A new betting site is only worth your account if it holds a licence to take an Irish bet, so every brand below is checked against its GRAI or Revenue licence position before it earns a place on the list. You can confirm any of them yourself in seconds on the GRAI public register, which has been live since 1 July 2026.
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Each new entrant is ranked on the things that decide whether it is worth your time, market depth, price and product, never on offers. Where a fixture needs judging, form is read through the sports science testing archive published on this site since 1997. If you are weighing new Irish bookmakers, start with the licence, then the prices.
Best New Betting Sites in Ireland Reviewed
Here is the detail behind each ranking, one review per new entrant in the order above. A fresh name tells you nothing about how deep the markets run, whether the prices hold up, or how quickly a withdrawal clears, so that is what each review weighs.
1. TipTop Sports
TipTop Sports is one of the newest names to open to Irish customers, and its clean, fast mobile app is the standout, with a bet builder and cash out that both held up well under testing. The catch is depth on the markets Irish punters care about most, its GAA and Irish racing coverage is still filling out, so you will find fewer outright and player markets than at an established book. It sits under a GRAI remote betting licence, which is worth a quick check on the register before your first deposit.
👉 Read our full TipTop review.
2. LiveScoreBet Sports
LiveScoreBet is the most established name in this set and the natural benchmark for the newer brands. Backed by the LiveScore media platform, its live betting and in play score integration are the clear strength, and football coverage runs deep with quick in play settlement. Its GAA championship pricing is thinner than a dedicated racing or Gaelic specialist, so a hurling or football punter chasing player props will want to compare lines elsewhere first. It has been taking Irish bets longer than the newer entrants here.
👉 Read our full LiveScoreBet review.
3. Casina Sport
Casina Sport is one of the more complete platforms in this set, pairing a broad sportsbook with a large live casino under a single account, and the product itself is polished and easy to use. The one thing to be clear on is its licence position, Casina operates under a Curacao Gaming Control Board licence rather than a GRAI remote betting licence or an unexpired Revenue permission.
👉 Read our full Casina review for the current licence position.
4. Festival Play Sport
Festival Play Sport is built for the racing punter. Each way terms and non runner rules are clearer than most new entrants, and fractional prices are shown alongside decimal, which matters on Irish and UK racing. Away from the horses it is narrower, its football and in play offering trails the bigger names, so it suits a racing led bettor more than an all rounder who wants a deep multi sport book.
👉 Read our full Festival Play review.
5. Hiperwin Sport
Hiperwin Sport is among the least proven brands in this set. Its Irish facing product was still settling at the time of review, with thin coverage on Irish specific markets and an app that felt earlier in development than the names above it. Market depth, app stability and withdrawal handling all need to be tested over time before it can be judged properly, so treat it as an unproven entrant and keep any first stake small.
6. DirectionBet Sport
DirectionBet Sport is the other newcomer still to prove itself with Irish customers. As with any brand new platform, the open questions are withdrawal speed, verification times and how deep the Irish markets really go once you are inside. There is not yet enough of a track record to say how it settles disputes or handles a busy weekend, so test a small withdrawal early rather than after a large win, and see how it performs before committing a bankroll.
What Makes a Betting Site New in Ireland
A betting site can be new in Ireland in three different ways, and the difference matters before you hand over any money.
A Brand New Operator with Its Own Irish Licence
A genuinely new company that has just launched and holds its own GRAI remote betting licence or an unexpired Revenue permission. It is new in every sense, so the questions to ask are about product maturity and withdrawal handling rather than legitimacy.
An Established Operator New to Irish Customers
A brand that has traded for years in another market and has only now opened to Irish customers. The platform is proven elsewhere, but its Irish market depth, GAA and racing especially, and its Irish payment support are what you are really testing.
A White Label or Rebrand on an Existing Platform
A new name running on a platform that is not new at all, through a white label or a rebrand. The branding is fresh but the operator behind it may have a long record, good or bad, so look past the name to the company and licence named in the site footer.
On this page a brand qualifies as a new betting site if it opened to Irish customers recently and holds a licence to accept an Irish bet.
How We Check Every New Irish Bookmaker Before We List It
Every new entrant runs through the same checks in the same order, licence first, then the things that decide whether the site is actually good to bet with, and finally the player protections that must be in place from day one.
| Check | What we look for | Why it matters on a new site |
|---|---|---|
|
Licence position |
GRAI remote betting licence, or an unexpired Revenue permission during transition |
Determines whether the brand can lawfully take your bet at all |
|
Market depth |
GAA, Irish and UK racing, football, rugby and in play coverage |
New books often launch thin on Irish specific markets |
|
Price |
Implied probability against the established books on the same market |
The clearest way to see whether a new site is actually competitive |
|
Product |
App stability, bet builder, cash out and in play speed |
Newer platforms are where the gaps usually show |
|
Payments |
Irish methods, verification steps and stated withdrawal times |
The most common early complaint against a new brand |
|
Player controls |
Deposit limits, time outs, self exclusion and reality checks |
These must be present from day one, not promised later |
The price check is where a new site earns its place or loses it. We take a market this page covers, convert the price to an implied probability with our implied probability calculator, and compare it against the established books using line shopping, switching between decimal and fractional with the odds converter where racing prices need it. Any brand can claim its prices are sharp, this comparison shows whether they actually are.
Where a fixture is too close to call on recent results alone, the editorial team reads form through the fitness testing archive published on this site since 1997, judging a match on workload and recovery data rather than just the last few scorelines. It is the same reasoning used to sense check a new book’s price against how the established books have settled a market.
What the GRAI Rules Mean for New Betting Sites
The Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland began issuing remote betting licences on 1 July 2026 under the Gambling Regulation Act 2024, and any operator taking bets from Irish customers needs that licence or an unexpired Revenue permission while the transition runs. In person betting licences follow from 1 December 2026. A brand that launched this year is new in the ordinary sense, but the licence question is what decides whether it can lawfully take your bet.
You can check a brand yourself in three places. The licence detail in the site footer, which must name the authorising body and show a licence number. The GRAI public register of licence holders, live and searchable at grai.ie since 1 July 2026, where every active licensee appears with its licence number, category and issue date. And the Revenue lists for any brand still trading on an unexpired bookmaker permission. If a site shows only an offshore licence, a Curacao reference for example, and is not on the GRAI register, it is not licensed to take your Irish bet, however established the name looks.
Which betting sites are legal in Ireland comes down to exactly this. A betting site is legal for Irish customers if it holds a GRAI remote betting licence or an unexpired Revenue remote bookmaker permission during the transition. Everything else, whatever licence it may hold in another jurisdiction, is not authorised to accept your bet in Ireland. Treat that as the first filter, ahead of price or product, and for the established Irish market beyond new entrants see our betting sites Ireland hub.
Two further rules work in your favour. Licensees are prohibited from accepting credit cards or facilitating credit for gambling, so no legitimate Irish site will let you fund an account on credit. A statutory advertising watershed keeps gambling ads off television and radio between 5.30am and 9.00pm. And a National Gambling Exclusion Register is coming, a central self exclusion route every licensee must join once it is in force.
How to Open an Account with a New Irish Betting Site
Opening an account with a new bookmaker follows the same order every time, and the first step is the one that protects you.
- Confirm the brand is licensed to accept Irish customers before anything else, a GRAI licence or an unexpired Revenue permission, checked on the register.
- Register and complete identity and age verification, 18 plus.
- Set a deposit limit before your first deposit, not after.
- Fund the account with a supported Irish payment method, and check the stated withdrawal route for the same method.
- Place a small first bet on a market you already follow and watch how the site settles it. Our first bet guide walks through it.
- Test a withdrawal early, while the balance is small, rather than after a big win.
Sports and Markets Worth Testing on a New Site
The fastest way to tell whether a new book is built for Ireland or ported in from elsewhere is to test the markets Irish punters actually use.
GAA Betting on New Irish Sites
GAA is the clearest test of all. Look past the match winner at hurling and Gaelic football depth, outright and player markets, and check whether championship pricing appears at all, since many new books launch without it. A site built for Ireland prices the GAA properly. See our GAA betting hub and hurling betting, and for form context our Yo-Yo intermittent recovery test page shows why workload data reads championship fitness better than recent results.
Irish and UK Racing
Racing is where terms matter. Check each way terms, non runner rules and whether fractional prices are shown alongside decimal, which serious racing punters expect. A new book that gets the racing terms right has done its Irish homework. See our horse racing hub.
Football and Rugby
Football and rugby are where bet builder depth and in play speed separate new platforms, since that is the hardest part to get right at launch. See our football hub and rugby hub, and the live betting guide for what good in play actually looks like.
Payment Methods at New Irish Betting Sites
A new Irish bookmaker should support the methods Irish customers actually use, debit card, Revolut, PayPal, Apple Pay and bank transfer. Credit cards are off the table by law, no licensed Irish site may let you fund gambling on credit, which is a safeguard rather than a limitation.
Expect identity verification before your first withdrawal rather than at sign up, so complete it early to avoid a delay when you want to cash out. Our payment methods page covers the detail.
Risks to Weigh Before You Move to a New Bookmaker
A new site can be a good move, but it is worth weighing the trade offs plainly. Markets can be thin at launch, especially the Irish specific ones. Verification can be slower than at an established book. Customer support hours may be limited. Withdrawal handling is unproven until you test it. And during the licensing transition there is a real chance a brand pauses or withdraws from the Irish market, which is the newest risk of all.
If something goes wrong, you have recourse. Raise a complaint with the operator first, and if it is not resolved, the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland now holds enforcement and complaints functions and can act against a licensee. That backstop only exists if the brand is licensed in Ireland, which is one more reason the licence check comes first. A new site earns trust through testing, not assumption.
Responsible Gambling in Ireland
The minimum gambling age in Ireland is 18, and free, confidential help is available at any time if it stops being fun. These are the Irish services to know.
- National Gambling Helpline, 1800 936 725, free and confidential, 24 hours a day, listed on the GRAI Get Help portal and on gamblingcare.ie.
- Extern Problem Gambling, free counselling across the island of Ireland, problemgambling.ie.
- Gamblers Anonymous Ireland and Gam-Anon, peer and family support, gamblersanonymous.ie.
- HSE addiction services, treatment routes through hse.ie, and MABS where gambling has caused money difficulties.
- The Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland, the regulator and the route for a complaint against a licensee.
A National Gambling Exclusion Register is coming as the central self exclusion route every licensee must join, though it is not yet in force. In the meantime, use the on site controls every licensed book must provide, deposit limits, time outs, reality checks and self exclusion, and set them before you start, not after a loss.
For the full local picture see our responsible gambling in Ireland page, and for staking sensibly our bankroll management guide. 18 plus only.
FAQ
Which betting sites are legal in Ireland?
A betting site is legal for Irish customers if it holds a GRAI remote betting licence, or an unexpired Revenue remote bookmaker permission while the transition runs. A licence held only in another jurisdiction, a Curacao reference in the footer for example, does not authorise a site to accept your Irish bet. Check the GRAI public register at grai.ie first, ahead of price or product.
What counts as a new betting site in Ireland?
New covers three cases. A genuinely new operator that has just launched and holds its own Irish authorisation. An established brand from another market that has only now opened to Irish customers. And a new name running on an existing platform through a white label or rebrand, where the branding is fresh but the operator behind it may not be. The third case is the one to watch, so look past the name to the company and licence named in the footer.
How do I check if a new bookmaker is licensed in Ireland?
Check the GRAI public register at grai.ie, live and searchable since 1 July 2026, where every active licensee appears with its licence number, category and issue date. Cross check the licence number shown in the site footer, and for a brand still trading on an unexpired bookmaker permission check the Revenue lists. If a site shows only an offshore licence and is not on the GRAI register, it is not licensed to take your Irish bet.
Are new Irish betting sites safe to use?
A new site is safe to use when it holds a GRAI remote betting licence or an unexpired Revenue permission and provides the player controls every licensee must offer, deposit limits, time outs, reality checks and self exclusion. The practical risks with any new brand are thinner markets at launch, slower verification and withdrawal handling that is unproven until you test it, so start small and test a withdrawal early. A licensed brand also gives you recourse through the GRAI if something goes wrong.
What changed for betting sites in Ireland under the GRAI?
The Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland was established under the Gambling Regulation Act 2024 and began issuing remote betting licences on 1 July 2026, with in person betting licences following from 1 December 2026. It now holds enforcement and complaints functions, publishes a public register of licensees, prohibits licensees from accepting credit cards for gambling, and enforces a statutory advertising watershed that keeps gambling ads off television and radio between 5.30am and 9.00pm. A National Gambling Exclusion Register is also coming as a central self exclusion route.
Can I use a credit card at a new Irish betting site?
No. Licensees are prohibited from accepting credit cards or facilitating credit for gambling, so no legitimate Irish site will let you fund an account on credit. Use a supported Irish method instead, such as a debit card, Revolut, PayPal, Apple Pay or bank transfer. The prohibition is a consumer protection point rather than a limitation.
Do new betting sites cover GAA markets?
Some do and some do not, which is why GAA is the clearest test of whether a book is built for Ireland or ported in from elsewhere. Look past the match winner at hurling and Gaelic football depth, outright and player markets, and check whether championship pricing appears at all, since many new books launch without it. A site built for Ireland prices the GAA properly.
How long does a withdrawal take at a new betting site?
Withdrawal times vary by brand and by payment method, and stated times are one of the checks each review covers. With a new brand the first withdrawal is often the slowest, because identity verification usually happens before it rather than at sign up, so complete verification early and test a small withdrawal while the balance is low rather than after a big win.