If there’s one thing that cannot be argued with, it’s the fact that we in the UK are a nation of sports lovers. We could in fact be called a ‘sport nation’ – which is probably where these guys get their name from. We in the UK are fast becoming a nation of online casino lovers as well, so it’s a good job the people at SportNation.bet (which, as you might have guessed from the title, is mainly an online sports book) have put together an online casino for all of us to enjoy.
SportNation.bet is an online wagering site that’s run by Argyll Entertainment AG, a company that is based in Switzerland. Argyll has a number of other wagering concerns, including RedZoneSports, another sports book/online casino hybrid. The UK Gambling Commission licenses both of Argyll’s sites.
Welcome bonus
There’s a real warm welcome for new customers at the SportNation.bet Casino. This promotion is different to the usual type of bonus you see at online casinos, and is a £50 bonus to use on live dealer games.
If you’re not familiar with the concept of live dealer games, then let us educate you! As opposed to a software-based game, the ‘action’ with a live dealer games takes place in a specially-adapted TV studio where real cards are dealt, and a real roulette wheel is used. The action is beamed back to your PC, laptop, tablet or smartphone screen via a live video feed. You make all the decisions you need such as placing your bets via a software interface.
With this deal from SportNation.bet Casino, you first need to make a deposit of your own money of at least £20. Make sure you use the promo code ‘SN50LIVE‘ when you make your qualifying deposit else you will not get a bonus. The casino will match your deposit with bonus funds up to the maximum limit of £50, so if you do happen to deposit more than £50, you anything in excess of that £50 boundary will not be matched with bonus cash.
You are free to use your bonus cash on ANY game that’s within the ‘live games’ section of the SportNation.bet Casino site. Before you can withdraw any remaining bonus cash or any winnings derived from it, you will need to meet wagering conditions. These are set at twenty times the amount of your bonus and deposit, and once you’ve completed them all the money in your bonus account becomes available to withdraw.
Note that you have thirty days from the award of your bonus to complete your turnover requirements. If you fail to do so by the end of this period, your bonus money will be forfeited. You cannot use software-based casino games or the site’s associated sports betting services to meet your wagering needs.
Range of games
If variety is truly the spice of life then SportsNation.bet Casino is truly one spicy site!
The main dish served at this impressive online casino is online slots games. If you’re a slots gourmet then you’ll be licking your lips at the fare that is on offer here. With titles by the best in the business – including NetEnt and Microgaming – there’s so much to get thrilled about. All the classics are available, including Starburst, Immortal Romance and Gonzo’s Quest. We counted almost five hundred online slots available to play here – yes, you heard that right … FIVE HUNDRED!
Not everyone is a slotty fan of course so it’s a good job the SportNation.bet Casino has made moves to cover those who prefer to keep away from the virtual slot machine halls. The site has:
- 27 versions of roulette
- 39 versions of blackjack
- 12 versions of video poker
- 13 versions of texas hold’em
- 9 versions of baccarat
That has to be one of the most impressive lists of games that we’ve ever seen. We couldn’t find any scratch cards or arcade style games, but when there’s so much other stuff on offer, who cares?
We’ve already mentioned the live casino that’s available here. There are four varieties of games available – roulette, blackjack, baccarat and casino hold’em. Both blackjack and casino hold’em can be played on your mobile device.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Lots and lots and lots of games
- Truly excellent site design
- Thrilling promos for existing customers
- Excellent sports book attached
Cons
- No VIP scheme
- Support could be more responsive
- eWallets not accepted
Layout and usability
SportNation.bet Casino’s site is as pleasing to look at as it is functional. Although they have gone for the ‘dull old’ online casino background of black, they’ve spiced this up a little (again) by choosing a nice shade of orange as their highlight colour. Highly effective.
The site is easy to navigate around. The menus are simple and useful, and despite the huge number of games available you will easily be able to select the title that you want to play with the minimum of fuss. The site has one feature that we always like to see when it comes to online casinos – you can filter by provider (there are four in total – NetEnt, Microgaming, iSoftBet and Play’n GO! – plus Evolution Gaming for all the live casino games). It’s a site that’s been well thought-out and designed almost to perfection.
We love the mobile version of this site too. No matter whether you are using the site on a smart phone or tablet, it works just as well as the desktop site.
Promotions for existing players
At the time of this review SportNation.bet Casino was holding a quite staggering promotion – a slots race with a £2,000 first prize and a total prize fund of £5,000! The slots race was based around the popular online slot Disco Double. This is a five-reel, twenty-line slot with all the extra features needed to make for an entertaining slots game.
Every £1 wagered on the slot would earn a player five points on the slots leaderboard and as an extra feature – every time the ‘Disco Double’ symbol landed twice on reels one, two or three in the game, the lucky player’s total would be doubled! At the end of the qualifying period the lucky slots fan who finished atop the slotting pile walked away with £2,000! All players whom finished in the top twenty-five won a prize, and ALL players who collected a minimum of 5,000 points were allotted a ticket in a prize draw with the winner taking home £5,000!
We feel the above serves as excellent evidence that SportsNation.bet Casino takes care of its regular players just as well as it serves its new customers!
VIP/Loyalty scheme
We didn’t think that SportNation.bet had a VIP scheme – the site makes no mention of it, and when we asked support we initially didn’t get any response, even though we asked within the period when live support was allegedly available. After seven minutes we did get a reply, and they confirmed that no VIP scheme is available here.
Special features
Live support is not 24/7 here – it’s only open between noon and 10pm (GMT) every day. Having said that (as mentioned above) we found we had to wait a long time (seven minutes) before our query was answered.
Other betting options
Let’s see now … with a name like ‘SportNation’ there’s a possibility that the SportNation.bet Casino has a sports book attached? Hmmm … it’s a bit of a redundant question!
The sports betting section available in tandem with the casino is simply magnificent! All the major sporting markets are covered, and most of the minor ones too. There’s live betting as well, and you can even play a few online casino games via this section of the site while you are waiting for events that you have a wager on to conclude.
There’s a live betting section too, so you can bet on events that are already in progress, and you can cash-out winning bets before they’ve concluded to secure your funds (albeit for a reduced pay-out). New users of the SportNation.bet sports book can also claim a fifty percent bonus on their first deposit at the site, up to a maximum of £200. There are several caveats attached to this bonus, so make sure you check the site’s T&Cs before you apply for one in order to avoid disappointment.
So far SportNation.bet’s wagering interest only stretches to the online casino and sports book. There are no online bingo or online poker options here.
Conclusion
We’d love to give SportNation.bet Casino the full five-star reward, but there are two ‘must have’ boxes that this online casino fails to tick. Firstly, you can only use credit and debit cards (and bank transfers) here – no eWallets allowed! Secondly, live support should be available around the clock, and not just at specific times.
If you can overlook these two omissions, then it’s more then likely you’re going to have a very good time here – especially if you’re into sports betting as a side line to your online casino play (or vice versa). The number of games is truly exceptional, and we heartily applaud the way the site has been put together.
Hopefully with SportNation.bet Casino you’ll find yourself within a casino nation that’ll become your new favourite wagering destination.
Money Options
- Payment methods available: Visa, MasterCard, bank transfer.
- Currencies available: GBP, EUR.
- Deposit limits: Min: £5; Max: None mentioned.
- Withdrawal limits: Min: £10; Max: None mentioned.
- Withdrawal times: Credit/Debit Cards: 3-5 days; eWallets: not available; Bank transfers: 3-5 days; Cheques: not offered.
- Pending time: 24-48 hours.
