Pool Betting Sites

Compare the best pool betting sites in the UK and our pool betting guide below.

Written by Steven Hubbard
Verified by BettingLounge team
Last updated 21/03/2024

Best Pool Betting Sites UK (2024)

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Thepools
£50+ Free Bets Every Week + Deposit £10 Get 100 Free Spins
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18+, UK only. Min odds and selections apply per offer. Cashed out bets and bets on non-runners do not qualify. Free bets are credited at bet settlement and will expire 7 days after being credited. Full terms apply per offer. 18+, UK only. First deposit and Stake £10 on casino slots. On qualification of the promotion you will receive Free Spins on Big Catch Bass Fishing. Qualifying players will have the Free Spins automatically credited to their account. The value of each Spin awarded as part of this promotion is £0.10 per spin. Full T+Cs Apply.
Betfred
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WELCOME50
New customers only. Register (excl. 13/04/24) with WELCOME50. First bet £10+ at Evens (2.0)+ on Sports within 7 days to get Free Bets: £20 In-Play, £20 Acca & 50 x £0.20 (£10) Free Spins on Fishin’ Frenzy within 10 hours of settlement. 7-day expiry. Eligibility & payment exclusions apply.
QuinnBet
£35 Free Bet Plus 10 Free Spins
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To activate this promotion you must deposit and stake a minimum of £10. You must place a minimum of 3 rounds during the qualifying period and 2 of these rounds must be at least half the value of your highest placed wager. T&Cs apply | 18+ New UK Customers Only | BeGambleAware.org
William Hill
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18+. Play Safe. New customers using Promo code R30 only, Min £10/€10 stake, min odds 1/2, free bets paid as 3 x £10/€10, 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. #ad
BoyleSports
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New UK customers (Excluding NI) only. Mobile exclusive. Min Deposit £10. Min stake £10. Min odds Evs. Free bet applied on 1st settlement of any qualifying bet. 30 days to qualify. Free bets expire in 7 days. Cashed out/Free Bets won’t apply. Account & Payment method restrictions apply. 1 Free Bet offer per customer, household & IP Address only. 18+. T&Cs apply. T&Cs apply

Pool Betting Explained

Many sports fans may be unaware of what pool betting is and how it works, but this is a part of the online gambling industry that continues to grow in popularity at a rapid rate.

Pool betting allows users to land potentially massive wins from a relatively small stake that is laid down, which is just one of the reasons why so many people are now choosing this option.

With a variety of bookmakers and betting sites offering pool betting among their online gambling products, it is becoming easier than ever before to get started with pool betting.

Pool betting - which is often described as a variant of parimutuel betting - is different to most sports betting due to the fact there are no odds involved, as is the case on a sportsbook.

Our complete guide to pool betting will tell you everything that you need to know, so read on.

What Is Pool Betting & How Does it Work?

Pool betting was first introduced in 1923 by Littlewoods Pools and it was immediately a big hit, but almost a century on it remains very popular among a section of sports fans.

Usually focused on horse racing, with most of the top sites offering this option, pool betting involves selecting a horse with the stake selected going into a central pool. If that horse wins, the stakes are divided up among the winners.

This is different to most sports betting. When placing a bet on a race on a traditional sportsbook, users can see the price offered and will be told how much they are in line with their stake. But in pool betting, users have no idea how much money they are going to win, though on some sites like Betfair it is possible to see an estimation of the potential profits. This is because it depends on how many other people entered the pool by making the same selection on a bet.

What this means in practice is that the more people who back the winner in a race in pool betting, the lower the winning dividend will be that is then paid out. In contrast, though, the fewer people who make the right selection, the higher the payout will be to that pool of racing fans.

Some pool betting involves players having to pick a horse in several different races, with the racecard usually made up of six races. Landing wins on this type of pool betting is regarded as extremely difficult, but the prizes that are up for grabs tempt many people to test it out.

When it comes to the winnings that are available from pool betting, the betting sites first take a cut that is known as the deductions. What is leftover is then divided among the winners.

Although most pool betting is on horse racing, there are some football pool betting options available as well on various sites. Fans of the beautiful game should definitely consider checking them out if they want to have a chance of taking a slice of what often can be a very large pie.

Select betting sites enable people to take part in pool betting in what are known as private syndicates. By forming this type of pool betting group, users can bet with and against their family members and friends, with the management of the pool handled by the site itself. While it is possible to run a private betting syndicate offline, this can be a lot to handle and most people will find pool betting is a lot easier to get involved with online, through a betting site.

Different Types of Pool Betting Options

Those who are new to pool betting may be confused about the range of options available. Here, we break down some of the most common types of pool betting that many people like to use.

Totepool: Different types of wagers - like win bets, place bets, mixed each-way bets, forecasts and so on - are offered on the Totepool. This pool betting option allows players to stake on as many different lines as they want, which gives them more chances to get winning wagers. You can read our full guide on Totepool here.

ToteJackpot: This is a very popular type of pool betting option among horse racing fans. In the ToteJackpot, six races are selected from the cards on offer and players have to pick the winning horse in each of them. The amount of cash up for grabs in the ToteJackpot has been known to climb to over £1 million and the stake required to be in with a shot is very low.

Totequadpot: The Totequadpot is usually only offered for UK race meetings that have at least six races on the card. It runs from the third race of the day to the sixth, with four races involved, hence the name Totequadpot. The Totequadpot is widely seen as being easier to win than the ToteJackpot due to the fact there are two fewer races, but the prize pool drops as a result.

Scoop 6: In the Scoop 6 type of pool betting, players pick selections from six races on a Saturday. Typically, winners bank thousands of pounds each in Scoop 6 pool betting. One of the best things about Scoop 6 pool betting is that the winners have the chance to improve their profits even more by picking the winner in a bonus race that is run at a later date.

Exacta: An exacta bet in pool betting is usually described as being equivalent to a straight forecast in horse racing. Players, therefore, have to pick two horses to finish first and second. The horses must finish in that exact order, so if the horses selected come second and first instead of first and second, then this pool bet is unfortunately not going to be a winner.

Swinger: In the swinger type of pool betting, players have to pick two horses that they think will finish in the top three of a race. If this happens, they earn a share of the prize pot as a result. The swinger option can therefore be a good pool betting option for horse racing fans who cannot decide which of two horses they fancy in a race to back. Users can actually add more than two horses to a swinger bet, but of course, this means the total stake for the wager will increase.

Trifecta: The trifecta is one of the hardest bets to land in the world of horse racing gambling. This is because players have to pick the horses that finish in the top three - and they have to be in the right order. So if a player picks the winner but gets second and third in the wrong order, then the trifecta pool wager will not win. Due to the fact, the trifecta is such a challenge to get right, the amounts of money that are up for grabs can get very large indeed. The trifecta can be compared to the tricast betting option that is offered by traditional bookmakers.

Private syndicates: Arguably the most fun type of pool betting is private syndicates. This allows players to ensure that they are only competing with and against people they know, for example, friends or members of their family. Some pool betting sites allow private syndicates to be formed and there might even be rewards up for grabs for those who opt to take this pool betting option.

Betting Sites with Pool Betting Options

An increasing number of bookmakers now have pool betting options available, including these:

Betfred

Betfred

Betfred: Among the leading pool betting bookmakers is Betfred. Those who sign up for an account with this betting site can access the likes of placepots, Scoop 6 and the ToteJackpot. Those who are new to pool betting can also read guides walking them through the process on the Betfred site, which can also act as a handy refresher to those who like pool betting.

Bet £10 Get £50 in Bonuses

Min. Deposit £10
Max. Amount £50
Turnover No wagering
Expiration 7 Days
Bonus code WELCOME50
New customers only. Register (excl. 13/04/24) with WELCOME50. First bet £10+ at Evens (2.0)+ on Sports within 7 days to get Free Bets: £20 In-Play, £20 Acca & 50 x £0.20 (£10) Free Spins on Fishin’ Frenzy within 10 hours of settlement. 7-day expiry. Eligibility & payment exclusions apply.
QuinnBet

Quinnbet

QuinnBet: Pools betting has its own section at QuinnBet, which is already becoming one of the top Irish betting sites despite only having been founded relatively recently. Unlike a lot of other bookmakers, QuinnBet does not just have horse racing pool betting available as it also has football pool betting options up for grabs. Some of the pool betting syndicates that are available at QuinnBet have more than 100 people involved, which shows how popular this option is now.

£35 Free Bet Plus 10 Free Spins

Min. Deposit £10
Max. Amount £35
Turnover No wagering
Expiration 7 days
To activate this promotion you must deposit and stake a minimum of £10. You must place a minimum of 3 rounds during the qualifying period and 2 of these rounds must be at least half the value of your highest placed wager. T&Cs apply | 18+ New UK Customers Only | BeGambleAware.org
William Hill

William Hill

William Hill: As one of the oldest betting brands in Britain, William Hill is a trusted pool betting option. At Hills, options such as the jackpot, placepot and quadpot are all available to try. Pool betting is not just offered for races in the UK and Ireland either, with meetings in locations such as Dubai and Hong Kong among those that are also available to bet on at William Hill.

Bet £10 Get £30 in Free Bets

Min. Deposit £10
Max. Amount £30
Turnover No wagering
Expiration 30 days
Bonus code R30
18+. Play Safe. New customers using Promo code R30 only, Min £10/€10 stake, min odds 1/2, free bets paid as 3 x £10/€10, 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. #ad
BoyleSports

BoyleSports

BoyleSports: Long considered to be one of the top options for pool betting, BoyleSports has a great reputation in this area. Various customers over the years at BoyleSports have been able to land thousands of pounds in winnings from small stakes as a result of using pool betting.

Bet £10 Get £20 in Free Bets

Min. Deposit £10
Max. Amount £20
Turnover 1x
Expiration 7 days
New UK customers (Excluding NI) only. Mobile exclusive. Min Deposit £10. Min stake £10. Min odds Evs. Free bet applied on 1st settlement of any qualifying bet. 30 days to qualify. Free bets expire in 7 days. Cashed out/Free Bets won’t apply. Account & Payment method restrictions apply. 1 Free Bet offer per customer, household & IP Address only. 18+. T&Cs apply. T&Cs apply

Pool Betting FAQs

Steven is an experienced iGaming content writer who has been working in the industry since 2018. He is passionate about sports betting and enjoys writing about all aspects of the industry, including bookmaker reviews, betting tips and strategies, and news and analysis. If you have any questions about online gambling in the UK, please don't hesitate to contact him.