but they can be a really interesting way to maintain interest across long tournaments or form a cohesive betting strategy.
Flash Markets
These are markets which will come up on certain bookmakers during in-play betting, and they are bets you can put money on based on the events that are happening right then and there. A perfect example would be whether or not a penalty kick is successful.
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#1
 Betfair
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T&Cs APPLY, 18+ ONLY
New customer offer. Place a min £10 bet on the Sportsbook on odds of min 1/2 (1.5), get £30 in Free Bets. Rewards valid for 30 days. SMS verification required. Only deposits via cards or Apple Pay will qualify. T&Cs apply. Please Gamble Responsibly.Full T&Cs apply. BeGambleAware.org #ad |
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#2
 bet365
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T&Cs APPLY, 18+ ONLY
18+ - Offer for new customers at bet365. Min deposit requirement. Free Bets are paid as Bet Credits and are available for use upon settlement of bets to value of qualifying deposit. Min odds, bet and payment method exclusions apply. Returns exclude Bet Credits stake. Time limits and Full T&Cs apply. BeGambleAware.org #ad |
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#3
 Coral
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T&Cs APPLY, 18+ ONLY
18+ New UK+ ROI Customers only. Deposit & Bet min £5 as first bet at minimum odds 1/2 to qualify for 1x £20 Free Bet. Certain deposit methods and bet types excluded. Free bet valid for 7 days, stake not returned. Restrictions apply. Full T&Cs apply. BeGambleAware.org #ad |
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#4
Paddy Power
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T&Cs APPLY, 18+ ONLY
New Customer Offer. Place your FIRST bet on any Sportsbook market and if it loses we will refund your stake in CASH. Max refund for this offer is £10. Only deposits made using cards will qualify for this promotion. T&Cs apply. Full T&Cs apply. BeGambleAware.org #ad |
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#5
 Betfred
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T&Cs APPLY, 18+ ONLY
New 18+ UK customers only. Register using the promo code WELCOME40, deposit and place first bet of £10+ on Sports (cumulative Evens+) within 7 days of registration. First bet must be on Sports. £30 in Free Bets and £10 in Free Spins (50x20p) credited within 10 hours of bet settlement. Free Bet stakes are not included in any returns. Bonuses have a 7-day expiry. Payment restrictions apply. SMS verification and/or Proof of I.D and address may be required Full T&Cs apply. BeGambleAware.org #ad |
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#6
Betiton
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T&Cs APPLY, 18+ ONLY
18+, Welcome Bonus: New Players only, 1st Deposit, Min Deposit,: £10, max £10 free bet valid for 14 days, bets must be placed at odds of 1/1 or greater and be settled within 14 days of placement. System bets not eligible. Neteller,Skrill and Paypal not eligible. Full T&Cs apply. BeGambleAware.org #ad |
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#7
 Ladbrokes
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T&Cs APPLY, 18+ ONLY
18+ New UK+IRE Customers only. Certain deposit methods & bet types excl. Min first 5 bet within 14 days of account reg at min odds 1/2 = 4x 5 free bets. Free bets valid for 7 days, stake not returned. No cashout, restrictions + Full T&Cs apply. BeGambleAware.org #ad |
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#8
 888sport
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T&Cs APPLY, 18+ ONLY
18+ Minimum deposit of £10 using deposit code 30F - A qualifying bet is a ‘real money’ stake of at least £10 placed on any sports market - Minimum odds of 1/2 (1.5) - Free bets credited upon qualifying bet settlement and expire after 7 days - Free bet stakes not included in returns - Casino Bonus must be claimed within 7 days. To withdraw bonus/related wins, wager bonus amount x40 within 14 days. Wagering requirements vary by game. Deposit methods, Withdrawal restrictions and Full T&Cs apply. BeGambleAware.org #ad |
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#9
 William Hill
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T&Cs APPLY, 18+ ONLY
New customers using Promo code H30 only, Min £10/€10 stake, min odds 1/2, free bets paid as 2 x £15/€15, free bets credited after settlement of first qualifying bet, free bets will expire 30 days after the qualifying bet is placed, payment method/player/country restrictions apply. See full terms below. Full T&Cs apply. BeGambleAware.org #ad |
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#10
10bet
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T&Cs APPLY, 18+ ONLY
18+ begambleaware.org; New bettors get 50% of deposit up to £50; Once per household; Min deposit £15 (no Skrill/Neteller); Wager a total of 8 times deposit + bonus, with max qualifying bet stake equal to your initial bonus amount; Bonus expires after 60 days; Min odds of 4/5 on singles, or 2/5 per leg for acca; Some bet types excluded; See full terms; Terms apply; 18+ #ad |
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#11
NetBet
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T&Cs APPLY, 18+ ONLY
18+ New customers only from 11.08.2021. £10 bet required to quality within 30 days of registration, Maximum £10 in Free Bets and up to 100 Free Spins. Free Bets valid for 3 days. Bet Responsibly. Terms and conditions apply. Full T&Cs apply. BeGambleAware.org #ad |
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#12
 BoyleSports
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T&Cs APPLY, 18+ ONLY
*New UK customers (Excluding NI) only. Mobile only. £20 in FREE Bets (FB) as £10 in sports bets & a £10 casino bonus (CB). Min stake £10. Min odds Evs. FB applied on 1st settlement of any qualifying bet. FB 7 day expiry. 1 FB offer per customer, household & IP address only. Payment restrictions. 14 days to accept £10 CB, then active for 3 days. CB 5x wagering & max redeemable £100. Game restrictions apply. Cashed out/Free Bets won’t apply. 30 days to qualify. 18+. Full T&Cs apply. BeGambleAware.org #ad |
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#13
 Mr Green
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T&Cs APPLY, 18+ ONLY
T&Cs apply. New players only. Qualifying bet(s) must have minimum odds of 3/1 and must be settled before triggering free bet. Free Bet must be used on an accumulator with 3 or more selections. 18+. Full T&Cs apply. BeGambleAware.org #ad |
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Best Rugby Betting Sites Reviewed
Rugby is one of the most popular sports in the world, especially throughout the United Kingdom and throughout Europe. When you consider this, as well as the incredible competition you can find in betting sites in general, it should be no surprise that the picks for the best rugby betting sites also read like a who’s who of the greatest betting operators in the industry.
What’s great about this is that rugby betting fans have plenty of other markets to check out and enjoy, because we know many of you – most of you in fact – are multi-faceted in your sports passions. For that reason, every and all picks here must be great not just for rugby markets, but also be quality operators in general to make this list.
That means if an operator provided great rugby betting odds but was very poor on other key areas, especially the likes of security, they would not be eligible for a spot here. Those high standards still apply. That said, our key focus is on those League and Union markets.
1. Betfair
With both a betting exchange and a traditional sportsbook for rugby fans to enjoy across both Union and League markets, Betfair naturally has an advantage over much of the competition, as they do in most sports.
Not only that, but it’s also the world’s biggest betting exchange and, as we have discussed on many occasions here at ThePuntersPage, an absolutely incredible traditional sportsbook more than capable of standing up to the best in the industry. When you combine this with the fact that they have one of the broadest varieties of markets and consistently rank amongst those with the best rugby betting odds available, you have our number one pick.
2. bet365
This should not really be a surprise. If whatever you're looking for has to do with betting online, then chances are that bet365 rank somewhere among the absolute best. In fact, we weren’t sure whether to go with this or Betfair, but eventually sided with the latter based on the exchange.
However, with brilliant markets all across the world, and the world-class odds that bet365 are known for, they did come first in our extensive betting odds comparison, so it was a tough pick. Not only that, but the excellent bet365 sign-up offer can be utilised on rugby betting markets, apart from being an all-around brilliant welcome for new customers.
3. Coral
Nowhere in the world is rugby betting more popular than in the United Kingdom. It’s fitting, then, that the British high-street juggernaut, Coral, makes our list of the best of the best for rugby betting operators.
Not only are League and Union markets covered extensively with in-play matches, competitions, and future matches, but there’s also a whole bunch of smart boosts regularly available. Rugby League alone had close to a dozen boosts at the time of writing this article, meaning more value for money. There’s also #yourcall specials and a huge amount of market variety for each and every game.
4. Paddy Power
It was incredibly tough to pick between Coral and Paddy Power. Indeed, pretty much everything we have said for the former could be said for the latter. In the end, Coral's smart boosts helped us finalise our decision, but have no doubt that Paddy Power has an absolutely phenomenal amount to offer when it comes to rugby betting markets, which should come as little surprise considering how excellent their betting product is across the board.
One thing that Paddy Power really excels at – although there were no rugby betting specific examples at the time of writing – is event specific promotions. When there’s a big rugby tournament on, be sure to keep your eyes peeled for something special.
5. Betfred
Considering they are the sponsors of the Super League and one of the best British bookmakers in general, the fact that the mighty Betfred only ranks 5th here is an indication of just how stacked the competition is.
Some people worry that their bookmaker may only cover Rugby Union, as it is the most popular form of rugby, but there’s no worry about that here. Indeed, it would be embarrassing were that the case, considering their position as sponsors. Not only are the markets there but they are backed up by daily price boosts, promotions and the PickYourPunt feature, which means if you don’t see a market you want, you can request it.
6. Betiton
This bookmaker is probably the biggest surprise in our list, just missing out on a top five slot. Now, that’s not because Betiton are lacking in quality of reputation, but just look at the competition that surrounds them. For a bookmaker that was founded in 2020 to be standing up to long term industry favourites like this in any capacity, it's certainly impressive, to say the least.
But when you look at their product, there’s no doubting how far they’ve come in such a short space of time, and their rugby markets are a great example of why. You can choose between Australia, International and European markets for both Union and League, meaning they have a hugely global scope of markets considering how relatively new they are. In addition, all of their sport promotions available at the time of writing, including the Welcome Bonus, Acca Bonus and Cash Out features, are all available on rugby markets.
7. Ladbrokes
To give you an idea of the kind of quality you can expect from Ladbrokes, consider that there were two games playing live when we went to check out their markets: one for League and one for Union, with significant price boosts on each. Now that is value for your betting buck.
And, of course, this is Ladbrokes, which means this kind of quality is quite literally an everyday occurrence, as you can get a rugby betting odds boost of your choice every single day. Naturally, you can also get a ton of great rugby betting opportunities here on a daily basis as well.
8. 888sport
A consistent favourite here at ThePuntersPage is the wonderful 888sport. You may not view this bookmaker as a natural leader when it comes to rugby betting, considering that they are, to their credit, more of an international site than many of the others on this list. However, you might be underestimating how consistently excellent 888sport is across so many markets.
In fact, this has the additional benefit of not just providing quality rugby betting odds on British markets, but also the likes of the Super Rugby AU, Super Rugby Aotearoa, the State of Origin Series and the NRL, to give a few examples. World-class stuff from all around the world.
9. William Hill
We surprised ourselves by only having the mighty William Hill at number nine. All we can say is that this is down to the incredible strengths of the competition, rather than any weaknesses on their part.
That’s because if you know William Hill, you’ll know that they don’t really make mistakes when it come to their betting offers. This means quality rugby betting markets alongside acca promotions and double #yourodds each and every week. You can even get 10% of your in-play losses back as a free bet. One thing that William Hill does very well is provide promotions that can be utilised on many sports, which is great as bonuses often get overlooked the world of rugby betting.
10. 10bet
We promise our choice of ranking for 10bet here is just a coincidence, although we would say they are a perfect 10 (pun intended) when it comes to betting market variety and odds quality. They have daily match list, in-play, top leagues and all leagues for you to choose from on both Rugby League and Rugby Union, so you know that they are committed to covering everything they possibly can about the game we love.
They even have a lovingly written passage about the different markets you can expect, from Race to 10 Points and Winning Margin to their coverage of France’s top 14 and the Mitre 10 Cup in New Zealand. They seem to have a real passion for rugby betting that really shines through.
11. NetBet
One of the things we did in order to decide what we consider to be the best rugby betting sites is compare rugby betting odds across random markets and see who came out on top. NetBet consistently impressed us in this regard, always ranking very well against serious competition and often taking the top spot.
Stats provide users with the ability to immediately gain a better understanding of the markets, and things like their Add2Bet and BetMaker functions make NetBet not only one of the best rugby betting options around, but also one of the more versatile.
12. BoyleSports
Very much the polar opposite of BetBull is BoyleSports. This is a bookmaker that keeps things simple and is very traditional in many ways. They don’t have a mascot, or any niches or gimmicks to help them stand out. Their focus is on providing simple, quality betting markets with competitive odds across as many sports as they possibly can.
That is exactly what rugby betting fans are going to get here, with tournaments across the world being represented by this industry favourite. Plus, their attention to detail – for instance, telling you what channels are hosting all these sporting events – has not gone unnoticed by us.
14. Mr Green
You may be wondering why the ever-fabulous Mr Green ranks so low on our list. Well, a big part of the reason is simply that the others on this list are simply excellent, but there’s also the fact that Mr Green only covers Rugby Union.
Nonetheless, we felt they deserve this spot because they do an excellent job with Union, and many rugby betting fans will only follow that version of the sport. On top of that, their excellence as a casino means that there are plenty of people for whom Mr Green will provide the perfect level of betting content for.
Rugby Betting Sites FAQs
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Generally speaking, yes. Rugby Union betting is more popular, so it does have more betting coverage, but there are plenty of bookmakers available for fans of all kinds.
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No, but they do have a shared origin and many shared elements.
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There are many points and rule differences, but the one which we view as being most significant is that in Rugby League, you must restart play and give the team possession of the ball after six tackles.
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Despite the differences between the two sports, the betting markets between Union and League remain largely the same.
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Largely, we’d say yes. However, there are some examples where we would view one piece of advice as especially relevant to one compared to the other. You can find details of those kinds of strategies earlier in this article.
ThePuntersPage Final Say
Rugby betting can certainly appear complex to newcomers, with the sport often split between the Union and League variations of the game. However, one thing that fans of both versions of the sport have in common is the desire to get the best possible value from their bookmaker.
There are many different rules and intricacies to understand, no matter which league or version you prefer. However, we prefer to think of this as depth, rather than difficulty. It’s all these different elements which make rugby such an engaging sport, not only to bet on but to be a fan of as well.
Ben has been a copywriter for over a decade, with vast experience on just about everything sports related. If it has a ball in it, or someone gets to bet on it, he’s probably already obsessed with it. He resides in Yorkshire, where his articles are powered by the ever-present sound of a kettle.
