4/4/2022»»Monday

Victor Chandler Bookies

4/4/2022

Established in 1946 BetVictor originally named Victor Chandler has been extremely focused in building an online sports betting business that has set standards across the industry with their excellent in house developed sports betting service.With lightning fast bet placement technology and daily promotions, BetVictor is certainly one of the most used fully UK licensed and regulated bookmakers online. Victor Chandler: Pick up a few tips from the king of the bookies The Business Interview: The punter's favourite sits down to a game of poker and talks about betting with James Moore.

  1. Victor Chandler Bookmakers
  2. Victor Chandler Bookmakers Online

BetVictor, formerly known as Victor Chandler, are one of my favourite bookmakers. There is a classiness to their whole set-up that permeates its way through the website and the app.

The company was set-up in 1946 by the son of the man who opened Walthamstow Greyhound Stadium, so it’s fair to say that the world of betting runs in the blood of the Chandler family. They still offer great service to dog racing fans, as well as horse racing and football bettors especially.

After a few re-brands they settled on BetVictor in 2012, and were one of the first bookies to hit the online market in 1999 – a year after the company officially relocated to Gibraltar in order to avoid paying UK taxes. Gordon Brown’s decision to abolish gambling taxes as Chancellor of the Exchequer in 2001 was apparently mostly fuelled by Chandler’s move abroad.

Bet £5 Get £30

18+ New Customers only. Deposit, opt in and place a £5 qualifying bet at odds of 2.00 or greater within 7 days of opening a new account; excludes cashed out bets. Receive 2x £10 Free Sports Bets, valid on set events only at odds 2.00 or greater, expires in 7 days. Plus a £10 Game Show Bonus, selected games, wager 40x to withdraw a max of £250. PayPal and Card Payments only. Geographical Restrictions and T&Cs Apply. Please Gamble Responsibly. #ad

Website Rundown

I’m a big fan of the BetVictor website. It’s modern, fresh, and really easy to navigate. There are four main tabs at the top and if you click on the Sports tab you’ll reveal a sub-menu, including the in-play matches, football and horse racing options.

Streamlined is the word that comes to mind, and if there was an award for the best-dressed betting website then BetVictor would win it every time.

The great thing about the Sports homepage is that it doesn’t show anything unnecessary but it gives you easy options to find everything you want. Live and upcoming races and football matches take centre stage but there is plenty more besides, including featured links, popular pages (which has some really useful stuff on it, and a list of all sports that BetVictor cover.

There are also lists of enhanced prices for the day, and everything just feels like it’s in the right place. I instinctively know where to look and if at any point I want more info then hovering my mouse over an icon will usually give me it, and fast. The only negative I can find is the lack of a search function.

The simplicity of the site might not be for everyone but it is very much for me.

Mobile Betting

Those of you that like to bet on your phone will be pleased to know that BetVictor have doubled down on the usability of the desktop site and created a cracking mobile app.

Again, it’s clean, simple to use and really easy to navigate. You can even give the app a pin number to make it easier to logon whilst maintaining security.

The app is similar in layout to the main site, with the same tabs and corresponding options so it will feel nice and familiar. Any changes they have had to make in order to scale down have been done with thought and actually improve the experience if anything, and the whole thing responds instantly to the touch, it’s really quick.

Quick links to cash out, open bets, and popular sports like football and horses make a lot of sense, and the A-Z inside the main menu lets you filter leagues within certain sports to some degree which can speed things up.

In-play betting feels miles better on the app too, it looks better and the stats seem to be a bit more detailed – although that could have just been the game I was watching at the time.

There is no search function, but there is the ability to select favourites such as the Premier League, meaning you can move quickly to what you like to bet on the most.

Banking: Deposits/Withdrawals

Payment MethodMinimum DepositMinimum WithdrawalWithdrawal Time
Visa/Mastercard£5.00£102-5 Days
PayPal£10.00£101 Day
Skrill£5.00£101-3 Days
Neteller£5.00£101-3 Days
Paysafecard£5.00
Bank Wire£5.00£102-5 Days

I have a duty to report withdrawal waiting times as displayed onsite, but it is more likely that BetVictor are covering their own backs by stating longer timeframes than normal, since they also state that they process requests almost immediately. This means the extra time is down to the banks themselves.

There shouldn’t ever be any fees charged by BetVictor unless you request a faster bank wire transfer.

Live Betting

In-play options take a prominent place on the homepage of the BetVictor website and mobile app. First dibs is given to football but a quick scroll down will reveal links to a host of other sports including tennis, cricket, basketball, and volleyball – depending which events are taking place at the time.

In the in-play section itself these are well organised by category, with live and upcoming options side by side for easy reference, and photographs of each sport taking place keeping it interesting.

As with most of the decent bookies there are nice little match graphics at the top of the individual match page telling you what’s happening at any given moment, although they aren’t as impressive as I’ve seen before. Where it lets itself down is in the lack of relevant stats, giving you the only the bare minimum.

Betting lines have plenty of tabs to help you find the bet you want without scrolling forever, and it’s a very simple interface to use. It’s not perfect, though. It looks good but there are better live packages available.

Live Streaming

You can live stream UK and Irish horse racing through BetVictor as long as you’ve placed a bet of £1 or more on the race you want to watch. Unfortunately though, that’s about the limit of the live streaming options, which is a bit naff if you like to bet on other sports.

It’s also quite difficult to find the live streaming option on the main site, though it’s nice and easy to locate if you’re using the mobile app.

Market Availability & Odds

BetVictor are particularly good when it comes to their football betting. There are loads of lines within each game, all laid out nice and clearly, and they offer some of the best odds available on football matches too. The rest of their sportsbook is reasonable, though they don’t offer many novelty bets if that’s the sort of thing you like.

Sports-wise, there are loads of markets covered including the likes of MMA, Gaelic football, speedway and even table tennis, but the number of betting lines for these markets doesn’t quite match up to some of the real big hitters in the industry. It’s not lacking by any stretch of the imagination, though, and you can sometimes find some unique lines in amongst them.

They don’t do loads of enhanced odds offers or anything like that, but they probably feel that the fact they’re always near the top on odds comparison sites means they don’t really need to. Best odds are available on both the horses and the dogs.

All-in-all, if you’re looking for a site that offers plenty of different sports markets with the best value odds and no need to mess around with offers, then you’ll not go too far wrong with BetVictor.

A Good Fit For You?

The experience at BetVictor is a big part of their appeal. It’s a place for professionally minded people who want to bet with a classy company using an uncomplicated high-end interface.

The great odds offered by BetVictor, especially on the football, are a major selling point. You’re unlikely to find a better price with another bookie and knowing that makes life decidedly easy for you when it comes to wondering who to place a bet with. They have murky reputation when it comes to paying UK tax, however, so even though they aren’t doing anything wrong, if you take a moral stand point against that sort of thing it could put you off.

The company’s website and app are both brilliant and, in my opinion, probably the best out there. If you like a nice, clean and easy to navigate website that harnesses the latest technology and innovations then BetVictor will be for you.

  • Bet Calculater & Results Service – Two massively helpful tools to run your betting activity with.
  • Bet Boosts – Although short on offers, BetVictor’s daily Bet Boosts offer extra value, and the #priceitup feature gives you the chance to get odds on personalised bets.
  • Virtuals – Probably the most advanced Virtual betting package there is. Superb graphics and commentary and 6 different sports.
  • Betfinder – This is one for the horse racing bettors. You can search the days races by star rating, odds, horse form, trainer form, and other options to locate the perfect horse at the perfect odds for you.

History of BetVictor

William Chandler opened Walthamstow Greyhound Stadium back in 1925, beginning the family association with the betting industry.

Interestingly though, the bookmaking operation that uses his family name was technically nothing to do with him as it was opened by his son in 1946. His son, as you might have guessed, was called Victor Chandler and he ran the operation of the business until he died suddenly in 1975.

Victor chandler bookmakers online

At that point his son took over the business, though he didn’t even need to print new business cards as he was also called Victor Chandler. The older Victor had opened a series of shops in the South East during the 1960s but his son thought a bit further afield, targeting foreign markets before opening an office in Antigua in order to be able to attract clients from the Far East.

Nowadays they operate online only but are open for business in over 160 countries, and their online operation is one of the best in the business.

Contact Information

Contact MethodAvailable?HoursAddress
EmailYes24/7help@betvictor.com
Live ChatYes24/7Chat Bubble OnSite
PhoneNoCall Back ServiceUse Online Form
TwitterYes@BetVictor

On the face of it, the lack of phone support is a black mark, but you can request a specific block of time and it has probably been implemented to allow them to control the flow more efficiently. Also, live chat staff really are very good.

The company is registered in Gibraltar, which means that they are regulated by the gaming commission over there. They have a full UK gambling license too, though, so they’re also bound by the rules of the gambling commission over here. That makes them a perfectly safe book to place your bets with, just in case you’re wondering. Their UK license reference number is 39576.

There isn’t a specific customer services address but should you wish to send them a letter then their UK office is here:

4-6 Deanery Street, Mayfair, London W1 1AZ

Their registered address, however, is here:

BetVictor Suite 2.01, World Trade Center, Bayside Road, Gibraltar, GX11 1AA

BetVictor have been able to do what so many bookmakers have failed at over the years and that’s to be consistently at the top of their game whilst rebranding numerous times. The change from Victor Chandler through to BetVictor hasn’t always been the smoothest of rides, but now the company and brand are one of the biggest and most distinctive in the industry.

What BetVictor have been able to do so well is just to keep it simple. They possibly don’t have the gimmicks and features that other bookies have, but they have a sweet design and they are about as strong as you will find when it comes to pricing, which are probably the two key areas to seeing long-term success as a bookmaker.

Jump To:Football Racing Usability Casino Banking

Football

Like most bookies, football betting is the bread and butter for BetVictor. The company rely on the sport probably more than any other and it’s the main reason why they get so many punters through the door every day.

What’s been great to see from BetVictor is that they are always moving forward. As stated, they keep things simple, but they make subtle changes that have a big effect. But, it’s their pricing structure that’s had the biggest lure and to hammer home just how good they are, they’ve actually won industry awards as the best priced bookmaker for several years, so it’s not just us banging on about them out of favouritism.

PRICING STRUCTURE

We’ll go on to pricing next, which is probably pretty fitting for BetVictor actually, being their biggest strength. The research we conduct is pretty simple in that we look through certain betting markets and literally compare prices amongst the biggest bookmakers in the industry.

We’ve mentioned it already, but their consistency is definitely what sets them apart from so many bookies. Their pricing structure is really impressive and whilst they aren’t always the best price, they are never far behind. In fact, in all of our comparison and tests, they were never more than 5% off the best price going, which is pretty incredible considering we have tested dozens of markets and bets.

The flip side is that they weren’t outright best priced for all that many games either, which we were actually a little taken aback by. The company have obviously got a plan to offer punters an alternative to having loads of bookmakers on the go at any one time, and to do this they have decided that it’s best for them to simply offer great, but not the best odds as a result.

It’s impressive to see as we can’t think of too many bookies that are as consistent when it comes to betting on football. Even when we moved down the leagues into League 1 and League 2, the games and odds were all very similar, with none falling outside of that 5% buffer that we spoke about earlier.

Now, we are sure there will be times where BetVictor aren’t in this buffer, but conversely, there will also be times when they are outright best price, just as long as the latter occurs more than the former, they are on to a winner here.

MATCH BETTING

In terms of leagues, all the usual suspects are on offer. The main contenders from the UK are that of the Premier League and the Championship, but it is worth mentioning that coverage of lower league fixtures, running right down to that of non-league can also be found. The market coverage doesn’t really start to waiver until you get down past League 2. For all the leagues above this, they are really solid, and it’s been impressive to see just how many there are to choose from.

Whilst the site covers leagues from all over Europe, Asia, the Americas and Africa, it does become a little diluted as you get a little more obscure in your selections. For example, coverage of the Brazilian Serie C league is never going to compete with the likes of La Liga in Spain or Serie A in Italy. Again, all things that we would fully expect to see from a bookmaker of this size though.

The market coverage is again, solid without going over the top. You get around 100 markets in total, which is actually on the small size these days, especially when you consider the likes of 888Sport are offering up over 600 markets on some matches.

To be honest though, you’re not really going to need more than this. Any additional markets to this are either going to be obscure bets that are linked to what’s already there or novelty bets, that aren’t really going to offer any value as they will be almost impossible to research.

What’s there is good though, and there were a couple of markets that really stood out. Combination bets are really popular these days, and the inclusion of the Match Action, 1stGoalscorer Plus and the Goal Scorer Plus markets are all great additions. Essentially for each you choose from the number of goals, corners, yellow cards, first/anytime goalscorer and then time of the goals. You can get really creative here and it allows you to form some nice bets.

As a follow up to this, they have also included their Price It Up builder. It’s a little like the Twitter account version, where you tweet your bet in, but BetVictor have actually coded a program into the site that allows you to form your own bets really quickly. You can jump from markets that include the match result, both teams to score, player and team goals, player and team cards, and corners. Again, you can really go to town with this with some potentially massive winners on offer as a result.

If you are looking for other bet types, then you can still Tweet the BetVictor Twitter page, simply, using the hashtag #PriceItUp and they will load your bets on the site for you.

IN PLAY BETTING

The in-play betting section at BetVictor is a thing of absolute beauty. The reason why it works so well is that it’s quite simple and doesn’t have loads going on, this is until you click on each individual match that is. The homepage also includes a handy favourites section, where you just click the star button next to the game you want to track, and it pins to the top of that page.

Once you jump into the match you get to see in much more detail what’s going on and also a wide range of markets to choose from. The stats at the top of the page are actually pretty basic compared to some, showing the number of corners, yellow and red cards, along with the score. But, it’s the only real negative. The match centre is fast and with great graphics, allowing you to easily track games, then you’ve a full column on the right that just has your bet slip and isn’t cluttered with loads of adds that you don’t really want to see.

We also wanted to make you aware that a lot of the markets and bets within the live section are available to cash out. This is actually something that not all that many bookies offer, rather surprisingly, outside of the match result, so if this is something that you think will benefit your betting strategy, then it’s well worth a go.

Horse Racing

Alongside football, horse racing is another of the most popular sports on the site. The company actually have a long tradition with the sport as it was with this that essentially the bookmaker was started on. It’s also one that they like to invest back into today, sponsoring races and having several races named after the brand as a result.

The website carries on with a host of race and features to utilise for the punters. What you will find is that the coverage is about as good as you’re going to find, especially within the UK and Irish markets.

CONSISTENT PRICING STRUCTURE

In terms of pricing, the horse racing side of the bookmaker is an almost carbon copy of our findings for the football section. They are just so consistent, and we tried to really trip them up, checking some races from tracks that aren’t all that popular, but they were bang on the money almost every time.

We did notice that they are a little more erratic than the football bets when it came to the longer priced odds. For example, we spoke about a 5% buffer for the football odds previously and we would guess that this is more along the lines of 10% for horse racing, which is to be expected, given the number of horses that are involved and the higher odds that some of the longer priced bets include.

What’s been good to see from BetVictor is that they have been doing this for years, as well. They’ve not won awards that we know of, like they have for football, but the site is very familiar to plenty of the team here and everyone says that this has been the case for as long as they can remember. It’s like the old saying goes – if it aint broke, don’t fix it.

UK & IRISH RACING

As racing within the UK and Ireland is so well covered by pretty much all bookies these days, the range of races aren’t all that surprising and to be honest, are about what you would expect from pretty much all major bookies in the industry.

Prices come on for most races the night before, which is something we are big fans of. There is nothing like getting in before the bookies are able to react to any possible changes in either the ground or the line-up for the race, with Antepost rules no longer applying. Again, this is something that is getting more common, but there are still plenty of sites that won’t open these markets until the morning of the race.

BET FINDER

One of the latest features that we loved to test out was that of the Bet Finder that is now available via both the desktop and mobile betting app of BetVictor. Bet Finder allows you to narrow down your search for potential bets throughout the day. You can choose things like horse ability (represented in star rating), if the horse has won at the track, won over that distance, improving horses and even by the price of certain horses. It then spits out the horses that fit the bill and then you can decide to back them or not. It’s not just one of our favourite features on site, but we think it’s one of the best that we have found in the industry to date and an absolute must for beginner bettors looking to find some value from potential bets.

The race card is another section of the site that we think is so cool. It’s linked up with Timeform, so the information that you can take from it is highly substantial. For each race, you are able to see things like the star rating, what Timeform says regarding each horse, what they say on the race overall and then take away some good form information to create your own bets as well if you like.

The site also includes a Bet and Watch service. All you need to do is wager a minimum of £1 and you will gain a live feed of that race to watch either within your browser or via the app if you’re on that.

INTERNATIONAL RACING

International racing on the site is very solid. They include racing from all over the world, but the majority are made up of that of France and the USA. Outside of these, the likes of South Africa and Australia are other well covered racing countries.

We will say that with each of the international races the Timeform section of the racecard is removed. This is pretty common to be honest as they only support that of UK and Ireland races for the most part, but info is easily obtainable from third party form sites online.

ANTEPOST

Antepost betting is another popular section at BetVictor and they are able to serve up a wide range of races to choose from. We really liked that all the meetings and races are neatly separated into sections that allows the users to see where the races are taking place. Too many bookies just have one long list and then name things like “The Gold Cup”, which could be 1 of about 4 that take place all over the world.

Obviously, meetings, such as the Royal Ascot and the Cheltenham Festival are the main contenders, but there is plenty of others to choose from, and even some from across the pound, such as the Breeder’s Cup and the Kentucky Derby, to name just a couple.

Usability

As you’ve probably guessed from this review, we really like the look of the BetVictor bookmaker. In fact, we are going to go as far as saying as it’s the best in the industry right now. There is a certain air of calm and simplicity that we just love and where most sites have flashy banners in your face, often trying to get you to try other betting products which you have no interest in, BetVictor almost just say, welcome, take your time and have a look around, and we love that.

Whilst it’s aesthetically pleasing, it also functions really well. You can skip between pages and markets with absolute ease and then you’re able to find exactly where you were if you get lost by simply using the left-hand sidebar, before getting to your betting market.

MOBILE APP

The betting app is great too. It’s right to the point, no clutter and loads up super-fast, even on poor network signal. But despite how good the app is, BetVictor is one of very few bookies these days that we actually prefer using on our desktop, rather than on our phone or tablet, which is credit to the desktop design team more than anything. We are not taking anything away from the app.

We do have one gripe though and that is a lack of a search function. With a site as big as BetVictor, we really do think it could benefit form one, no matter how well laid out the bookmaker is.

Casino Games

There is a fantastic assortment of slots, blackjack, roulette and scratch games that are easy to play while on the go or just hanging around at home. Anyone looking to enjoy a high quality online gambling experience can rest assured, BetVictor will have them covered.

SLOTS

In terms of the video slots selection they are out performed by few, there’s a huge variety available. Some of the most popular titles on offer include Super Diamond Deluxe, Carnaval, Wish Upon a Jackpot, Spartacus and Starburst.

Of course, you can expect to see the full range of NetEnt titles, as well, with Gonzo’s Quest, Asgardian Stones, Twin Spin, Koi Princess and more on offer. There is also all Microgaming’s most popular games like Immortal Romance, Dragonz and their new Oriental inspired game 88 Fortunes, which uses a unique 88 pay line layout. The games can be ordered by popularity, software provider and release date so you can easily find the right game for you.

ROULETTE

There is a fairly varied range of roulette games available. As you would expect, you’ll find the classic variations of European Roulette, American Roulette and French Roulette. There are some less common game variants including Pinball Roulette and 10p French Roulette. There is also VIP Roulette where table limits are dramatically increased to allow higher stakes.

All these games are available through the Tables tab in the navigation bar and if you want to view all the roulette titles available, simply use the drop-down menu to simplify the list.

BLACKJACK

Like roulette, there is a wide and varied range of blackjack games. Again, you’ll find the classic, simple versions that you expect to find in land based casinos like Standard Blackjack and Realistic Blackjack.

You will also find some unique variants that offer you the ability to place additional wagers in the form of a side bet. Some of these games are Single Deck Blackjack, Perfect Pairs Blackjack, Double Blackjack and VIP Blackjack. The latter of which, again like roulette, allows higher staking players to get in on the action.

VIDEO POKER

This site used to have one of the more varied range of video poker titles, but this has been cut down considerably since then. Now one thing you’ll notice when navigating the video poker games, is that the majority of titles appear twice. This is because you are offered both the one hand, and the multi hand variations of the game where available.

In fact, some of the games have up to 10 hands available to play at once, massively increasing your chances of hitting one of the lucrative royal flush hands. Some of the other video poker games you will find include Jacks or Better, Jacks or Better Multi Hand, Joker Poker, Triple Play Draw Poker, Deuces Wild One Hand, All American Multi Hand and Challenge Poker.

OTHER GAMES

BetVictor offer a massive amount of instant win games and other games. First, you’ll see a variety of baccarat titles. Next up are the poker games, and the range is one of the most comprehensive out of any online casino we’ve reviewed.

You will find titles including Caribbean Stud Poker, 3 Card Poker, Red Dog, Casino Hold ‘Em, Oasis Poker, Euro Poker and Casino War. There is also the game craps, which is relatively rare to see at an online casino today, as it is still largely a land based casino game.

Victor Chandler Bookmakers

Live Dealer Casino

Here, you can enjoy a range of classic casino games played out right in front of your eyes. The live casino works through a live video stream, which sends a real-time stream from the dealer to your computer. You place bets as normal, but instead of it being computerised, a live dealer carries out the actions you choose.

This is a great way to combine online gaming with the thrill you would get from a real casino, and the large choice of games on offer means you’re bound to find a game that suits you. The varied selection of games includes Roulette, Blackjack, Baccarat, 3 Card Poker and Casino Hold ‘Em.

  • Live Dealer Games: Blackjack, Roulette, Casino Hold ‘Em, Baccarat and 3 Card Poker
  • Opening Times: 9am to 5am
  • Limits: Dependant on the game, usually from as little as £1 per hand

Banking

Victor Chandler Bookmakers Online

You’re going to be able to use a number of banking methods on site, including the likes of Visa, Mastercard and PayPal.

There are no fees to be paid for either depositing or withdrawing and withdrawal times will vary from around 24-48 hours for e-wallets, up to 2-5 days for debit cards and then 5-10 days for bank transfers. This could be better but it’s certainly not bad.