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Smart Live Sports Review

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Smart Live Summary

The operating license of Smart Live Sports was suspended by the UK Gambling Commission as of 05/08/2016 – https://calvinayre.com/2016/08/05/business/uk-gambling-commission-suspend-smart-live-gaming-license-pending-suitability-review/

Smart Live Gaming (owned by Smart Gaming Group) are an online casino, who offer a bookmaker. Initially starting out as a live TV casino, the company went online in 2010. They have their offices in London and are fully regulated and licenced by the UK Gambling Commission (they also have a Maltese licence).

With the casino seemingly Smart Live Gaming’s priority, has enough attention been paid to the Smart Live Sports, and is it worth opening an account with the firm? We find out.

  • US Players: No
  • Site founded: 2010
  • License: Malta and UK
  • Bonus Bet: £20 get £80
  • Bonus Rollover: N/A
  • Last Updated:11/01/2017
  • Mobile Compatible: Yes
  • Payment Methods: Maestro, Mastercard, Visa Debit/Credit/Electron, Solo, Switch, Neteller, Skrill, Ukash, iBanq

Smart Live Features

  • Bet £20, get £80 welcome offer
  • A total of 22 sports to bet on
  • 24/7 customer service

Smart Live Pros

  • Mobile app offers access to the casino and bookmaker
  • 100% cash back on losing singles placed
  • Double odds on first goal scorer bets

Smart Live Cons

  • Website only available in English and Chinese
  • Prices are not fantastic

Website

A black, grey, green and white colour scheme is used, and the site follows the standard bookmaker layout –a list of sports down the left hand side of the page, selected events, live betting and upcoming events in the centre of the page, bet slip on the right hand side and log in at the top. There is also a useful search bar located on the upper left hand side of the page which enables customers to quickly locate their desired bet/market. Unfortunately the site isn’t the most responsive, and when moving from market to market, the loading time can be long. Another gripe would have to be the layout of the sub markets. For instance, when selecting horse racing, the markets for the current days racing are jumbled in with the early priced races for the following day, which is messy and illogical.

There is a mobile app which offers access to the casino, live casino and bookie. It is available on iOS devices at the Apple store, or can be downloaded for Android from Google Play. The app is easy enough to navigate around and the sub markets are listed in a slightly neater and easier to find format than on the desktop site.

Languages

The Smart Live Sports website is currently only available in English and Chinese.

Markets

There are a total of 22 sports on offer. As the firm primarily focus on UK customers, it comes as no surprise that football and horse racing sit at the top of the list. All other major sports are covered, and some smaller events such as floorball and pesapallo also have fixtures priced up (the latter named is a Finnish bat and ball game not featured with many firms).

When it comes to football betting, there are odds from a very impressive 68 countries around the world, including Philippines and Thailand. The number of additional bets for games is reasonable – in the English Premier League, there are typically 90-95 bet types on top of the regular 1X2 fare.

For basketball matches, the number of additional bet types weighs in at between 10-15 depending on the league and country, and for ice hockey there are usually between 5-20 extra bets, including Asian handicap, correct score, over/under etc. Smart Live Gaming (Sports) usually only offer the 1X2 and a couple of additional bets for boxing matches and other sports are limited in their market depth.

Odds

Smart Live Sports sit in and around the industry standard for the total book percentages for English Premier League games, typically working to 105-106%. This is in line with firms like Coral, Ladbrokes, and SkyBet.

Ice hockey matches typically work to 109.5-110%, which isn’t terrible for the European leagues, but a large number of firms have more generous books for the NHL games. Similar percentages can be found in the NBA and European basketball. Handball matches are usually compiled to a slightly higher book, averaging 111.5-112.5%

The early prices for the horse racing markets are actually competitive. Ninety minutes before a six runner race at Wolverhampton, Smart Live Gaming (Sports) book compiled to 110.7%. This was better than Ladbrokes, whose odds worked out to a meaty 114.8%. It is however worth noting that Smart Live Gaming (Sports) don’t offer best odds guaranteed on their racing.

Overall, none of the sports have outrageously high margins, but none are market leading either.

Promotions

A ‘Bet £20, get £80’ offer is provided by Smart Live Sports. In order to qualify for the offer, customers must

  • Place first bet containing at least one £20 selection with odds of 1.50 or higher. This bet will be matched with a free bet up to £20.
  • The second £20 will be released after customers place a further 5 losing £20 bets with selections having odds of 1.50 or bigger
  • The third £20 will be released after a further 5 losing £20 bets with the same conditions
  • The fourth £20 will be released with a further 5 losing bets with the same conditions

So, while it is advertised as ‘Bet £20, get £80’, in reality the offer is bet £20, get a £20 free bet, then lose £300 and get £60 in free bets. Players from Australia, Canada, Hungary, New Zealand, Poland, Romania, Russia, Ukraine and Croatia are not eligible for any promotion.

There are a range of other promotions on offer, including 100% cash back on losing singles placed on the football, when the match ends 0-0 (up to a value of £75), and double odds on first goal scorer bets when they notch in the first 20 minutes of play. For the lovers of the accumulator, when betting on the top five leagues from Europe, Smart Live Gaming (Sports) will refund customers up to £100 when just one team in their bet loses. The promotions definitely seem attractive for lovers of football.

Customer Services

As the firm have a large casino operation, their customer services are manned 24/7/365. They can be accessed through a number of different methods:

  • Telephone -+44-(0)800-279-8510
  • Email – support@smartlivecasino.com
  • Live chat
  • Post – 233 High Holborn, London WC1V 7DN, United Kingdom

Review

Smart Live Sports have a good selection of sports, okay odds and a solid customer service. Licenced in the UK and Malta, they comply with IBAS and as such will adhere to any decision of the service in the event of a dispute with a customer. Their customer services are comprehensive and available 24/7 which is encouraging. Although the prices are not fantastic and the website isn’t the best, the promotions for football lovers are quite attractive. No reason not to open an account with the firm.